Many sides to the HIB visa debate

US President-elect Donald Trump is in an unusual position - trying to please both billionaire tech guys who fund his campaigns and his hard-core base. Immigration and the H1B visa have become contentious among Trump's core supporters and moderates.

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Trump has backed Elon Musk and Silicon Valley wealthy patrons who build their empires with hard-working H1B visa holders (Musk had an H1B visa himself). While tech leaders want a liberal H1B visa regime, 'America First' hardliners wish for stricter restrictions on immigration at all levels. In his first term, Trump prioritized the interests of American citizens, which had significant implications on the H1B visas.

Days before he takes office, debates have arisen over H-1B visas. Trump, who in his first term opposed the visa program, now supports it. There are divisions within Trump's team. The looming question is, will the second Trump term prioritize American workers, or will it revert to the traditional Republican stance that immigration is primarily designed to benefit employers? "America First" advocates argue that H-1B visas take jobs from American workers.

Influential supporters like Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy claim they are crucial for addressing the engineer shortage in the US. Musk, a naturalized citizen from South Africa, has strongly backed the program and expressed his readiness to "go to war" over it.

Musk and Ramaswamy point to a significant skills gap in the US labor market, particularly in STEM fields. They argue there is a genuine shortage of highly skilled workers in some specialized regions, such as software development, engineering and scientific research.