MAGA backlash as Elon Musk, Vivek Ramaswamy defend visa program for skilled workers: Live updates

Podcast host Joe Rogan he said he believes that current and former presidents, such as the president-elect Donald Trumpthey know “something” about alien life, but they won’t reveal what it is.

Rogan told filmmaker James Fox, whose documentaries often focus on Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP), that he caught the feeling after asking Trump about it.

“When I confronted Mr. Trump, he was very harsh,” Rogan said Tuesday’s episode of The Joe Rogan Experience. “Very relaxed.”

Another burst was fired into the ongoing MAGA civil war it played out online between “America First” hardliners and Silicon Valley oligarchs who support Trump over the immigrant worker visa program — and now Elon Musk was accused of personally punishing his critics.

Laura Loomer and other far-right activists who railed against the owner of X (formerly Twitter) and his DOGE co-chair Vivek Ramaswamy for supporting the H-1B visa and criticizing American work culture, allege that Musk removed their X verification badges and the ability to monetize their accounts in an act of retaliation.

“[Musk] removed my blue X because I dared to question his support for H1B visas, the replacement of American tech workers with Indian immigrants, and I questioned his relationship with China,” Loomer published on Thursday night.

There are “indications” that Russia shot down the Azerbaijan Airlines flight that crashed in Kazakhstan on Christmas Day, the White House said.

“We have seen some early indications that would certainly point to the possibility that this jet was shot down by Russian air defense systems,” John Kirby, a spokesman for the National Security Council, told reporters. The Washington Post.

He added that the evidence goes beyond pictures posted online.

Preliminary findings of the investigation revealed that the plane crashed “due to external physical and technical interference”.

Azerbaijan’s Minister of Digital Development and Transport Rashad Nabiyev told his country’s media: “This is evidenced by the appearance of the plane wreckage on the ground and the testimony of eyewitnesses.”

“The type of weapon used for interference will be determined by the investigation,” said Nabiyev.

Taylor Cagnacci moved from California to Tennessee hoping to start a new chapter in a state that boasts a low cost of living and natural beauty.

But she infuriated Tennessee’s lax social services, which she and many other mothers struggle with in a state where abortion is banned with limited exceptions.

“I wanted to have my child no matter what, but for other women, it’s a crappy situation they put you in,” said Cagnacci, a 29-year-old Kingsport mom who relies on Medicaid and a federally funded nutrition program. “You have to have your child. But where is the help afterwards?”

Former House Freedom Caucus Chairman Scott Perry said he wants to keep his “options open” before committing to voting for Rep. Mike Johnson for another term in the House.

“I think Mike did an amazing job under difficult conditions, but I’m going to keep my options open,” Perry said during an appearance Friday morning on Fox Business. “I want to talk to Mike.”

This comes after the current chairman of the Freedom Caucus, Rep. Andy Harris, said Thursday that the GOP must consider whether the current leadership is “what we need.”

He added that he was “undecided” about who he said should lead the Republicans in the coming year Politico.

“We just have to make sure we get the best person for the job under the circumstances,” Perry added. “And I will tell you that one person who could make a difference is, quite frankly, President Trump. Whoever the president supports is likely to be the speaker, regardless.”

Donald Trumpa convincing victory in the US presidential race promises to end the war in Eastern Europe in 24 hours, seemingly even if it means forcing Kiev to cede territory Russia, the long-standing Western policy of helping Ukraine to completely defeat Vladimir Putin’s forces appears to be over. Negotiations with Russia, after years of silencethey are back on the agenda.

This is causing considerable stress in the Ukrainian parliament, the Verkhovna Rada. As Kira Rudik, the Ukrainian opposition leader, says: “The world must understand how crucial it is not to end the war on any idea of ​​negotiations with Russia.”

Elon Musk began in 2024 as the controversial owner of a social media platform, but ended up as one of the most powerful individuals in the world and a key adviser to the future US president.

The debate surrounding the billionaire has evolved dramatically over the past 12 months, from whether the way he ran X, formerly Twitter, would be viable or sustainable in the long term, to whether Musk’s own influence on global politics through his wealth and megaphone of social networks made him a threat to democracy.

The biggest story in 2024 surrounding Mr. Musk was the dramatic change behind the US president-elect Donald Trump on the eve of the elections in November and how Mr. Musk has effectively reconfigured the X into a vehicle that supports the Republican candidate, in addition to his personal wealth.

Russia, the US and China are undertaking major modernizations of their nuclear weapons just as the Cold War-era Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) between the Soviet Union and the US is beginning to unravel.

Elon Muskthe richest man in the world and the president-elect Donald Trump“first mate,” revealed on Christmas night that he had been using the weight-loss drug Mounjaro while calling himself “Ozempic Santa” in a holiday-themed social media post.

The revelation also comes just weeks after he clashed with Trump’s nominee to head Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over the widespread use and long-term benefits of GLP-1 inhibitors in the fight against obesity.

Posting on his social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Musk shared a picture of himself dressed as Santa next to a Christmas tree with the caption “Ozempic Santa”. The post quickly went viral, garnering over 200,000 likes and 26 million views.

“Like a cocaine bear, but Santa Claus and Ozempić!” Musk added in a separate tweet.

Elon Musk has said that “hateful, unrepentant racists” should be removed from the Republican Party “root and root” as the bipartisan fight over H-1B visas intensifies.

Talks over H-1B visas have divided Donald Trump’s party, with his Department of Government Efficiency chiefs Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy on one side and other allies like Laura Loomer on the other. The Space X founder escalated the feud Friday night when he called for the removal of some “despicable fools” in the GOP.