Trump Weighs In on H-1B Visas Supported by Elon Musk

President-elect Donald J. Trump on Saturday appeared to weigh in on a heated debate among his supporters over the role of skilled immigrant workers in the U.S. economy, saying he regularly uses visas for these workers and supports the program.

“I have a lot of H-1B visas on my property,” he told new york post. “I’ve always been a believer in H-1B. I’ve used it many times. It’s a great program.

But his comments – which were warmly welcomed by the tech industry as an endorsement – could make things more confusing, as Trump appears to have made only limited use of the H-1B visa program, which allows software engineers and others to Skilled workers can work in the United States for up to three years, which can be extended to six years.

Instead, he has long and frequently used the similarly named but distinct H-2B visa program (for unskilled workers like gardeners and housekeepers) and the H-2A program (for agricultural workers). These visas allow workers to stay in the country for 10 months. Federal data shows that Trump’s companies have been allowed to hire more than 1,000 workers through two H-2 programs over the past 20 years.

The Trump transition team did not respond to multiple requests for comment seeking to clarify the type of visa the president-elect was referring to in the interview.

But it did respond to a previous inquiry about Trump’s stance on work visas, sharing the text of a speech he gave in 2020 that praised American citizens for their work in building the country, stating that ” Americans must not ignore this amazing story.” During the 2016 campaign, Trump spoke out against the H-1B program, calling it “very bad for workers” and saying “we should end it.”

Still, Saturday’s news report set off a wave of celebration among the tech industry and supporters of Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, who has been an outspoken advocate for H-1B visas.

Social media influencer Ian Miles Cheong, who has 1.1 million followers on X, posted, “Donald Trump supports Elon Musk for H-1B visa.”

Mr. Musk, a naturalized citizen born in South Africa, has stated that he holds H-1B visas, he responded to another post claiming the president-elect supports skilled worker visas with just one word: “Indeed.”

Musk has often said the visas are necessary due to a shortage of U.S. citizens capable of doing the jobs tech companies need. “There will always be a shortage of good engineering talent,” he wrote on Christmas Day on X, the platform he acquired in 2022 for $44 billion.

Visas for skilled workers have become a highly polarizing topic among Trump followers, many of whom oppose all types of immigration and have called for the country’s borders to be closed.

That’s in stark contrast to his backers from Silicon Valley, which have long relied on programmers entering the U.S. on H-1B visas to supplement their workforce.

debate reach boiling point Trump loyalists including right-wing activist Laura Loomer have attacked the visas on social media over the past week, calling them a threat to American workers and national sovereignty.

“I anticipate that this poses a national security risk,” she told The New York Times.

An increasingly heated social media spat between the two camps eventually led to Loomer losing her verified identity on X, cutting off her income from her 1.4 million followers. (She still hadn’t returned to her verified status Saturday night, though she noted that Saturday Still charging her $16 monthly fee to obtain this status.

Musk made a sexual comment on Saturday, attacking critics of the visa, and then said the H-1B visa was the reason companies like SpaceX and Tesla were strong. Tesla has received 724 H-1B visas this year.

Stephen K. Bannon, a close adviser to the president-elect and a self-described “populist nationalist” who opposes immigration, retweeted Musk’s comments online, calling the billionaire a “toddler.” ”.

In an interview Saturday, he said he opposes H-1B and H-2 visas, claiming they drive down wages for American workers while increasing profits for billionaires.

“This is war,” Mr. Bannon said. “I’m glad we’re having this debate before Trump takes office.”

Both the H-1B and H-2 programs are regulated by the U.S. Department of Labor, and each program has different regulations. Currently, the skilled worker program is capped at 65,000 people per year, and tech companies have pushed to increase that number.

The H-2B visa is for non-agricultural unskilled workers with a cap of 66,000, while the H-2A visa is for agricultural workers with no cap but is limited to certain sectors of the industry.

From 2003 to 2017, Mr. Trump’s company received more than 1,000 H-2 visas for chefs, butlers and services at its hotels, including Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, and Trump National Golf Club Students and other jobs. In each case, the company must prove that no U.S. citizens can perform the jobs.

During his first presidential term, his companies continued to hire H-2 workers, Mail visa application For example, Mar-a-Lago had 78 housekeepers, cooks and food servers in mid-2018.

Federal records show that Trump’s companies have applied for more than a dozen H-1B visas since 2019, but most of those applications — for quality control manager positions — were subsequently withdrawn.

The most recent H-1B petition, issued in 2022 by Trump Media & Technology Group, which operates the Truth Social platform, seeks a “product data analyst” with a salary of $65,000. It’s unclear whether the position has been filled.

Mr. Trump’s current winery is located in Charlottesville, Virginia. Looking for 31 foreign vineyard farm workers Under the H-2A program, $15.81 per hour is provided.

Jeremy Singer-Vine, Maggie Haberman and Ryan Mack Contributed reporting.