James Fishback Invokes Benito Mussolini In New Campaign Ad
Republican candidate for Florida governor James Fishback leaned on a phrase long linked to Italian dictator Benito Mussolini in a new campaign ad released Saturday, declaring that he is “running for governor of Florida to make the trains run on time.”
The 30-year-old investor, who is running in the 2026 Florida gubernatorial race, filmed the pot on the tracks that once carried Amtrak’s Sunset Limited in the rural Panhandle town of Chipley and paired it with the caption on X, Facebook and LinkedIn as part of his speech aimed at restoring passenger rail and boosting employment in the region. (RELATED: Florida Republicans Protest Data Centers Despite Trump Administration Push)
“My name is James Fishbach and I am running for governor of Florida,” Fishback says in the ad. “I’m here in Chipley in the Panhandle on the tracks that once carried Amtrak’s Sunset Limited.”
I’m running for governor of Florida to keep the trains running on time. pic.twitter.com/1UuRfLFYQI
-James Fishback (@j_fishback) December 13, 2025
The phrase “run the trains on time” is widely documented as having been used to praise Mussolini’s regime in Italy, although historians say it overstates his regime’s actual success in improving rail service, according to Snopes. It has since become an English shorthand for trading political freedoms for the promise of authoritarian effectiveness.
Fishback does not mention Mussolini or fascism in the video or caption.
On his official campaign website, Fishback says he is “running to succeed Ron DeSantis as Florida’s next Republican governor” and emphasizes an “affordability” message on housing, jobs and property taxes. He previously gained attention in November after calling Republican Party rival Byron Donalds a “slave to his donors” during his launch event, according to WFLX.
