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'I’ll fire every H-1B working at…’: Florida governor hopeful vows crackdown on visa holders
Florida governor hopeful James Fishback has vowed to “fire every H-1B” working at state agencies and cut contracts with firms hiring visa holders.
James Fishback, a former Doge architect and hedge fund founder, has entered the 2026 Florida governor’s race with a hardline immigration pitch aimed at H-1B visa holders. Fishback, 30, is positioning himself as the most aggressive critic of foreign work visas in the race, promising sweeping changes if elected. Recently, he has claimed that he will “fire” every H-1B visa holder if he wins the race.
“As Florida Governor, I'll fire every H-1B working at a state agency and cancel state contracts with companies that employ H-1Bs instead of qualified Floridians. I will incentivize companies to hire Americans again,” Fishback wrote in an X post.
He also targeted Rep. Byron Donalds, a Trump-endorsed Republican candidate, accusing him of siding with corporate interests over American workers. “H-1Byron won’t do jack but shill for his H-1B corporate donors,” he added.
About James Fishback
Notably, Fishback is the founder and CEO of the “free-thinking” investment firm Azoria, which manages public and private capital and focuses on investments in companies that do not prioritise diversity initiatives.
According to a report by Politico, he plans to run on an immigration-first and affordability platform, proposing that companies operating in Florida be required to replace H-1B visa employees with American workers. His agenda also includes eliminating property taxes for residents’ homestead properties and reportedly bringing in a seasoned strategist from the Ron DeSantis orbit to steer his campaign.
(Also Read: Azoria CEO defends US education, says he’s tired of ‘Indian literacy rate’ comparisons)
Internet weighs in
Fishback’s comments, however, triggered swift pushback online. One user called his proposal “pure political theatre,” arguing that Florida already leads the country in new business creation and has near-record-low unemployment.
“Punishing legal H-1B visa holders (many of whom pay taxes here for decades and create jobs) just to ‘own the libs’ won’t make a single Floridian richer. It will just drive high-skill tech, engineering, and healthcare talent to Texas, North Carolina, or Canada. If you actually want ‘Americans hired first,’ go after the real culprits: companies abusing B-1/B-2 and OPT loopholes, not the legal, vetted H-1B professionals who went through years of background checks and payroll taxes. Fix the broken parts. Don’t break the parts that work,” the user wrote.
“Are there even much h1b visa holders in state agencies, much less floridas? H1b visas are overwhelmingly a private sector phenomenon, this whole tweet and proposal is such a useless farce lol,” commented another.
“Before cancel H1B visa, train your people to work properly. Why the hell co.s hire expats if they get good workers locally? They do, coz you guys are good for nothing,” wrote a third user.
