In a stream of posts on the alt-tech social platform Gettr, former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon warned that billionaire Elon Musk's "true colors" are showing with the ongoing debate about the H-1B visa program.
"True Colors Shining Through," Bannon captioned a post that included an Axios article about how a "MAGA Civil War" has broken out "over race, immigration and billionaires versus the working class."
Newsweek reached out to Musk's and Bannon's communications teams for comment.
Why It Matters
Musk and Bannon are leading President-elect Donald Trump allies, having been close to the Republican nominee for multiple issues during his first presidency and the transition to his next term in office. However, they seem at odds over the ongoing debates about H-1B, a visa class for specialized workers.
"H1B Visa Program Should be Zeroed-Out —Used to Constantly Drive Wages Down and Replace American Tech Workers —the Foreign Worker Replacements are Treated Like Indentured Servants..." Bannon posted Friday morning.
Discussions around the H-1B visa program have intensified over the recent days as some within Trump's close circle have been advocating for removing country-specific caps on green cards to address backlogs faced by applicants from countries including India.
The debate started on Sunday after Trump named venture capitalist Sriram Krishnan as his artificial intelligence (AI) policy adviser. Laura Loomer, a Trump loyalist and far-right activist with a history of racist comments, criticized the appointment as "deeply disturbing."
She faced backlash and responded to a post that said the nation was built by "immigrants who drove innovation" by noting that the United States "was built by white Europeans" and "not third-world invaders from India."
Musk, the world's richest man who has benefited from the H-1B program himself, wrote in a response to a post on his social media platform X on Wednesday that there are not enough "super talented" and "super motivated" engineers in the U.S.
Musk has continued to defend his argument, calling out Loomer for "trolling for attention."
What To Know
This is not the first time that Bannon has attacked Musk. In an interview last week, the popular right-wing podcaster said he disagrees with Musk on "just about everything."
Bannon has previously called Musk a "stone-cold liar" and said "his paymasters" are from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), referencing the billionaire's extensive business ties to the East Asian nation.
Bannon had also said that Tesla was Musk's only thing "of real value," adding that Musk "uses it for margin loans." Those criticisms came in 2023 before Musk was publicly a leading Trump supporter.
Although, Bannon has more recently spoken somewhat favorably about the SpaceX CEO. In an interview published by Semafor, Bannon spoke a bit more positively about how Musk had come around to supporting Trump.
"With Elon—look, he wrote a quarter of a f****** billion dollar check when we had no money when Trump had no money. He and I are disagreeing on just about everything, particularly China. But he didn't do what most wealthy people do and got sucked in by the consultant class to do TV ads. This guy came in, with his engineering brain, and said what I've been saying: This was a base-plus election. This was all going to be ground game at the end," Bannon said.
Musk has been an ever-growing presence in U.S. politics, with Kai Trump, the president-elect's granddaughter, even saying he had been promoted to "uncle status" in a family photo after the election.
He reportedly joined Trump in a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. He also spent Election Day at Trump's Mar-a-Lago home in Florida and has reportedly had a near-constant presence at the resort since the Republican's win against Vice President Kamala Harris in November
Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy were at the U.S. Capitol recently to speak with lawmakers—mostly Republicans, according to the Associated Press. The two will lead Trump's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—though some GOP lawmakers are calling for Musk to become House speaker.
Musk also recently urged lawmakers to vote down an original bipartisan spending bill and said any lawmaker who supported it should be voted out of office.
What People Are Saying
Steve Bannon posted on Gettr an article from Mediaite titled "Elon Musk Defends X Engineer Who Posted Racist, Anti-White Rant: 'He Is a Troll, But Went a Little Over-the-Top'" and captioned it, "Pure Raw Hatred Spews Forth from Musk's Team Towards Americans"
Democratic Representative Jasmine Crockett of Texas, on X: "I've done countless interviews explaining that we need immigrants and that they contribute to our economy! Businesses blow us up about needing workers. And what do ya know?! MAGA got played & is mad at who?! The same 2 guys that they were just yelling was looking out for them last week as the government was on the verge of a shutdown!"
Economics commentator Jason Harrison, on X: "People on tech twitter are actually shocked that some of their mutuals aren't 'only for legal immigration' and just straight up racist LMAO."
Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, on X: "The US Congress this week came to an agreement to fund our government. Elon Musk, who became $200 BILLION richer since Trump was elected, objected. Are Republicans beholden to the American people? Or President Musk?"
Fox & Friends co-host Lawrence Jones said last week that he had spoken with Trump, saying that the ongoing taunts of "President Elon Musk" from Democratic members of Congress do "not bother the president."
What Happens Next
It is unclear how Musk and Bannon's disagreements will play out in the upcoming Trump administration.
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