From campus radicals to Beijing's AI sabotage: Rep Randy Fine says 'US fighting to save Western civilization'
U.S. Rep. Randy Fine, R-Fla., has emerged as one of the most outspoken foreign policy voices in Congress during his short tenure on Capitol Hill.
He frames the modern political battleground not just merely as a domestic election but as an existential struggle to preserve Western civilization.
In a wide-ranging exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, the Florida Republican pulled no punches as he tied anti-Israel sentiment and opposition to domestic AI data centers directly to foreign influence operations by Iran and China, positioning himself as an unapologetic fighter for President Donald Trump’s agenda.
As the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has emerged as a political lightning rod, serving as a primary litmus test for the American left, Fine believes foreign money has played a large part in shaping public opinion.
"I think it's a focused effort over many decades to try to pollute our population with these ridiculous ideas," Fine said. "But I think it's accelerated since Oct. 7 as massive amounts of foreign money have come in to try and manipulate public opinion through social media. They lie. And here's how you know they lie. When other countries kill tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of their people, no one seems to be bothered.
"But when Israel defends itself from a terrorist attack, they lose their minds. Iran killed 40,000 of its own people in a couple of days earlier this year. Those same people who are upset with Israel are actually siding with Iran. The good news is the vast majority of the American people understand that the United States and Israel are fighting to save Western civilization, and that's certainly a message that I'm focused on spreading every day."
As the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is sweeping through mainstream culture with the recent cancellation of Macklemore's tour dates in football stadiums, Fine is a staunch defender of Robert Kraft's decision and denies it's merely "conservative cancel culture."
"So, first off, they weren't political statements," Fine said. "I mean, is calling for the death of Jews a political statement? I mean it's antisemitism in the same way racism against black people is. And while you're allowed to be an idiot, as this Macklemore guy is, you don't have the right to perform in a stadium that's owned by private citizens.
"He didn't want a guy who puts a prosthetic nose on his face, in order to appear to be a Nazi, performing in his stadium. He has every right to say that is not welcome.
"That doesn't mean Macklemore can't stand on the street corner and preach his views. Cancel culture is when you cannot exist, when you're debanked, when you literally cannot function in society.
"But in the same way, I have the right to say whatever I want, other people have the right to you can't say it in my house. And that's all that's happened here. I think he [Robert Kraft] did the right thing. I think we need more of it."
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Fine has also been at the forefront of condemning the militant pro-Palestinian protesters who have taken over university campuses across the country over the past year.
"I think we draw the line at violence. Every student has the right to get an education," Fine said. "And, so, for example, when Jewish students are not able to come to class, when they're not able to walk across campus, when they're blamed for the actions of a country on the other side of the world, that is where you've crossed a line.
"Look, I had to deal with the ‘free Palestine’ idiots when I was in college, you know, 30 years ago. But they didn't affect my ability to actually exist and to do my job and to be a student. So. I just didn't worry about it."
Fine has described himself as "MAGA through and through" and sees himself as one of the president's staunchest defenders in Congress.
"Well, I believe in making America great again. I've been a huge supporter of the president," Fine said. "I was the first member of the Florida House to support President Trump when he ran for president again in 2024. And I believe that the president is really putting his fingers in the dam of the destruction of Western civilization, which so many are trying to shove down our throats.
"So, I'm here to be a warrior and a soldier for President Trump's agenda, and I've been proud to do it since I got elected on April 1 of last year."
As domestic opposition to data centers has skyrocketed and AI regulation emerges as a major issue heading into the midterms, Fine warns that China is using both issues to win a geopolitical advantage over the United States.
"I think it's largely an op by China. And let's explain why. So, I think the 21st century, who wins the 21st century, will largely be defined by who wins the war over AI. And that fight is on four levels.
"One is hardware. Who has the best hardware? Right now, America is in the lead on that. Who has the best software? Right now, America is on the lead.
"Who has the best energy infrastructure? Unfortunately, China has the lead on that because while the idiots on our side have said let's not have coal-fired power plants … let's not have nuclear, let's get all of our energy from solar and windmills, China, who's selling us all the solar and the windmills, is putting up coal-fired power plants. So, cheap, plentiful energy. China's winning that fight.
"But the fourth front in that fight is what they call compute: data centers. If you want to use Grok, if you want to use ChatGPT, if you want to use Claude and you type that stuff in, something needs to be doing the thinking. It's not happening on your phone. It's happening at a data center. And China has realized that if they can get America to not put data centers in, well then those data centers have to go in China, and China wins on that front of the war.
"Does that mean you should be able to put a data center in a neighborhood? No, it doesn't. But does that mean the data centers are a critical part of re-industrializing the United States to make sure we win the war over AI? It absolutely is."
Finally, Congressman Fine addressed the looming midterm elections as Republicans face headwinds to retain control of both chambers, making a forceful case for the GOP's accomplishments in the 119th Congress.
"Well, I'd say two things. No. 1, look at what we've done. The largest tax cut in American history. No tax on tips, no tax on overtime. Look at President Trump sealing the border. Look at the first net migration out of the country in decades. Look at the stopping of the transgender things. Look at all the extraordinary achievements. Remember how bad things were two years ago?
"But the second thing is understand what we're at risk of if the Democrats win. All of the good things that we have done. Many of the Democrats that I serve with hate America. If you think Ilhan Omar, if you think Rashida Tlaib, if you think Abdulrahman Mohammed El-Sayed, if you think Zohran Mamdani, if you think they think America is good and that they love America, you're out of your mind.
"And the Democratic Party has been poisoned by people who hate America. The barbarians are no longer outside the gates, they're inside and they're running for Congress. And they can never be allowed to have power because they will make it their single-minded mission to destroy the country."