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Derek Thompson
@DKThomp
I have a brief story I want to tell about the Tech Right, the Trump administration, and immigration. In June 2024, Trump went on the All In podcast and said we should make it easier for international students who graduate from top US colleges to become citizens. "It's so sad when we lose people from Harvard" after they graduate, he said. "I think you should get automatically, as part of your diploma, a green card to be able to stay in this country. That is going to end on day one." This was huge. Day one! Wow. The All In guys ate it up. Chamath goes: "That's fantastic." David Sacks: "That's great." Tech folks proclaimed Trump to be fully high-skill-immigration-pilled. Well, he's president now. And stapling green cards to diplomas isn't happening. What's happening instead? 1. Today, the Trump administration announced that it's illegal for Harvard to enroll foreign students and existing students have to transfer or face deportation. 2. The nominee for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services director said he wants to end the US's single largest high-skill recruitment program, OPT, which is critical for helping foreign-born students stay in the country. 3. NIH funding YTD is down more than 50%, and more AI scientists are leaving the country than coming in.
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Derek Thompson
@DKThomp
Aha. Thanks.
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Caleb Watney
@calebwatney
Replying to @DKThomp
Minor point, the net exporter of AI talent thing likely isn't quite right x.com/JeremyLNeufeld
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Reuben Rodriguez
@ReubenR80027912
Trump 2.0 has a logical, but never articulated b/c it’s unseemly, position. It goes: “We went to the moon 4 yrs before foreign born pop hit its all time nadir. Whatever the benefits of foreign labor those are outweighed by negatives of not having a dominant herrenvolk”
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Derek Thompson
@DKThomp
Google “Wernher von Braun” and then tell me how reducing high skill immigration was essential for the Apollo program
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Caleb Watney
@calebwatney
Minor point, the net exporter of AI talent thing likely isn't quite right
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Jeremy Neufeld
@JeremyLNeufeld
1/ Attracting and retaining AI talent should be a top national priority and a slowdown in recruitment is deeply concerning. But this chart isn't what it claims to be. Here's a breakdown... 🧵 x.com/RachylJones/st…
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arctotherium
@arctotherium42
Increasing "skilled" (read: "has college degree") immigration, especially student visas, is what Canada's done for the past decade. It's been a disaster. Tech right can pound sand if they want to do that here.
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Richard She
@Richard_She
Today's letter doesn't just affect current and future students - this actually nukes the F-1/OPT visa for students who already graduated within the last 1-3 years. Which contradicts the prior statements even more.
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Deva Hazarika
@devahaz
That promise they immediately walked back before the podcast even aired
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Gram Slattery
@G_Slattery
Trump spokesperson ⁦@kleavittnh⁩ on latest immigration proposal. Says would only apply to “most thoroughly vetted” college grads, who wouldn’t undercut wages
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Ian Watts
@_ianwatts_
All-In guys immediately bought they were the back room. “he’s just saying the exact opposite of this 90% of the time to placate the populace. alas, this is what actually matters” tech right ignored everything Trump said leading up and after that podcast
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Sherveen Mashayekhi
@Sherveen
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Sherveen Mashayekhi
@Sherveen
Replying to @kimmaicutler
It's gotta be written about soon. Sometime in 2023, that podcast quickly became the most competent, maliciously manipulative media in the current ecosystem, and has somehow gotten worse since then.
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Rajeev Prasad
@prasadrajeev
If you believed him you were not paying attention. He says whatever he thinks audience in front of him want him to say. Only core beliefs he has is immigration is bad and tariffs are good, and above all does it benefit him personally. You got fooled and this one is on you.
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Nikoloz Tskitishviliness
@NikolozTskitis1
Did the Federal government stop investigating the Tech Right? This is small potatoes now that there’s a strategic Bitcoin reserve (not just confiscated coins), Tariffs have eliminated income taxes, DoD has never had better information security protocols, the Russia Ukraine war
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Justin Pryor
@Justin_Pryor_
There is no logical defense for this decision. It is purely ideological driven which is insane as the leader of the United States of America.
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On Shoring America
@J_Vito_B
Politicians can say whatever they want about welcoming non-citizens, stapling green cards to diplomas, or overhauling visa programs. But they’re not doing the hiring. Corporations are! And that’s exactly where the leverage is. If we tax the corporations directly for choosing
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David Teren
@davidteren
The Trump administration revoked Harvard's Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification on May 22, 2025, due to alleged pro-terrorist conduct, including hosting CCP paramilitary groups and permitting anti-American protests, forcing foreign students to transfer or
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american-know-nothing
@a_know_nothing
Great! It’s about time the citizens that defend this place and their youths that register for the draft get some consideration over these imports that are only here to undermine American wages.
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Random Walk
@MosesSternstein
well, in harvard's case, had they stuck to smart scientists instead of mostly-nonlethal-terrorists who hate america, i don't think this would be happening. but since they didn't, we should all be glad it is.
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Paul Heckman
@Paul_Heckman_
I'm not going to bother checking the moron squad's accounts on here but I'd be willing to bet they're either ignoring it or finding a way to justify it
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john
@OverfitForTruth
if you watch that moment again, i feel the whole thing is a joke on
@jason
who’s the only one who believed it. he was just saying shit. there’s no way either trump or even chamath or sacks believed him. felt like a mockery to me.
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Chris Mommsen
@ChrisMommsen
It seems like blatantly lying about the direction you are going to take policy after winning the election is pretty new to Trump '24 and a somewhat underrated development... historically candidates were proud to follow through on campaign promises.
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Kevin MacCullough
@KMacCullough
The All in crew will conveniently dismiss their past comments and insert new narrative that they are for this and have been all along. Or they will be silent...which is how you know they disagree with something Trump does. They must have donated their spines to science.
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kimono
@arr_ohh_bee
Pro-immigration and agree. But also anti-Harvard. Harvard needs to admit more students, including many more American students. If Harvard wants to be treated like a national institution, it should act in more ways like a national trust.
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DrSteven
@DrStevenPhD
It’s time to recognize that the average tech player is a little smart at computer and zero smart at anything else.
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Laura Kev
@LauraKev1truth
Trump can never be trusted. He says what he wants in the moment to best suit himself. Loyalty to no one but self. Pure narcissism. Lying is like breathing to them. Utterly unfit for public office or leadership positions.
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Timothy
@_timothyjm
I'm not impressed by anyone who gets into Harvard starting with the class of 2030. They're competing against plumbers and electricians. Kids in the early 2020s had to go up against real competition.
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Nostromo
@conradenjoyer
The point is to hurt Harvard and other similar elite lib institutions. Foreigners are collateral damage.
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DrInformatics
@dr_informa
OPT is only critical for displacing American students and giving employers tax breaks to hire foreigners instead of citizens. Only someone interested in the destruction of America thinks that is a good idea.
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Andy
@AndyTrading89
Maybe these students should try not being psychopathic anti semites and leftist radicals
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KelMac
@BalihiMaiTai
The US is having a brain drain. The Alt Right wants everyone stupid and poor. All conservatives can go to hell.
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Joe Johnstun
@joejohnstun
the problem is i dont know if this story is true or something youre lying about, like your democrat joe rogan sleeper cell plan 🤷‍♀️
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Derek Thompson
@DKThomp
What Democrats really need is a way to reach ppl (esp young men) who aren't consuming political news at all. My plan, if donors are listening, is that Dems should create a men's-health sleeper cell movement. You astroturf Liberal Joe Rogan by paying a bunch of ripped x.com/teddyschleifer…
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NoExpertHere
@NoExpertHere
Every single Student/Employment based visa programs are being used as a tool to take over American industries by foreign adversaries. This is no longer 1960s.
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Just a Guy
@kalash9993
Imagine pretending that corrupt University that accepts rich kids based on their parents affiliation is a top talent school. Nothing relevant came out of Harvard in the last 15 years. This place is ripe for overhaul, and immigration is absolutely a Federal area to regulate.
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bbnanny
@NanbumHall
Was that before the green card holders started attacking Jews? Was that before their violent rhetoric incited a double murder? Pound Sand
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AS
@2184Sea
We want to keep engineers and doctors. Hard sciences. Not anti-american, terror-supporting foreign activists in the humanities departments. The blame is with Harvard and media like you for purposely conflating two completely different things
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