H-1B visa issue: Trump was for it before he became against it

Michael Wolff’s book Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, which has ignited a firestorm in Washington DC, portrays Donald Trump as being in favour of the H-1B visas during the transition period when he was President-elect, after having campaigned to curtail the visa, and eventually moving to fulfil his campaign promise.

According to excerpts from the book published in New York magazine, Trump’s sketchy grasp of issues like H-1B visas and his ficklemindedness is evident in a conversation he has with media tycoon Rupert Murdoch, whose friendship and validation Trump frequently sought despite the latter’s contempt for him.

On December 14, 2016, a high-level delegation from Silicon Valley came to Trump Tower to meet the President-elect. Later that afternoon, Wolff writes, Trump called Murdoch, who asked him how the meeting had gone.

“Oh, great, just great,” says Trump. “These guys really need my help. Obama was not very favourable to them, too much regulation. This is really an opportunity for me to help them.” “Donald,” says Murdoch, “'for eight years these guys had Obama in their pocket. They practically ran the administration. They don’t need your help.” “Take this H-1B visa issue. They really need these H-1B visas,” says Trump.

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Murdoch suggests that taking a liberal approach to H-1B visas, which open America’s doors to select immigrants, might be hard to square with his promises to build a wall and close the borders. But Trump seems unconcerned, assuring Murdoch, “We’ll figure it out.” “What a f…ing idiot,” Wolff quotes Murdoch as saying (on the basis of third party accounts) as he gets off the phone. It’s not the first time someone is said to have used such an epithet — without denying it. US secretary of state Rex Tillerson also reportedly called Trump a “f**king moron”.