Laura Loomer has unleashed a flurry of criticisms aimed at Elon Musk, the latest chapter the intra-MAGA debate on how the next administration should approach legal immigration.
In a series of posts on X, Loomer, a far-right activist and one of Trump's most vocal online supporters, accused the platform's owner of "full censorship," after her account subscriptions were deactivated.
"To those of you getting messages saying that I deactivated my X subscriptions, that's a lie. I didn't," Loomer wrote on Thursday evening, before pointing the finger at the billionaire. "@elonmusk took away my premium account tonight, limited my character limit, & canceled my subscriptions because I spoke out about mass migration. It's retaliatory censorship."
According to Loomer, the move was due to her criticisms of H-1B visas, which allow employers to hire skilled workers from other countries for specialized jobs which require college degrees or significant experience.
Musk has defended the necessity of foreign-born workers as essential for meeting the needs of U.S. companies, citing a dearth of homegrown talent in the U.S. Vivek Ramaswamy, who alongside Musk is set to head up the newly created advisory Department of Government Efficiency, has echoed these statements, while blaming American culture for venerating "mediocrity over excellence for way too long."
"I have been more loyal to President Trump and his agenda than ANYONE. And I have only been punished for it," Loomer wrote in a separate post. "Pay attention MAGA. This is how you will all be treated now that Big Tech has infiltrated MAGA. 'President Musk' is starting to look real."
Newsweek has reached out to X via email for a response to Loomer's statements.
Why It Matters
The clash over Loomer's X account and H-1B highlights deeper rifts in the MAGA movement, described by American criminal defense attorney and MeidasTouch editor-in-chief Ron Filipkowski as a battle between "Tech bro MAGA and OG MAGA."
Technology executives besides Musk have also come out to voice support for high-skilled immigration programs such as H-1B, on which the sector heavily relies, including David Sacks, Trump's recently appointed AI and crypto czar, who said that focus should be directed against illegal immigration rather than employment visas.
Other Trump loyalists have waded into the debate, with former White House strategist Steve Bannon claiming that Musk's support for H-1B visas had revealed his "true colors."
What To Know
Loomer's involvement in the debate over H-1B and her spat with Musk began after Trump's appointment of venture capitalist Sriram Krishnan as White House senior policy adviser for Artificial Intelligence. Krishnan is believed to favor removing country caps for H-1B visas and awarding them instead strictly on merit and qualifications.
Loomer called Krishnan's appointment "deeply disturbing," while also describing migrants from South Asia as "third-world invaders from India." She was criticized for failing to grasp Krishnan's proposed reforms and for being racist in her responses, which could explain a level of users blocking her on X.
Musk's response came in the form of several reposts which stated the value of high-skilled immigration, including the story of a Turkish mathematician, Erdal Arıkan, who left the U.S. due to visa issues, only for his work to be later used by Chinese firms in developing the transition from 4G to 5G technologies.
Musk also shared a video in which Trump voiced support for granting green cards for those who graduate from U.S. colleges, in order to prevent individuals from taking their talents to other countries.
What People Are Saying
Laura Loomer, on Thursday via X: "President Trump's most loyal fighters with the biggest audiences in MAGA are all anti-Big Tech and we are nauseated with Big Tech bros who think we are peasants and dumb. The Big Tech sleepovers & fake love fest at Mar-a-Lago will be over soon you guys. Just hold the line."
Elon Musk, on Thursday via X: "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." In a later post, Musk wrote: "That said, any accounts found to be engaged in coordinated attacks to spam target accounts with mute/blocks will themselves be categorized—correctly—as spam. Live by the spam, die by the spam."
What Happens Next?
The debate over H-1B visas, championed by the President-elect's most affluent supporters but criticized by those claiming to represent his base, puts Trump in the difficult position of choosing which side to placate once in office.
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