Trump Declares U.S. Doesn’t Have Talented Workers

Donald Trump argued that there are no talented workers in the U.S. after being cornered by Fox News host Laura Ingraham over allowing high-skilled foreign workers into the country.

The president found himself in the odd position of not being the most MAGA voice in the room when Ingraham asked if H-1B visas “will not be a big priority” for the administration during his interview on The Ingraham Angle, which was taped at the White House Monday.

“If you want to raise wages for American workers, you can’t flood the country with hundreds of thousands of foreign workers,” Ingraham, 62, claimed.

GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN - NOVEMBER 05: Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump, takes the stage for his last rally of the election year at Van Andel Arena on November 05, 2024 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Trump campaigned for re-election in the battleground states of North Carolina and Pennsylvania before arriving for his last rally minutes after midnight in Michigan. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) — President Donald Trump campaigned on bringing back American manufacturing jobs. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

“Well, I agree, but we also do have to bring in talent,” replied the 79-year-old president, who has long promised to bring back American manufacturing jobs.

“We have plenty of talent,” the Fox host shot back.

“No you don’t, no you don’t,” Trump insisted, shaking his head with visible irritation.

Ingraham pressed on: “We don’t have talented people here?”

“No, you don’t have certain talents and people have to learn!” the “America First” president said. “You can’t take people off an unemployment line and say, I’m going to put you into a factory where we’re going to make missiles.”

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 20: Guests including Mark Zuckerberg, Lauren Sanchez, Jeff Bezos, Sundar Pichai and Elon Musk attend the Inauguration of Donald J. Trump in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. Donald Trump takes office for his second term as the 47th president of the United States. (Photo by Julia Demaree Nikhinson - Pool/Getty Images) — Several of Trump’s supporters in Silicon Valley—including Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Sundar Pichai, and Elon Musk—head up companies that employ a significant number of workers on H-1B visas. Julia Demaree Nikhinson/Getty Images

Trump then criticized the massive ICE raid that took place at a Hyundai Motor battery plant in Georgia in September, which resulted in the arrests of hundreds of foreign nationals, including 300 South Koreans.

“[The plant] had like five or six hundred people, early stages, to make batteries and to teach people how to do it,” he said ruefully. “Well, they wanted them to get our of the country—you’re going to need that, Laura. I know you and I disagree on this.”

After the raid, Trump privately offered the South Korean workers a chance to remain in the country to help train American staff, but they overwhelmingly rejected the deal, according to Reuters.

Trump’s MAGA base has long pushed to end the H1-B visa program, saying it sidelines American workers and drives down wages.

In September, Trump controversially announced that the government would charge companies a $100,000 fee for each H-1B visa used to hire a foreign worker.

But he has stopped short of gutting the program, which draws significantly from India, Canada, and China, and is widely used by tech firms led by his billionaire allies in Silicon Valley.

After Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick initially said the fee would be annual, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later clarified that it’s a one-time fee only applying to new applicants.

The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for comment.

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