In the midst of an ongoing dispute between the president-elect’s Silicon Valley supporters and his anti-immigrant constituency regarding visas for highly skilled workers, former adviser Steve Bannon advised tech billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk to reportedly “sit in the back and study.”
“They’re recent converts,” Bannon said during a recent episode of his ‘War Room’ program.
“We love converts. But the converts sit in the back and study for years and years and years to make sure you understand the faith and you understand the nuances of the faith and understand how you can internalize the faith.” he added.
“Don’t come up and go to the pulpit in your first week here and start lecturing people about the way things are going to be. If you’re going to do that, we’re going to rip your face off.” he concluded.
Musk, who previously maintained a low profile in politics, has emerged as a significant figure in Trump’s inner circle as a result of his investment of at least $250 million in his campaign.
The new “Department of Government Efficiency” will be co-chaired by the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, along with fellow tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy.
This cycle, a number of other tech executives, including some erstwhile Democratic donors, also supported Trump, which challenged the perception of Silicon Valley as a liberal haven.
Nevertheless, Musk, Ramaswamy, and their fellow Silicon Valley conservatives have been at odds with Trump’s traditional MAGA constituency in the wake of a debate over H-1B visas over the past week.
Far-right activist Laura Loomer resurfaced his comments from last month, which urged Musk to investigate the possibility of removing per-country limits on green cards in order to “unlock” highly skilled immigration, after Trump appointed venture capitalist Sriram Krishnan to serve as senior policy adviser on artificial intelligence.
The appointment of Krishnan was termed “deeply disturbing” by Loomer.
Krishnan’s conservative colleagues in Silicon Valley immediately defended him, contending that the tech industry requires the employment of highly qualified foreign workers to address workforce shortages.
In the meantime, Loomer has accused Musk of censoring her posts on X, the social platform he owns, and removing her verification in response to the dispute.
On Monday, she made an appearance on Bannon’s “War Room,” during which she referred to Musk as a “Stage 5 clinger.”
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