Elon Musk Declares ‘War’ Over H-1B Visas: Here’s Why He’s Taking on Trump’s Supporters!

Late on Friday, Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, pledged to fiercely defend the H-1B visa program for foreign tech workers. This vow comes amidst a heated debate between President-elect Donald Trump’s long-time supporters and his newer backers from the tech industry.

In a post on the social media platform X, Musk emphasized the importance of the H-1B visa program: “The reason I’m in America, along with many critical individuals who built SpaceX, Tesla, and hundreds of other companies that have strengthened America, is because of the H-1B visa.”
Musk further stated, “I will go to war on this issue in a way you cannot possibly comprehend.”

As a naturalized U.S. citizen born in South Africa, Musk himself has held an H-1B visa. His company, Tesla, obtained 724 such visas this year. These visas are typically issued for three-year periods and can be extended or used as a stepping stone to apply for green cards.

Musk’s comments were directed at Trump’s supporters and immigration hardliners who have been pushing to scrap the H-1B visa program. This debate is part of a broader discussion on immigration and the role of skilled foreign workers in the U.S.

Trump has remained silent on the issue, and his transition team did not respond to requests for comment on Musk’s statements and the H-1B visa debate. In the past, Trump has expressed a willingness to provide more work visas to skilled workers while also promising to deport undocumented immigrants, implement tariffs to create jobs for American citizens, and severely restrict immigration.

This controversy highlights the tension between tech leaders like Musk, who have been involved in advising on key personnel and policy areas during the presidential transition, and Trump’s base. The U.S. tech industry heavily relies on the H-1B visa program to hire foreign skilled workers, a practice critics argue undermines wages for American citizens.

The dispute was sparked earlier this week by far-right activists criticizing Trump’s selection of Sriram Krishnan, an Indian American venture capitalist, as an adviser on artificial intelligence. They argued that Krishnan would influence the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

On Friday, Steve Bannon, a longtime Trump confidant, criticized “big tech oligarchs” for supporting the H-1B program and portrayed immigration as a threat to Western civilization. In response, Musk and other tech billionaires drew a distinction between legal and illegal immigration.

Musk has invested over a quarter of a billion dollars in supporting Trump’s presidential campaign in November. He has frequently posted about the lack of homegrown talent to fill all the necessary positions within American tech companies.