Donald Trump Agrees With X Owner Elon Musk On H-1B Visa Row, Says 'US Needs Smart People'

US President-elect Donald Trump has sided with Elon Musk on H-1B visa row and said that "US needs smart people."

Elon Musk recently stirred political controversy by pledging to "go to war" to protect the H-1B visa initiative.

Source : ABPLIVE AI

US President-elect Donald Trump expressed support for tech billionaire and X owner Elon Musk in the ongoing debate over the H-1B visa program, stating that the U.S. needs "smart people" to enter the country. Musk recently stirred political controversy within the Republican Party by pledging to "go to war" to protect the H-1B visa initiative.

Trump at his New Year's eve party said, "I always felt we have to have the most competent people in our country. We need competent people. We need smart people coming into our country. We need a lot of people coming in. We're going to have jobs like we've never had before."

What Is H-1B Visa Program

The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that enables US companies to hire foreign workers for specialized roles requiring technical or theoretical expertise. Tech companies heavily rely on the visa to recruit tens of thousands of employees annually from countries like India and China. As a result, the tech industry has long advocated for expanding the program to attract top talent to the U.S.

However, in 2020, during Donald Trump’s first term, the administration imposed restrictions on the H-1B program, arguing it allowed businesses to replace American workers with foreign labor at lower wages. With Trump preparing for a second term, many of his supporters, including immigration hardliners, have pushed for the program’s elimination.

Despite this, Musk, who himself was once on an H-1B visa and whose company Tesla has used the program to hire employees, has defended the need for foreign workers in the tech industry. He has been vocal on social media, consistently supporting the program. Musk on X wrote, "There is a permanent shortage of excellent engineering talent. It is the fundamental limiting factor in Silicon Valley."