Elon Musk clarifies stance on H-1B visas, says ‘those who want America to win…’

Billionaire Elon Musk has pointed out his “consistent stance on immigration” amid a spat with MAGA traditionalist Laura Loomer over H1B visas.

A user on X, posted a 2023 post from Musk which advocated for “increase legal immigration”.  Musk boosted it, adding: “This is the right position for those who want America to win. For those who want America to lose for their own personal gain, I have no respect. Zero.”

United States President-elect Donald Trump has remained silent as his two camps — the hardliners and the technocrats — battle it out publicly on social media.

US Immigration Debate

Musk's bid for clarification comes amid a spat with MAGA traditionalist Laura Loomer on X. In multiple tweets the Tesla CEO, who is also a Trump backer, has sought to distingush between “highly skilled workers” and those he claims are taking advantage of the system.

“Maybe this is a helpful clarification: I am referring to bringing in via legal immigration the top ~0.1% of engineering talent as being essential for America to keep winning. This is like bringing in the Jokic’s or Wemby’s of the world to help your whole team (which is mostly Americans!) win the NBA,” he wrote.

The world's richest man compared the US and its talent to a sports team, saying: “Thinking of America as a pro sports team that has been winning for a long time and wants to keep winning is the right mental construct.”

In another post on X, he again pushed the sports team analogy, stating: “The number of people who are super talented engineers AND super motivated in the USA is far too low. Think of this like a pro sports team: if you want your TEAM to win the championship, you need to recruit top talent wherever they may be. That enables the whole TEAM to win.” (sic)

MAGA Split Widens

Meanwhile, Loomer has in multiple posts accused Musk of limiting the reach of her X account and claimed her verification badge was removed by the billionaire for speaking against him.

“Because @elonmusk has censored my account in retaliation for speaking out about Big Tech and immigration. He removed my check mark and canceled all my subscriptions. We are witnessing totalitarian censorship. I’m deeply disturbed by what is happening. MAGA is under attack,” she claimed.

Meanwhile, addressing X users Musk said that they could see their reach affected if many “credible and verified” accounts had muted or blocked them. Loomer was not directly mentioned. “Just a reminder that the algorithm is trying to maximize unregretted user-seconds. If far more credible, verified subscriber accounts (not bots) mute/block your account compared to those who like your posts, your reach will decline significantly,” he said.

About H-1B visa

Musk and Loomer's main bone of contention has been the H-1B visa.

H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that permits US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical and technical expertise.

It is worth noting that not all professionals are eligible for an H-1B visa. This visa covers occupations related to fields like IT, engineering, mathematics, science, and medicine. It is valid for three years and can be extended up to six years.