Cracks are emerging in the MAGA world regarding H-1B visas for foreign workers

Prominent supporters of President-elect Donald Trump clashed online over a visa program designed to bring skilled technicians to the United States, a foretaste of possible tensions in the incoming Trump White House.

In a post on X on Thursday, Vivek Ramaswamy, who was recruited by Trump to cut government spending, defended the H-1B visa system and criticized American parenting practices.

“Our American culture values ​​mediocrity over excellence,” Ramawamy wrote in a lengthy post, arguing that foreign workers improve the competitiveness of the U.S. economy.

But the post quickly sparked backlash from Trump supporters who strongly oppose immigration of any kind.

The dispute played out online over the holidays, as mainstream Republicans and far-right influencers joined in the criticism.

Ramaswamy’s view on skilled visas was supported by Elon Musk, a tech billionaire chosen to co-lead Trump’s proposed Department of Government Efficiency.

Looking at American culture, Ramaswamy wrote, “A culture that honors the prom queen over the math Olympian or the athlete over the valedictorian (the top student in a class) will not produce the best engineers.”

But Nikki Haley, Trump’s former ambassador to the United Nations and former Republican presidential candidate, argued against the tech bosses.

“There is nothing wrong with American workers or American culture,” she wrote in response to foreign workers.

Haley, who like Ramaswamy was born to Indian immigrants, was united in opposition to the visa program by far-right online accounts.

Laura Loomer, an anti-Islam activist who regularly spreads conspiracy theories but is also known for her unwavering support of Trump, led the online charge with posts racked up millions of views.

Earlier this week, Loomer criticized Trump’s choice of Sriram Krishnan, an Indian-born entrepreneur, as White House senior adviser on artificial intelligence. Loomer wrote that Krishnan is a “career leftist” who is “in direct opposition to Trump’s America First agenda.”

Cheered on by right-wing extremist X-accounts, she also referred to Indian immigrants as “invaders” and directed racist phrases at Krishnan.

Loomer then accused Musk, the owner of

She took up Trump’s criticism of the X boss’s influence and wrote: “‘President Musk’ is starting to look real…freedom of speech is an illusion.”

Musk, meanwhile, defended that the H-1B visa program attracts the “top ~0.1%” of engineering talent.

“Viewing America as a professional sports team that has been winning for a long time and wants to continue winning is the correct mental construction,” he tweeted.

However, critics posted online screenshots of job postings at his companies filled by people on H1-B visas and showing salaries of $200,000 and much less, arguing that these hires did not represent an elite talent pool, but rather one Way to keep wages low in U.S.-born workers.

The number of H-1B visas issued is capped at 65,000 per year, plus an additional 20,000 for individuals with master’s degrees from U.S. institutions.

Recent research by Boundless, an immigration consulting firm, shows that around 73% of H-1B visas are issued to Indian citizens, while 12% are issued to Chinese citizens.

Trump promised that mass deportations would begin immediately after he took office. He was a critic of the H-1B program and tightened eligibility for that visa during his first term.

His vice president, JD Vance, also fought the program but has close ties to the tech world. In his previous career as a venture capitalist, Vance funded startups that hired workers on H-1B visas.

In recent days, the president-elect also denied that he was unduly influenced by Musk and the other billionaires who backed his campaign.

On Sunday, Trump told a conservative conference in Arizona that he was not under Musk’s thumb.

“You know, they have a new kick,” he told the audience at AmericaFest, organized by Turning Point USA. “All the different hoaxes. The new one is that President Trump has ceded the presidency to Elon Musk.”

“No, no, that’s not happening,” he said. “He won’t be president.”