US President-elect Donald Trump has backed the H-1B high-skilled immigrant work visa program amid heated controversy among his supporters. Previously, Elon Musk spoke out in favor of H-1B, for which he faced criticism from both politicians and ordinary X users.
Donald Trump supported Musk’s position in the dispute over work visas for specialists
Author: Akhmed Sadulayev
“I’ve always liked (H-1B) visas, I’ve always been for them. That’s why we have them.” said Trump in an interview with the New York Post.
The US President-elect added that his properties employ many H-1B workers:
“I’ve used it many times. It’s a great program.”
At the same time, the newspaper emphasizes that Trump’s position has changed since his first presidential term. At the time, the politician criticized the program and limited access to work visas for foreigners, including H-1B.
In the summer of 2020, Donald Trump suspended the issuance of temporary visas, including H-1B, for six months due to the coronavirus pandemic and the resulting economic downturn.
This week, a debate broke out between MAGA (Make America Great Again) supporters: some Republicans advocate promoting the interests of American workers and tightening entry conditions for migrants, including skilled ones.
Other Donald Trump supporters advocate maintaining benefits for highly skilled immigrants. Among them is South African native Elon Musk, who moved to the United States from Canada in the mid-1990s.
“The reason I am in America with many important people who built SpaceX, Tesla and hundreds of other companies that made America strong is H-1B,” the billionaire wrote on his X account.
He was supported by entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who is expected to head the Department of Government Effectiveness (DOGE) along with Musk. At the same time, Rasmani criticized mass American culture, which “promotes mediocrity” among Americans.
H-1B is a non-immigrant specialist visa that allows you to work in the United States for a long time (up to 6 years). It can be obtained by foreign specialists who have at least a bachelor’s degree and a job offer from an American company.
Generally, specialist workers such as engineers, architects and computer programmers are eligible for H-1B visas.
Source: rb.ru
