A Silicon Valley Democrat and a Republican Senator are calling for reform to the H-1B Visa program, which tech companies use to recruit thousands of high-skilled foreign workers every year.
“So I think the solution here, President Trump has actually articulated this in 2020, is to reform that system and get rid of the abuses, make it merit-based, and make sure that we're not undercutting wages, and having Americans train their foreign replacements,” Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) told “Fox News Sunday” anchor Shannon Bream.
The debate over the program, and immigration in general, roiled the Republican party last week, pitting tech entrepreneurs such as Elon Musk, David Sacks and Vivek Ramaswamy against the likes of Nikki Haley, far-right political activist Laura Loomer and many in the MAGA base. President-elect Donald Trump appeared to voice support for the program Saturday.
“Take a big step back and F--K YOURSELF in the face,” Musk wrote on X Friday. “I will go to war on this issue the likes of which you cannot possibly understand.”
His comments came after Loomer appeared to reference the H-1B visa on X, saying it was akin to “substituting a third world migrant invasion for a third world tech invasion."
The divide comes as a long-standing effort to promote high-skilled immigration gains steam in conversations between tech lobbyists and GOP lawmakers. Musk and his allies are leading the effort to sway uncommitted elected Republicans.
During Trump’s first term, his administration introduced rules tightening H-1B eligibility and requiring companies to shell out higher wages to recipients, running afoul of the tech industry. When the pandemic hit, his administration temporarily froze the program.
“You see qualified Americans being denied a lot of these jobs because a company can go out and hire cheaper labor from a foreign country,” Schmitt said.
Musk, himself once an H-1B recipient, has been relentless in backing the issue on his social media platform. Both Musk and Ramaswamy, co-runners of Trump’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency, have faced sharp resistance from MAGA hardliners for their support of skilled immigration.
Speaking with Bream on Sunday, Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna (Calif.) celebrated high-skilled immigration while urging reform to the H-1B program.
“One of the points that I think Elon and others are making is what makes America as exceptional is that we are a magnet for the world's talent,” Khanna, who represents Silicon Valley in Congress, said. “It's great that Elon Musk comes here. It's great that Jensen [Huang], who started NVIDIA, is doing it here and not in Taiwan.”
But critics on both sides of the aisle have assailed the H-1B program for keeping high-skilled workers in limbo over their immigration status and underpaying them for their work.
“You can’t underpay these H-1B folks coming in,” Khanna said. The program “shouldn’t be for accountants or entry-level IT jobs. It should really be for exceptional talent. We should have that balance,” he continued.
