Trump sides with Musk over H-1B visas in growing MAGA rift on immigration: Live

Elon Musk is too rich to care about making more money, a GOP governor claimed during an interview on Sunday.

Chris Sununu made the bold assertion on CNN’s State of the Union as he sat down for an interview with co-host Dana Bash. The New Hampshire Republican is one of the few holdouts in his party who remain in office without fully embracing the MAGA brand — though Sununu has been far more deferential than others like him.

John Bowden reports from Washington, D.C.

The outgoing president backed out of the race over the summer following a disastrous first debate against his Republican rival, low approval numbers, and dwindling donations.

But Biden recently told people that despite the issues his campaign faced he is confident he could have defeated Trump in November, sources familiar with the conversations told The Washington Post.

Graeme Massie reports.

Will Gore writes:

In the Chinese zodiac, 2025 is the year of the snake. Rather fittingly, it is also the year that Donald Trump will slither his way back into the White House (which may prove venomous for the whole world).

Since the US election result was called, back in November, there has not been the same sense of profound shock that accompanied Trump’s first presidential win. Then, it seemed impossible that a man with no political experience – and who seemed so patently objectionable on almost every level – could win the White House. This time, for all the late hope that Kamala Harris brought to the Democratic Party ticket, a Trump win felt inevitable.

If you are a progressively-minded individual living in the US, there is an immediate and visceral materiality to deal with, as “The Donald’s” inauguration approaches. For those of us living across the pond, the thought of Trump in the presidential hotseat may not be less gruesome, but its impact is not quite so direct. Either way, how should we best handle the nagging fear of what might be to come?

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Steve Bannon railed against Fox News this morning following the efforts of the Fox & Friends Weekend co-hosts to “tip-toe” through the minefield that is legal immigration in MAGA world amid the feud that erupted this week.

“Choose a Side: Either Stand with American Citizen Workers or with Globalist Elitist Tech Oligarchs Who Feast on Foreign Indentured Servants …Simple.”

Over on Fox News this morning, the co-hosts of Fox & Friends Weekend were faced with the tricky job of navigating the feud that has broken out in MAGA world over H-1B visas for highly skilled immigrants.

“America First” acolytes on the far-right want strict draconian immigration measures when Donald Trump takes office in January for both illegal and legal migrants.

In contrast, the Silicon Valley “tech bro” contingent led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy that backed his election wants better legal immigration routes such as the H-1B program to fill skills gaps.

Yesterday afternoon, President-elect Donald Trump came out in support of Musk and the latter option.

Rachel Campos-Duffy claimed that Trump coming out in favor of the H-1B visa program on Saturday when he had previously been against it, “left a lot of people confused”.

Charlie Hurt remarked, “The idea of having a program that allows an Elon Musk to come into the country, I don’t think anybody has a problem with that, and certainly Donald Trump doesn’t have a problem with that. The problem with the program is that it’s been so abused and turned into a system where it is designed for big tech employers to get, maybe not cheap labor, but cheaper labor.”

Later in the segment, Will Cain attempted to put a human face on the issue by adding, “We’re not an algorithm. We’re not a company. We are a country. We’re a nation. We are a people. And that purpose of that nation is to serve Americans.”

Campos-Duffy then suggested that tech CEOs such as Musk might have to pay American tech workers a more attractive wage and pay themselves a little less…

If you limit those visas and only bring in the Elon Musks and the really exceptional people, what you’re going to see is that there’s a tighter market and the wages will have to be — you’ll have to pay wages that young math students like my son-in-law, who is married and has to support a family, would want to be part of. And that may mean, guys, guess what? Fox News alert! It may mean that big tech bosses make a little less money and they have to pay their workers a little better. I think all of us would be okay with that.

She added that the federal government should invest in educational opportunities in underserved communities to train the next generation to take the jobs currently being filled by skilled immigrants.

Speaking by phone with The New York Post on Saturday, the president-elect said: “I’ve always liked the visas, I have always been in favor of the visas. That’s why we have them.”

He added: “I have many H-1B visas on my properties. I’ve been a believer in H-1B. I have used it many times. It’s a great program.”

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“We need immigration … we need a system focused on our economic needs.”