‘It was done without H-1Bs from India’: Ex-DOGE adviser hits out at Vivek Ramaswamy amid immigration row

Former DOGE adviser James Fishback pushed back against Vivek Ramaswamy’s comments on Ohio’s industrial future, using the moment to reiterate his call to end the “H-1B scam”.

Fishback was responding to an X post from Ramaswamy, the Indian-origin candidate endorsed by Trump and now running for Governor of Ohio. Vivek appeared to be simply promoting his campaign and making his case to voters.




Vivek said: “Ohio led the first Industrial Revolution & there’s no reason we can’t lead the next one, but energy dominance is essential. Permitting timelines, red tape, and bureaucracy are slowing new power generation & everyday Ohioans are paying higher electric bills as a consequence. We’re going to fix it in Ohio by speeding up permitting through executive action on Day 1.”

Fishback replied doubling down his repetitive call of ending H1-Bs: “Ohio led the first Industrial Revolution… Correct, and it was done without H-1Bs from India. As Florida Governor, I’ll end the H-1B scam so our workers can get back the great-paying jobs that were stolen from them.”

Fishback’s campaign for Florida governor in 2026 is surrounded by this visa controversey. The 30-year-old investor has positioned himself as a conservative outsider focused on “America First” priorities. He has promised to abolish property taxes, block what he describes as the unfair hiring of H-1B visa workers by state agencies, and halt new AI data-centre projects. His campaign pitch centres on affordability and restoring job opportunities for U.S. citizens.

Fishback is also succeeding Ron DeSantis, one of the GOP’s top bigwigs.

Meanwhile, Ramaswamy has based his own 2026 race around education and economic competitiveness in Ohio.

Fishback's stance on H1-B

Last week, the Florida runner also said he would fire every H-1B worker on day one if he wins.

“I’ll fire every single H-1B working at our state agencies before the sun sets on my first day as Florida Governor. Then we’ll hire incredible Floridians for those posts,” the conservative figure said.

On Wednesday, Fishback turned the heat up on X: "We have countless smart people right here in Florida, and yet companies are refusing to hire them because they like to hire H-1B foreign slave workers instead because they are cheaper"

"I want our kids to have jobs, so they can have money to buy a home, get married, and raise a God-fearing family."

Both Ramaswamy and Fishback have worked under DOGE, an initiative that was shut down early and abruptly, causing a stir within the political base and raising questions against Elon Musk, who started it in the first place.