Trump Cites Manufacturing Need to Back H-1B Visa
U.S. President Donald Trump appeared to soften his traditionally hardline stance on high-skilled immigration this week, stating unequivocally that the United States must continue to attract international expertise via the H-1B visa program because the country “doesn’t have certain talents” domestically.
The President’s comments, made during a Fox News interview with host Laura Ingraham, have created a schism within his political base while offering a moment of relief and validation to corporate America and the technology industry.
When pressed by Ingraham on whether the H-1B visa issue should be deprioritized to raise wages for American workers, the President pushed back.
“I agree, but you also do have to bring in talent,” Mr. Trump stated.
When the host asserted that the country already had “plenty of talented people here,” Trump responded with a firm denial: “No, you don’t, no you don’t. You don’t have certain talents. And people have to learn.”
The Skill Gap and the Missile Factory Analogy
The President anchored his argument in the necessity of specialized, immediate skills for high-tech and defense manufacturing projects, contrasting this need with the long-term unemployed domestic workforce.
“You can’t take people off an unemployment line, and say, ‘I’m going to put you into a factory, we’re going to make missiles’,” the President argued.
He emphasized that critical, multibillion-dollar investments in the U.S. industrial base cannot rely on workers who lack specialized, up-to-date training.
“It doesn’t work that way,” he concluded.
To illustrate his point, Trump cited the example of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raid in Georgia at an under-construction facility related to battery manufacturing.
He noted that the raid, ostensibly targeting illegal immigrants, led to the removal of hundreds of South Korean experts crucial for setting up the complicated and dangerous process of battery production.
This example was used to show that essential, advanced manufacturing knowledge often resides with skilled foreign specialists.
H-1B Visa Program: Hardline Crackdown vs. Talent Acknowledgment
His administration’s simultaneous, aggressive crackdown on the H-1B program makes the President’s acknowledgment of the need for global talent particularly noteworthy.
Just two months ago, in September 2025, the administration implemented a controversial, one-time $100,000 application fee for new H-1B petitions, a move that drew sharp criticism from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and corporate leaders, who warned of a catastrophic “brain drain.”
Furthermore, the administration recently launched approximately 175 investigations into alleged H-1B visa abuse, including cases of underpayment and non-existent worksites, consistent with its “America First” labor agenda.
Adding another layer of complexity, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent clarified the administration’s long-term vision shortly after the interview, stating the plan is to bring in skilled foreign workers to train American workers over a period of three to seven years, after which the foreign workers would be expected to return home.
MAGA Base Revolts Over Softened Stance
His populist base immediately and harshly met the President’s defense of skilled immigration with backlash.
High-profile conservative commentators and political allies erupted online, accusing the President of “betrayal” and “losing faith in his own people.”
Critics argued that companies who prefer the H-1B route sideline American engineers and tech workers, and that the President’s assertion that Americans lack talent is a fundamental slight against the domestic workforce.
Despite the political controversy, the President’s comments underscore a major tension in U.S. immigration policy: balancing the commitment to American workers with the practical, immediate demand for highly specialized global talent in key high-growth and defense sectors, where countries like India contribute over 70% of the H-1B visa holders.
The administration is reportedly working on a “whole new plan” to selectively allow highly skilled workers to enter the U.S. to support new manufacturing projects, aiming to strike a delicate balance between populist rhetoric and industrial reality.
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