President Joe Biden criticized Elon Musk over allegations that the Tesla CEO once worked illegally in the United States, accusing him of hypocrisy on immigration issues.
Biden remarked at a campaign event in Pittsburgh, “The wealthiest man in the world became an illegal worker here. No, I’m serious. He was supposed to be in school on a student visa, but he wasn’t. He was violating the law. And he’s talking about all these illegals coming our way?”
The Washington Post reported that Musk, originally from South Africa, allegedly worked illegally on a student visa while in the U.S. Musk denies this, asserting on X, “I was in fact allowed to work in the US,” and called Biden’s statement a lie.
According to the newspaper, Musk arrived in Palo Alto in 1995 for a graduate program at Stanford University but did not enroll, instead focusing on his startup, Zip2.
The report further cited a 2005 email in which Musk acknowledged lacking U.S. work authorization during Zip2’s early days, a detail used in a past defamation lawsuit. Concerned investors had reportedly set a deadline for Musk to secure a work visa to avoid deportation.
Now the world’s richest person, Musk has reportedly contributed over $70 million to support Republican candidates, including presidential nominee Donald Trump, making him one of the GOP’s significant donors this election season.
