Exclusive Interview With Representative Ben Cline
Exclusive Interview With Representative Ben Cline
Cline discussed higher education in the context of the Trump administration and Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
(Ben Cline speaks to a politics class in Huntley Hall. | SOURCE: Author)
The Spectator held an interview with U.S. Congressman Ben Cline, a Republican representing Virginia’s 6th congressional district, during his recent visit to Lexington. During the visit, Cline visited a W&L politics class and ate lunch with the W&L College Republicans.
A native of Lexington, Cline formerly represented his hometown and Buena Vista in the Virginia House of Delegates’ 24th district from 2002 to 2018. Immediately following his resignation, he was elected as U.S. Representative to Virginia's 6th district in 2019.
Cline has an interest in education policy, having recently hosted a higher education roundtable at Shenandoah University that included “higher education leaders from across Virginia’s Sixth District,” including W&L’s President William Dudley. Topics of discussion included “technology integration, risk management, and more.”
Representative Cline has previously served on the House Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Investment, and has cosponsored a number of bills impacting universities, including the Protecting Life on College Campus Act of 2025, the Dismantle DEI Act of 2025, the Know Before You Owe Federal Student Loan Act of 2023, and the Higher Education Reform and Opportunity Act of 2019.
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The interview has been edited for clarity and concision.
Q: Mr. Cline, thank you for sitting down with me to chat. So the first question I have is, what is driving the Trump administration's current crackdown on higher education? Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), so-called hate speech, anti-Semitism and international student visas. Why is that such a top priority, and do you agree with how much stress they're putting on that?
A: Well, I know that the administration has put a lot of emphasis on the woke politics that have been woven into higher education over the past several years. The last administration really used policy to try and squelch free speech on campuses and try and limit the freedoms of students, particularly those who were conservatives, while allowing for radical leftists to create unsafe environments for Jewish students and others. And so I'm pleased with the administration's efforts to bring back some balance to college campuses and to encourage campuses to embrace free speech and embrace the free exchange of ideas; and also with regard to women's sports, making sure that we continue to support women's sports and not allow them to be overtaken by woke transgender politics.
Q: Do you agree with Pam Bondi, talking about needing to reduce hate speech?
A: I have a difference of opinion because I don't view speech in different categories. So to me, speech that is unpleasant is still free speech. And we need to protect free speech rights for students on campus, and generally across the country.
Q: Would you say that the same thing applies to international students who maybe, the Trump administration doesn't like their stance on Israel-Palestine issues or something like that, or is that a different scenario?
A: That is a different scenario because, as Secretary Rubio has said, people who are from other countries who are studying on our campuses are guests. They are here because we are a welcoming country and want to allow people from other countries to study here. But if they create a culture, an atmosphere that is dangerous for some students, like Jewish students, to attend classes, then they can essentially void that welcome that this government has, that we have extended to them, and the State Department has said that they would take action, and I think that's appropriate in many cases.
Q: And in the midst of this ongoing issue, what do you see as Congress's role in ensuring that education serves America's future interests?
A: Good question. I'd say that continuing to encourage colleges to bring down costs to have more accountability for our colleges and universities, so that they're not essentially raising prices to a level that's unaffordable for students and encouraging them to major in fields that will make it nearly impossible for them to make a living and repay their loans. So there needs to be some accountability on the part of college campuses to reduce costs. But we have a responsibility in Congress to provide certainty for administrators, for universities to be able to plan for the future, to be able to determine how many students they can afford to have on campus, how many are going to be on loans, on Pell Grants, on other types of financial aid, and So Congress has a responsibility to ensure that certainty is there as well, and I think we have more that we can do in that area.
Q: Specifically, legislation, or what?
A: Well, yes, and working with the administration to make sure that with regard to our visas, that those are long-term, that there is certainty there in those visa programs, and that colleges can budget for a certain number of students coming in from other countries.
Q: And your district is home to a lot of private universities. So should we be trying to push these private universities to fit with a certain vision, or should we give them more freedom as private universities that receive public funding?
A: I think that we need to achieve that balance where private universities can exercise that freedom to pursue whatever form they think is appropriate for their education of their students. But when they do take federal dollars, it's entirely appropriate for us to condition that funding on certain actions, especially protecting women's sports, is one area where we would insist on colleges and universities protecting women's sports if they're going to accept federal funding.
Q: At Washington and Lee, we had the Office of Inclusion and Engagement, and then Trump came in and they've switched the name of the office, but all the same employees are still there. So what are your thoughts on how we can really almost get the job done and not permit the universities to kind of sidestep?
A: I think that there's an effort in the Department of Justice to make sure that institutions comply with the orders of the administration, not just on the surface, but also taking action to eradicate DEI on the campuses and not just changing the name.
Q: What are your thoughts on the response of universities, especially universities in your district, to the assassination of Charlie Kirk? Any thoughts on that?
A: It was a tragedy that I think will actually light a fire under a lot of people to continue to express themselves freely on campus, to start new chapters of Turning Point or other groups that are going to encourage debate and discussion, and reject a culture of violence that all too often comes from the left.
Q: What are your thoughts on the latest FIRE free speech rankings? They just came out and Washington and Lee was ranked below most Virginia schools, and the ranking has slipped a little bit. So what are your thoughts on that, and also just FIRE's free speech rankings and Virginia universities?
A: Well, FIRE has been at the forefront of advocating for free speech on campuses and making sure that those institutions that impose speech codes that limit free speech or debate on campus are held accountable for the closed-minded policies. And so I know that President Dudley encourages free speech on campus and wants to have an open dialogue. And so hopefully we'll see an embrace by the college of debate and dialogue on campus moving forward.
Q: Were you aware of the whole Matt Walsh situation, where we were bringing Matt Walsh to speak, and there was lots of pushback? What were your thoughts on that scenario?
A: Matt Walsh is a great conservative and can be controversial at times, but colleges that reject free exchange of ideas do a disservice to the students and to the Constitution. So I would hope that they would reconsider. Was he allowed to speak?
Q: He was allowed to speak, I mean, hundreds of students and professors combined signed this petition. And then, President Dudley, there was massive pressure on him not to allow him to speak. And he came out and said, “We allow all ideologies.”
A: Well, that's a good sign, and, hopefully, they'll continue to embrace free speech moving forward.
