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Trump's claim that America lacks enough talented workers and his defense of H-1B visas sparked a fierce backlash from MAGA supporters, who accused him of abandoning his America First stance.
US President Donald Trump. (Photo: AP)
New Delhi,UPDATED: Nov 13, 2025 02:14 IST
US President Donald Trump is facing backlash from his own America First supporters after telling Fox News that the United States lacks enough talented workers for high-skilled jobs. Many in his MAGA base see the remarks as a betrayal of his anti-immigration stance.
In an interview with Fox host Laura Ingraham, Trump defended the controversial H-1B visa programme, saying the US economy must bring in talent to meet the demands of modern industries. “You can’t take people off the unemployment line and say, ‘I’m going to put you into a factory where we’re going to make missiles,’” Trump said. “No, you don’t (have enough skilled people). There are certain skills you don’t have, and people have to learn them.”
Ingraham pushed back, arguing that America has plenty of talented people here and warning that flooding industries with foreign workers could suppress wages. But Trump said: “You can’t just say a country is coming in, going to invest $10 billion to build a plant, and take people off the unemployment line who haven’t worked in five years — it doesn’t work that way.”
I PRESSED President Trump on H-1B visas.
“If you want to RAISE WAGES for Americans, you can’t flood the country with THOUSANDS of foreign workers.”@POTUS: “You have to bring in talent You can’t take people off the unemployment line and say, ‘go make missiles.’”
The president’s comments triggered outrage among his staunchest allies. Florida Republican Anthony Sabatini wrote on X, “This is insane — we’re going to lose the midterms so badly. We’ve never seen an administration crash and burn in its first year so badly — for no reason other than to appease donors and special interests.”
Right-wing commentator Mike Cernovich added, “Trump broke everyone’s heart with this line about the American workforce and H-1Bs.”
Others went further. “Trump hates America and Americans,” wrote Kevin Bass, a contributor to the New York Post and Newsweek. “He wants to import the third world to take Americans’ jobs.”
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene also rebuked the president, posting, “I believe in the American people. I am one of you. I am solidly against you being replaced by foreign labor. I am America First and America Only.”
Trump has also drawn fresh fire from his MAGA base after suggesting the US should welcome up to 600,000 Chinese students. He made the remark during trade talks with Beijing in August, saying hundreds of thousands of Chinese nationals would be allowed to study in the United States. In his Fox News interview with Laura Ingraham, the host called that position not a pro-MAGA stance, warning that Chinese students could spy on us and steal our intellectual property. Trump defended his view, arguing that the influx of Chinese students was vital for the survival of American colleges and universities.
Even conservative strategist Logan Hall erupted, writing, “American talent split the atom and went to the moon. American talent built everything the modern world takes for granted. Give me a break — this is insanity.”
Trump’s remarks highlight his long-running ambivalence toward the H-1B visa programme. He once vowed to end it, calling it a threat to US workers, but later pivoted to support expansion to attract high-skilled immigrants in sectors like tech and defense. His administration recently introduced a one-time $100,000 fee for each new H-1B visa.
The controversy underscores the tension within the Republican Party as Trump balances his populist promises with the demands of US industry leaders. For his MAGA base, however, the shift feels personal. As one X user put it bluntly: “When a president loses faith in his own people, he forfeits the nation’s soul.”
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Published By:
Aashish Vashistha
Published On:
Nov 13, 2025
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