Vivek Ramaswamy says America doesn’t have enough engineers because we made fun of Steve Urkel

The unholy union between the pro-Trump MAGA right and the opportunistic crooks of the tech right has found its first major clash: H-1B visa politics. As the two groups try to organize themselves, they stumble New threads of racism and xenophobia Along the way, Co-Head of Government Efficiency Department Vivek Ramaswamy He blessed us with a new theory Why America supposedly lagged behind in its ability to produce elite engineers: We worshiped Stefan instead Steve Urkel.

According to Ramaswamy, “Our American culture has prized mediocrity at the expense of excellence,” all dating back to 1990s sitcoms and America’s preference for the dance and prom queen over the “Math Olympiad champion” or valedictorian.

“A culture that venerates Corey in Boy Meets World, or Zack and Slater over Screech in Saved by the Bell, or Stefan over Steve Urkel in Family Matters, will not produce the best engineers,” Ramaswamy said. chirp Publicly in a message that others can read and everything.

The reason big tech companies often hire foreign-born and first-generation engineers rather than “native” Americans is not because of an innate American IQ deficit (a lazy and wrong interpretation). A key part of it goes back to the C word: culture. Difficult questions require difficult answers, and if…

– Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) December 26, 2024

This whole thing is so incomprehensible that it’s hard to know where to begin, but I think it would be helpful to start with the fact that this isn’t even an exact retelling of what happened. Family affairs. Steve Urkel was so popular with audiences that the show was rewritten to center the character. It went from a regular family sitcom to a sci-fi-filled comedy centered around an American nerd. Even Stefan’s character was a product of Urkel’s nerd style. (If you are not on Family affairs In lore, Steve changes his DNA to be a cooler version of himself and attracts his love interest Laura, eventually creating a version that can be nice guy Stefan full-time instead of requiring Steve to switch between the two. Laura ends up choosing Steve over Stefan anyway.)

Frankly, this isn’t even the most egregious example of Ramaswamy’s bad media culture shown in this tweet. “More movies like Whiplash, fewer reruns of Friends,” he says, perhaps because he falls into the camp of people who think J.K. Simmons’ character mistreats his young students in the movie. Injury Justified because he pushes them to greatness instead of being seen as a crazy tyrant.

Also – look, I know I’m really critical of the media’s take but I swear this is the last one – what a wild ride for Corey from Boy meets world. He has to try so hard to look cool and it never takes. He is ultimately a quintessentially average man who knows how to be himself. He’s definitely not a jock or a prom king.

anyway. What prompted Ramaswamy to launch the idea was the ongoing battle over H-1B visas, which allow US companies to hire foreign workers in specialized professions and have become a commonly used tool in the tech industry to attract global talent. The top issuers of H-1B visas are almost all technology companies, and while visas are undoubtedly… Bring skilled workers into the fold and benefit the economy broadlyBig tech companies were too He is accused of using a recruiting tool to outsource work During the layoff of domestic workers.

The immigration hot topic is the biggest DKE situation I have ever seen 😂

– Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 26, 2024

Trump Restricted H1-B visas during his first term– A policy that was reversed by the Biden administration Tweak to make it easier To employ immigrants. But as Trump prepares to take office again, this program Appears on the chopping block.

The divide between Trump loyalists and tech industry players has reared its head over the past week Sriram Krishnan from a16z He was His name Senior policy advisor for artificial intelligence in the Trump White House. The appointment drew the ire of prolific racist Laura Loomer, who… He believes Krishnan wants to “remove all restrictions on the green card limit.” This would lead to more foreign students coming to the United States, which is a bad thing in Loomer’s eyes. She too accused Krishnan donated to Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign, but it turned out to be… Confusing him with someone with the same namewhich seems about right for her whole deal.

Now, Ramaswamy and his Trump-aligned tech colleagues have begun defending immigration programs for skilled workers and students as they find themselves at odds with the MAGA movement’s national front. This was bound to happen, and it’s a bit surprising that the war broke out before Trump took office, and on Christmas Day, no less. I guess if your family disowns you, you have more time to discuss immigration policy on Twitter over the holidays.

If there’s one thing Ramaswamy identifies right, if likely wrongly, it’s the divide among gamer geeks. Writer John Ganz presented his book The “Jock/Crip” theory of fascism In 2023, and it seems very clear here. The theory posits that Americans are particularly drawn to archetypes of their leaders who are tyrants and bullies, while the creepy/loser type does the scheming behind the scenes. “The dull ones seek to give their actions the appearance of historical greatness,” he writes, “while the dull ones search for a figure who embodies the strength they lack.”

To be sure, Trump is just a joke player in this alliance, so there is no doubt that his supporters are drawn to this kind of energy — the same kind that Ramaswamy argues should not be celebrated in American culture. Just before he placed himself above the divided ground beneath him, Ramaswamy served as a mediator between jocks and nerds: able to… Capture your MAGA imagination Better than any alternative to Trump, but still closely connected to the people pushing the right curve of the tech world. Now he seems to have thrown his lot in with the nerds in the eyes of MAGA.