Musk: Trump ban will unfairly hurt some immigrants

Jefferson Graham | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Tech world responds harshly to Trump's immigration ban Tech companies had strong responses to Donald Trump's executive order banning immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim countries from entering the U.S., and some took action in response.

LOS ANGELES — Tesla CEO and Space X founder Elon Musk, who has Pres. Trump's ear, spoke out late Saturday against the new immigration ban on immigrants from predominantly Muslim countries.

Musk, who is is a member of Trumps' Strategic and Policy Forum, along with Uber CEO Travis Kalanick, had previously tweeted support for the president's controversial nominee for secretary of state, Rex Tillerson.

But of the new policy, banning Syrian refugees and immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim countries from entering the U.S., Musk said it "is not the best way to address the country’s challenges."

The blanket entry ban on citizens from certain primarily Muslim countries is not the best way to address the country’s challenges — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 29, 2017

He added: "Many people negatively affected by this policy are strong supporters of the US. They've done right, not wrong & don't deserve to be rejected."

Musk has defended his outreach to Trump to those in the tech community, many of whom are not Trump supporters. "The more voices of reason that the President hears, the better," he said in a recent exchange with Gizmodo.

Blasting Trump won't work, he added. "Are you aware of a single case where Trump bowed to protests or media attacks?" he asked. "Better that there are open channels of communication."

In a statement, Tesla reiterated the Musk tweets. "Tesla believes that the blanket entry ban on citizens from certain primarily Muslim countries is not the best way to address the country’s challenges. Many of the people who are negatively affected by this policy are strong supporters of the United States. They have done right, not wrong, and do not deserve to be rejected. We hope that this temporary action by the Administration transitions to a fair and thoughtful long-term policy.”

Musk's response to Trump on immigration was mild compared to Max Levchin, his former co-founder at PayPal.

The ban "has already disrupted families of patriotic Americans, and is distressing many more. These policies are not true to American values," Levchin said on Twitter.

Jeremy Stoppleman, the CEO of Yelp and another former PayPal colleague, tweeted that Saturday was "a sad day for USA."

As for Peter Thiel, another PayPal founder, and one with the closest ties to Trump, spokesman Jeremiah Hall said, "Peter doesn't support a religious test, and the administration has not imposed one."