9 January 22–28, 2026 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com NEW TIMES | CONTENTS | LETTERS | NEWS | NIGHT+DAY | CULTURE | CAFE | MUSIC | Make It Rain OnlyFans star Sophie Rain rips gubernatorial candidate James Fishback’s proposed sin tax. BY CELIA ALMEIDA W ith term-limited Gov. Ron DeSantis’ tenure coming to an end in January 2027, the race to replace him is officially under- way. On the Republican side, Trump-backed Byron Donalds is running against Davie inves- tor James Fishback, who has already courted plenty of controversy early in the campaign. Last week, in an interview with pastor Joel Webbon, who has been described as a Christian nationalist, Fishback made head- lines by announcing that, if elected, he’d im- pose a 50 percent tax on OnlyFans creators in the state of Florida. “If you are a so-called OnlyFans creator in Florida, you are going to pay 50 percent to the state on whatever you so-called earn via that online degeneracy platform,” he told Web- bon. “That money will be used to fund our ed- ucation system; will be used to fund the crisis pregnancy centers; will be used to fund the first of its kind Mental Health Czar for men in particular, because men have been told for far too long that they are guilty of masculinity; that they are guilty of all of society’s ills.” Fishback went on to say that, as governor, he’d “end this lie that toxic masculinity is re- sponsible for all these sins and ills of society.” Categorizing his proposal as a sin tax, Fishback told Webbon that he does not want “young women who could otherwise be mothers raising families; rearing children — I don’t want them to be selling their bodies to sick men online, and I don’t want young, im- pressionable men who have strayed from Christ — who have strayed from our Lord and savior — to be drawn into lust and have their entire brain rewired.” He added that the proposed tax would “raise hundreds of millions of dollars.” In- deed, such a tax could potentially be big busi- ness in Florida — Miami alone recently ranked among the Top 5 U.S. cities that spend the most on the platform, and the 305 is al- ready a global capital for OnlyFans creators. According to Fishback, not raising the money would be good news, too. “It will mean...that the OnlyFans industry and its supporters will have been utterly robbed of their ability to rob us, not just of our hard- earned wages, but of our commitment to Christ,” he added. After his interview, Fishback reposted a clip of the exchange on X and tagged Miami’s Sophie Rain, cofounder of Fort Lauderdale’s Bop House, directly. “Pay up or quit OnlyFans,” he wrote. “As Florida Governor, I will not allow a genera- tion of smart and capable young women to sell their bodies online.” Rain responded in kind: “Sounds like you subscribed and got buyer’s remorse after dropping your annual salary on an OF girl .” Rain, who has made her virginity and Chris- tianity a part of her brand, is one of the top cre- ators on OnlyFans. She also boasts nearly 15 million followers on TikTok, where she made a video addressing Fishback’s callout. “Never in my life did I think that I would wake up and see a Florida politician trying to start beef with me for clout,” she said in the clip, adding that she already pays 37 percent of her income in taxes. “I would be more than happy to pay [the proposed 50 percent sin tax] if multibillion- dollar corporations were also being properly taxed, but — surprise — they’re not,” she continued. “I never usually get into politics, but there are clearly better ways to raise funds from ac- tual corrupt businesses in our country,” she added. “I think people also fail to realize that there are so many creators on this platform that do this job because they’re struggling, so to tax them like that when they’re literally do- ing it just to support their families is sad. I would much rather continue donating di- rectly to people in need, because we all know where our tax dollars go.” Getting roasted by an OnlyFans model is just the latest in a string of controversial mo- ments for Fishback, whose campaign has been accused of racism. Just this week, he drew bipartisan ire for an X post in which he deliberately misspelled his Republican oppo- nent’s name as “By’rone,” claiming Donalds “wants to turn Florida into a Section 8 ghetto.” Donalds is Black, and Fishback has also repeatedly referred to him as a “slave.” Last month, NBC reported that the Broward County School District cut ties with Fish- back in 2022 over sexual misconduct allega- tions involving a then-17-year-old girl. Fishback is considered a long-shot candi- date — his first campaign fundraising report shows he has raised just $950, with one $500 donation coming from a single donor. [email protected] Adobe Stock ▼ Culture Culture A Florida gubernatorial candidate wants in on that sweet, sweet OnlyFans cash.
