Nikki Haley Rips Vivek Ramaswamy’s ‘Mediocrity’ Talk: ‘Nothing Wrong With American Workers’

Nikki Haley wasn’t having it with Vivek Ramaswamy on Thursday after her former GOP presidential primary opponent argued that top tech companies often hire foreign-born engineers because American culture has “venerated mediocrity over excellence.”

“There is nothing wrong with American workers or American culture,” wrote the former United Nations ambassador in an X post responding to the tech entrepreneur. (Editor’s note: Ramaswamy is an investor in HuffPost’s parent company, BuzzFeed.)

“All you have to do is look at the border and see how many want what we have. We should be investing and prioritizing in Americans, not foreign workers.”

The two notably feuded during the GOP primary debates where Ramaswamy hurled insults at Haley, who called him “scum” after he mentioned her daughter amid discussion on the Chinese-owned social media platform TikTok.

The take from Ramaswamy — who is set to lead Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (“DOGE”) advisory group with fellow billionaire Elon Musk — sparked conservative backlash and exposed divisions among the president-elect’s base amid debate on immigration and H-1B work visas.

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There is nothing wrong with American workers or American culture. All you have to do is look at the border and see how many want what we have. We should be investing and prioritizing in Americans, not foreign workers. https://t.co/fIGr45C3LD

— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) December 26, 2024

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There is nothing wrong with American workers or American culture. All you have to do is look at the border and see how many want what we have. We should be investing and prioritizing in Americans, not foreign workers. https://t.co/fIGr45C3LD

— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) December 26, 2024

Musk appeared to show support for such visas when he responded to a post to his X platform that referred to “streamlining high-skilled immigration” as an “urgent” solution to a talent shortage in Silicon Valley on Wednesday.

“The number of people who are super talented engineers AND super motivated in the USA is far too low,” the billionaire wrote.

“Think of this like a pro sports team: if you want your TEAM to win the championship, you need to recruit top talent wherever they may be. That enables the whole TEAM to win.”

Companies such as Amazon, Walmart, Google and Apple all “take advantage” of the “flawed” H-1B visa program, which employers have relied on to recruit temporary employees to the U.S. with pay that’s “well below the local median wage,” according to a 2020 study by the Economic Policy Institute.

The takes from the DOGE duo come as Trump prepares to enact his sweeping mass deportation plans in his incoming administration.

Shermichael Singleton, a Republican strategist and CNN political commentator, told Kaitlan Collins on Thursday that Musk and Ramaswamy should be focusing on “saving federal dollars for the taxpayers” and not immigration policy.

“I think folks in the MAGA world have every right to be angry with Vivek and Elon Musk,” he said.

Singleton, later in his appearance on CNN, noted that Americans didn’t vote for Ramaswamy or Musk.

“They voted for Donald Trump,” said Singleton, who pressed a need for “domestic skill development” among Americans.