Trump claims to have always supported the H-1B visa program and takes Elon Musk's side in the discussion.

 Trump claims to have always supported the H-1B visa program and takes Elon Musk's side in the discussion.

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WEST PALM BEACH, FL, Dec. 28 (Reuters) - In a public spat over the use of the H-1B visa, President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday sided with billionaire tech CEO and major backer Elon Musk, stating that he completely supports the program for foreign tech workers that some of his supporters reject.

Trump's comments came after Musk, the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, threatened to go to "war" on social media late Friday to preserve the visa program for foreign tech workers.
On Saturday, Trump, who used the visas during his first term as president, told The New York Post that he also supported the visa program. 

"I have many H-1B visas on my properties. I've been a believer in H-1B. I have used it many times. It's a great program," he was quoted as saying.

Tesla, Musk's electric vehicle startup, received 724 H-1B visas this year. Musk is a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in South Africa. Although they can be extended or used to apply for green cards, H-1B visas are normally valid for three years.

 

Far-right activists sparked the incident earlier this week when they denounced Trump's appointment of Indian American venture capitalist Sriram Krishnan as an AI adviser, claiming he would have a voice in the Trump administration's immigration policies.

 

In the midst of a contentious discussion over immigration and the status of skilled immigrants and foreign workers brought into the country on work visas, Musk's tweet was aimed at Trump's followers and immigration hardliners who have been pushing for the elimination of the H-1B visa program.

Longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon attacked "big tech oligarchs" on Friday for backing the H-1B program and portrayed immigration as a danger to Western culture.

In response, Musk and many other tech billionaires drew a line between what they view as legal immigration and illegal immigration.

Trump has promised to deploy tariffs to help create more jobs for American citizens and severely restrict immigration.

The visa issue demonstrates how tech executives like Musk, who have played a significant part in the presidential transition by offering advice on major policy and personnel matters, are now coming under fire from his supporters.

The U.S. IT industry relies on the government's H-1B visa program to draw in skilled foreign workers to run its companies, a workforce that critics say undercuts wages for American people.
Musk has invested almost a quarter of a billion dollars on Trump's election campaign. This week, he has written frequently about the dearth of domestic talent to cover all the open roles in US tech businesses.