Conflict continued inside the MAGA world Thursday as allies of President-elect Donald Trump battled over immigration policy.
Former Republican presidential candidate and incoming DOGE Secretary Vivek Ramaswamy sparked a conversation with a lengthy X post on Thursday. Ramaswamy, himself a first-generation American, criticizes American culture for promoting mediocrity, which he says is why tech companies often prefer foreign-born workers over Native Americans. says.
“For too long (at least since the '90s, and probably longer) our American culture has worshiped mediocrity over excellence,” Ramaswamy said. said. “It doesn't start in college, it starts in youth. A culture that celebrates prom queens more than Math Olympiad champions, athletes more than valedictorians, doesn't produce the best engineers.”
“We're seeing more movies like 'Whiplash' and fewer 'Friends' reruns,” Ramaswamy continued. “More math tutoring, less sleepovers. More weekend science contests, less Saturday morning cartoons. More books, less TV. More creative activities, less 'chilling.' It has decreased. My extracurricular activities have increased and I've been “going to the mall” less. ”
Mr. Ramaswamy's comments set off a chain reaction of conflict not only in the MAGA world but also outside Mr. Trump's inner circle.
“These are temporary foreign workers imported from overseas for the express purpose of replacing American workers at low wages,” Trump said.
Former Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, among others, opposed Ramaswamy, saying the employment gap has nothing to do with culture and everything to do with immigration policy.
“There's nothing wrong with American workers or American culture,” Haley said. said. “All you have to do is look at the border and see how many people want what we have. We want Americans, not foreign workers. We should invest in it and make it a priority.”
This online discussion resurfaced old conversations surrounding immigration policy and the differences between H-1B visas as opposed to O-1 visas.
The H-1B visa allows foreign nationals to temporarily work in a professional occupation in the United States. Most notably, H-1B visas are contributing to the growth of Silicon Valley. three quarters Foreign-born workforce.
The O-1 visa, on the other hand, is a stricter non-immigrant visa for foreign nationals who: own A person who has demonstrated “extraordinary ability” or “extraordinary achievement” in their field of expertise.
It's musk myself Although he held an H-1B visa, he advocated an immigration philosophy much like the standards proposed for the O-1 visa.
“What I'm saying is that for Americans to continue to win, it's essential that we bring in the top 0.1% of engineering talent through legal immigration.” said. “It's like bringing in the Jokic's and Wembies of the world to help an entire team (mostly American!) win the NBA.” We think about it as a professional sports team that wants to continue.'' That's the right frame of mind. ”
Trump specifically opposed visa programs like H-1B in 2016, arguing that the programs were an opportunity to replace American workers with “imported” and “cheap labor” workers.
President Trump: “The H-1B program is not a high-skilled, non-immigrant program. A human worker.” said. “I am committed to eliminating rampant and widespread H-1B abuse and ending outrageous practices like what happened at Disney in Florida when Americans were forced to train foreign replacement athletes. I will continue to work to end the use of H-1Bs forever.''Introducing low-wage labor programs and requiring all visa and immigration programs to employ American workers without exception. ”
Although President Trump has not specifically addressed H-1B in recent years, tough immigration policies were a cornerstone of his 2024 campaign. President Trump has repeatedly advocated closing borders and putting America first, but it will be necessary to see how the rift within the MAGA movement plays out in the next administration.
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