Days before Donald Trump is sworn in as US president, a row over H-1B visas has erupted between his tech allies and supporters of the far-right MAGA (Make America Great Again) agenda.

Former White House adviser Steve Bannon accuses Elon Musk of trying to create ‘technological feudalism’ around the world fresh sides This week against the billionaire businessman.

Bannon made pointed remarks about the controversial visa program that allows highly skilled technical workers to be hired from overseas, while others around Trump, such as entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, also tried to argue Says U.S. companies need well-trained foreign workers.

That argument has been criticized not only by Bannon but also by other far-right supporters of Trump — even though Musk and Ramaswamy, whom Trump tapped to cut government spending in the new administration, are now have softened their stance on H-1B visas. After facing backlash, the tech giant said the scheme needed reform.

But what is it about the H-1B program that is dividing Trump’s allies? Why so divisive? Has Trump’s own about-face on the issue contributed to tensions within the MAGA movement? How will Trump handle the divide between his “MAGA” base and Big Tech — an industry that has traditionally leaned Democratic but has done almost everything it can to appease the incoming president in recent weeks?

Has Trump changed his stance on H-1B visas?

H-1B is a temporary, non-immigrant U.S. visa that allows U.S. companies to bring in highly skilled workers from abroad.

In 2016, Trump called the program, introduced under Republican President George HW Bush in the 1990s, “very, very bad” for American workers.

Months before the end of his first presidential term in 2020, Trump imposed a temporary ban on H-1B visas that was later overturned by a federal court.

But less than five years later, the US president-elect threw his weight behind the visa program, saying: “It’s a great program.”

“I have a lot of H-1B visas on my property. I’ve always been a believer in H-1B,” he told the New York Post.

The comments come as Musk faces pushback from MAGA supporters.

Musk played a key role in Trump’s victory, pumping money into the presidential campaign and using X to promote hardline MAGA views. That earned him Trump’s goodwill and influence.

But Trump pushed back against the idea that Musk has outsized influence. “No, he’s not going to be president,” Trump said during a speech in December, days after the Tesla owner led an effort to veto a spending bill in Congress.

Experts say Trump needs to strike a delicate balance between Silicon Valley elites and his “Make America Great Again” base.

What is the H-1B visa—and which companies benefit the most?

Jeanne Batalova, a senior policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank, said the H-1B is the “largest temporary work visa” program in the United States.

There is an annual cap on the number of guaranteed H-1B visas, at 65,000 H-1B visas per fiscal year. This is determined by a lottery system, which randomly selects applicants when the number of visa applications exceeds the upper limit.

Foreign workers must be employed in a professional occupation with at least a bachelor’s degree. Employers sponsor foreign workers from the fields of information technology, medicine and publishing. The visa is valid for three years but can be extended to six years.

U.S. and Indian technology companies, as well as some consulting firms, lead the initiative. Six of the top 10 beneficiaries of the program in 2024 are American companies: Amazon, Cognizant, IBM, Microsoft, Google and Meta, according to the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP), a nonpartisan think tank on trade and immigration. Three are Indian: Infosys, TCS and HCL. French technology and consulting company Capgemini also made the list.

But there’s another major new beneficiary of the plan, according to NFAP: Musk’s electric car giant Tesla. In 2024, Tesla won 742 new H-1B visas through the lottery, more than double the 328 in 2023. In addition, Tesla extended another 1,025 existing H-1B visas in 2024.

“Due to data limitations, we do not have a good understanding of the total number of H-1B visa holders currently in the United States. However, as of 2019, there were nearly 600,000 highly skilled immigrants working in the U.S. economy on H-1B visas. To In 2024, approximately 120,000 immigrant workers will receive new H-1B visas,” Batalova said.

However, it’s not just MAGA advocates who have criticized the plan.

Ronil Sheila, associate professor of political science at Howard University, said the H-1B program needs reform. He said problems plaguing the program included a poor screening process, “eligibility standards were too low so applications were swamped in the lottery” and “visa recipients were selected through a lottery rather than rational criteria”.

What is the debate about H-1B visas?

The latest controversy began when far-right conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer criticized Trump’s pick for artificial intelligence (AI) adviser Sriram Krishnan, who believes the United States needs more More foreign skilled workers to remain competitive in the technology industry.

On December 28, Musk threatened to “go to war” on this issue.

“I was able to come to the United States because of H-1B, along with so many key people who created SpaceX, Tesla and hundreds of other companies that made America great,” Musk wrote.

Musk was born in South Africa and held an H-1B visa before becoming a U.S. citizen.

Ramaswamy joined the debate, saying tech companies hire foreign-born workers because of cultural differences.

“A culture that celebrates prom queens instead of Math Olympiad champions, or athletes instead of valedictorians, will not produce the best engineers,” he wrote, without mentioning the H-1B visa.

But he later clarified that the H-1B system was “severely damaged (and) should be replaced.”

Bannon, who served during Trump’s previous term, called the H-1B program a “total scam” because it allows tech companies to bring in cheap labor from abroad at the expense of American workers. He called for H-1B visa holders to be deported as part of a broader deportation plan.

He was particularly critical of Musk, saying the Tesla owner’s “only goal is to become a trillionaire. That’s his goal,” Bannon said tell italian newspapersCorriere della Sera, January 8

“He would do anything relevant to make sure that any one of his companies was protected or had a better deal, or that he made more money. His aggregation of wealth and then power through wealth: that’s what he focused on . The working people of America will not tolerate this kind of behavior.”

Batalova explained that immigration has long been a contentious policy area in the United States. “Two existential views are vying for the hearts and minds of the American public and voters,” she said.

She articulated a view that migrant workers, such as those on H-1B visas, are contributors to U.S. economic strength and global competitiveness. Another view views immigrant workers as competitors for employment opportunities and limited economic resources.

Batalova added that the fight has now returned “in large part due to voter dissatisfaction with the government’s handling of immigration in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as discussions about economic security and national competitiveness.” , especially discussions about China.”

“Major tech companies and business groups continue to lobby for an expansion of the program, arguing it is critical to maintaining America’s innovative edge. However, layoffs in the tech industry, coupled with cases of worker replacement at various companies, provide H-1B critics with a argument.”

Who else has criticized H-1B?

Criticism of the H-1B visa also comes from the left.

On December 29, Democratic Representative Ro Khanna told Fox News that H-1B needs reform.

“You can’t underpay these H-1B people coming in,” Khanna said. The program “shouldn’t be for accountants or entry-level IT jobs. It really should be for exceptional people. We should keep that balance.”

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders also criticized the H-1B visa program. He posted on

Elon Musk is wrong.

The primary function of the H-1B visa program is not to hire the “best and brightest” but to replace high-paying jobs in the United States with low-wage indentured servants from abroad.

The cheaper the labor they employ, the more money billionaires make. pic.twitter.com/Mwz7i9TcSM

— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) January 2, 2025

Who is an H-1B visa holder?

About 70% of H-1B visa recipients are from India and another 10% are from China.

As the debate intensifies in the United States, some technology companies have withdrawn job offers to Indian employees, Indian newspaper The Times of India reported.

But India’s foreign ministry argued that H-1B visas benefit both countries.

“The India-US economic relationship benefits from the technical expertise provided by skilled professionals, with both sides leveraging their respective strengths and competitive values. We look forward to further deepening the India-US economic relationship, which is in our mutual interest.” Indian Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randy Randhir Jaiswal said at a press conference on January 3.

Has Trump softened his stance on other immigration issues?

Trump’s campaign promises during the election included tough immigration policies. He has threatened mass deportations of undocumented immigrants and increased border security to prevent asylum seekers from entering the country.

A month after being elected, he told NBC’s Kristen Welker on Meet the Press that he planned to end birthright citizenship in the United States, a policy that has been in place for more than 150 years. This right is guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

However, the president-elect said in an interview that he is willing to work with Democrats to keep “dreamer”undocumented people who arrived in the United States as children and have lived in the country for most of their lives.

When it comes to H-1B visas in Trump’s second term, “No one knows what Trump will do. Although he worked to reform the program, he did nothing in his first term. This is A promise that was clearly unfulfilled,” said Howard University’s Sheila.

“Republicans control Congress (House and Senate) and the White House, so they have the power to change the plan, for better or worse, or maintain the status quo. Will they use that power to push for change? Internal political considerations will determine the direction they take. “