Will the GOP's New Big Tent Survive the Legal Immigration Debate?

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Photo by Mick Haupt on Unsplash

A civil war over legal immigration has broken out on the political right on Christmas Eve.

The conflict began with President-elect Donald Trump’s appointment of Sriram Krishnan, an Indian American tech investor, as a senior advisor on artificial intelligence (AI). Laura Loomer, an unofficial adviser to the Trump campaign, criticized the appointment on X.com, claiming Krishnan wanted to replace American STEM students with foreign workers—an assertion based on Krishnan's call to remove the per-country cap for skilled immigrants.

Loomer's comments spurred others in the MAGA camp to call for eliminating H1B visas ( a temporary work visa), with troublingly racist rhetoric (see here and here). In contrast, supporters like Elon Musk and David Sacks defended Krishnan (see here and here). Vivek Ramaswamy deepened the conflict with a post that some say amplifies Asian culture while putting down the American culture. His comment faced significant backlash from all si…