Washington Post contrasts the episode with the South African multibillionaire’s anti-immigration views

Washington Post contrasts the episode with the South African multibillionaire’s anti-immigration views

Elon Musk briefly worked illegally in the US after abandoning a graduate studies program in California, according to a Washington Post report that contrasted the episode with the South African multibillionaire’s anti-immigration views.

The boss of Tesla and SpaceX, who has in recent weeks supported Donald Trump’s campaign for a second presidency while promoting the Republican White House nominee’s opposition to “open borders” on his X social media site, has previously maintained that his transition from student to entrepreneur was a “legal grey area”.

But the Washington Post reported Saturday that the world’s wealthiest individual was almost certainly working in the US without correct authorization for a period in 1995 after he dropped out of Stanford University to work on his debut company, Zip2, which sold for about $300m four years later.

    • Chozo
      22•29 days ago

      I believe that expired visas are still the most common cause of illegal immigration in the US. Most immigrants end up getting here completely legally, and for one reason or another some will stay past their visa expiration (often due to the renewal process getting hung up in the system for extended periods).

      However, it’s newsworthy because of Musk’s rampant anti-immigration rhetoric, even though he knowingly lived and worked in the US illegally, himself. He doesn’t mind breaking the rules and profiting from it, but wants to stop anybody else from following him.

    • @dan@upvote.au
      8•29 days ago

      illegally in the US after one of her visas expired.

      Just to clarify: A visa just determines the time period when you can enter the USA. How long you can stay in the USA is determined by the I-94 (a form that’s issued upon arrival), not the visa.

      It’s possible for the I-94 expiration date to be later than the visa expiration date, which means you can still stay in the USA after the visa expires (until the I-94 expires), but you just won’t be able to leave and re-enter without renewing the visa.

        • @dan@upvote.au
          9•29 days ago

          Yeah, definitely. I just wanted to clarify since it’s a common point of confusion even for people that are currently on visas. My wife and I got a green card a few years ago so I’m glad I don’t have to deal with visas any more.

    • Annoyed_🦀 A
      6•29 days ago

      Not an American, but it’s worth the headline because of the irony.