Marco Rubio

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) is a favorite of neoconservatives, Latin America hawks, and hardline pro-Israel ideologues. He has exerted considerable influence over U.S. Latin America policy, an influence which has increased during the Trump administration. Rubio has called for the United States to re-evaluate its role as the top donor to the United Nations over its condemnation of the December 2017 U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. He unsuccessfully ran for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016.[1] His campaign received support from “pro-Israel” megadonors like Sheldon Adelson and Paul Singer.[2]

After dropping out of the presidential primary “Little Marco”—as Donald Trump liked to disparage him—eventually endorsed Trump, despite previously calling the real estate magnate “frightening,” “disturbing,” and a “con artist.”[3]

Rubio entered the race as one of the favorites to win the nomination, but did not do well in the early primaries and dropped out when he lost his home state of Florida to Trump.

Rubio’s attitude towards President Trump followed a similar pattern as that of the campaign: disapproval followed by fawning praise. In May 2017, as the Russia scandal continued to expand, Rubio told CBS Face the Nation: “I don’t understand why people are that shocked. This president ran a very unconventional campaign.”[4] A month later, after Trump announced his decision to reverse Obama-era policies on Cuba, Rubio said: “The cooperation, the hard work, the commitment that this White House and President Trump has shown to this cause, I believe has no precedent, certainly in the modern history of this great cause.”[5]

Commented Sen Patrick Leahy: “It should be obvious to everyone that this is a political favor from President Trump to a few influential Members of Congress who have never set foot in Cuba and who represent a tiny minority of the American people.”[6]

Rubio has been reluctant to take strong stands against Trump’s policies when he has disagreed with them, fearing an electoral backlash in his conservative home state. For example, in July 2018, when Trump made statements at his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin that were so controversial even many Republicans criticized him, Rubio tweeted a statement that didn’t even refer to the president or the incident specifically.

“Foreign policy must be based on reality, not hyperbole or wishful thinking. And the reality is Russia is an adversary. Because Putin doesn’t believe in win/win scenarios and thinks [the] only way to make Russia stronger is to make [the] U.S. weaker. Any approach not based on this will fail,” he tweeted.[7]

When asked directly about Trump’s statements at the summit—statements which appeared to accept the unsubstantiated word of Putin over the unanimous assessments of Trump’s own intelligence agencies regarding Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election—and his subsequent attempts to walk back those statements, Rubio conceded “We can’t go back and change what happened. As I said, it was not a good moment, but it was what it was. We need to move forward from that with good public policy and part of that is, I think, standing with our intelligence community.”[8]

Latin America

Rubio’s position as a Senator from Florida—with its large and uniquely influential Latino population—and his identity as a Cuban-American had long made him a leader on Latin American policy. In the Trump administration, he has greatly increased his influence in that arena.

Rubio’s outsized influence on Latin America policy became particularly evident in early 2019, as the crisis in Venezuela unfolded. The New York Times called Rubio “a virtual secretary of state for Latin America, driving administration strategy and articulating it to the region from the Senate floor.”[9]

Rubio was credited with steering Trump toward a much more aggressive stance toward Venezuela as early as February 2017. He arranged an impromptu meeting in the Oval Office between Trump and Lilian Tintori, the wife of Leopoldo Lopez, a prominent opponent of the Maduro government and a political prisoner. Shortly after the meeting, Trump tweeted a call for Lopez’s release.[10] “With that,” the Washington Post said, “the president upended years of U.S. policy toward Venezuela and signaled that his administration would take a tougher stance with President Nicolás Maduro.”[11]

At the Summit of the Americas in Peru in April 2018, Rubio seized an opportunity to substantially increase his sway on the international stage when President Trump decided not to attend. Although Vice President Mike Pence was at the meeting, many at the event saw Rubio as the “go-to guy.” Rubio offered an alternative to Latin American leaders who dreaded the optics of shaking hands with Trump as he pressed for building a wall between the United States and Mexico after repeatedly denigrating Latinos.

Rubio had already drafted a list of Venezuelan leaders who could be targeted with human rights abuses, thereby justifying crippling sanctions, and was known to have been a key figure in convincing Trump to roll back the opening to Cuba that Barack Obama had instigated. According to one report, “Venezuelans who fear taking public explosive information about corruption in their own country often turn to Rubio instead, communicating sometimes through secret channels.”[12]

Rubio—who is close with and has the support of both Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Adviser John Bolton—has worked to get allies into key positions in Latin America policy. The result has been a policy that identifies the left-wing regimes in Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua as the root of many of Latin America’s problems and the targets of U.S. policy.[13] Bolton—in a haunting echo of George W. Bush’s “Axis of Evil” speech—dubbed the three leftist countries the “Troika of Tyranny.”[14]

Rubio pressed his case against Venezuela over an extended period. In May 2018, he said, “Venezuela was a democracy with a constitution, and a national assembly and a court. All of that’s been wiped out by a dictator. Every day it gets worse and worse, right here in our own hemisphere. They are sponsoring and protecting narco traffickers. They are flooding their neighboring countries, including Colombia, with refugees and people seeking refuge from Venezuela.”[15]

By August, Rubio was using this argument as the basis for urging military intervention. “I believe that the Armed Forces of the United States are only used in the event of a threat to national security. I believe that there is a very strong argument that can be made at this time that Venezuela and the Maduro regime has become a threat to the region and even to the United States.”[16]

Rubio moved quickly to embrace the new Brazilian government of far-right president Jair Bolsonaro. He urged a quick and firm embrace of Bolsonaro, including deepening economic and security ties, and advocating for Brazil’s admittance to the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The U.S., Rubio explained, had not supported Brazil’s membership “because of a desire by past Brazilian leadership to align more closely with the developing world and support policies at odds with core OECD principles.” He expected that, under Bolsonaro, Brazil’s compassion for the developing world would evaporate, an expectation well-founded in Bolsonaro’s public pronouncements. Rubio declined to address Bolsonaro’s unabashed support for torture, and for discrimination based on gender, race and sexual orientation.[17] Rubio stated that Brazil would be a major boon in the effort to “restore democracy” to Venezuela and rid the country of its president, Nicolas Maduro.[18]

He used this and other issues to bolster his image as a public leader on foreign policy, and a key voice in lifting the Congress’ role in foreign policymaking. Rubio led a Senate vote in January 2019 on a bill with numerous Middle east-related provisions, so that, he said, “we can hope to influence future actions and policies before they are taken, and we can help change them once they have been taken in places headed in the wrong direction.”[19]

Rubio is staunchly opposed to efforts toward détente between the U.S. and Cuba. After President Obama announced in December 2014 that the United States would seek to normalize its relations with Cuba and take steps to end the Cuban embargo, Rubio berated the decision as “the latest in a long line of failed attempts by President Obama to appease rogue regimes at all costs.”[20] When confronted with survey results that indicate that increasing numbers of Cuban-Americans believe the United States should normalize its relations with Cuba, Rubio defiantly responded: “I don’t care if the polls show that 99 percent of people believe we should normalize relations in Cuba.”[21]

Rubio has received support from anti-Cuba Florida businessman Benjamín León Jr. According to a 2015 report in the Nation, León had “contributed $2.5 million to the Rubio-supporting super-PAC called Conservative Solutions.”[22]

When Donald Trump reversed part of the Obama administration’s decision to ease sanctions on Cuba, Rubio praised the move as “an effort to strengthen individual Cubans.”[23]When, in November 2017, Trump unveiled his full plan to reimpose some sanctions on Cuba, many Republicans felt it was not nearly strong enough. Rubio was among them, but in his criticism, he also defended Trump.

“The regulatory changes announced today by Treasury and Commerce begin to implement President Trump’s June 2017 policy for enforcing U.S. sanctions laws against the Castro regime,” Rubio said in a statement. “Unfortunately, however, bureaucrats in the State Department who oppose the President’s Cuba policy refused to fully implement it when they omitted from the Cuba Restricted List several entities and sub-entities that are controlled by or act on behalf of the Cuban military, intelligence or security services.”[24]

Israel and Boycotts

In January 2019—during the longest ever shutdown of the U.S. government—Rubio introduced a bill bundling several measures regarding the Middle East. Much of the bill was uncontroversial, including continuation of military assistance to Israel, support for Jordan in its security efforts with Israel, and new measures for sanctions on Syria. But the bill also included a highly controversial measure which would allow “a state or local government to adopt measures to divest its assets from entities using boycotts, divestments, or sanctions (BDS) to influence Israel’s policies.”[25]

The bill drew fire from both supporters and opponents of the BDS movement. The president of an anti-BDS, liberal lobbying group said “It’s outrageous that Senate Republican leaders are prioritizing legislation that tramples on the First Amendment and advances the interests of the Israeli settlement movement. Not a single Democrat should vote to enable this farce.”[26]

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) issued a strong criticism of the bill and fo the arguments Rubio used to support it. “Senator Rubio suggested that not only should states be free to boycott the boycotters, they have the right to boycott them. That’s a troubling proposition, and one specifically prohibited under the Constitution,” the ACLU stated. “First Amendment rights belong to the people, not the government. The government cannot impose its views on people or punish them for expressing views that the government disagrees with.”

The ACLU further took exception with Rubio’s claims that the bill did not punish political activity but gave state and local governments the right to “boycott the boycotters.”[27] They pointed out that this is precisely what the First Amendment was meant to protect people from.[28]

Rubio faced off over the bill with newly-elected Palestinian-American Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) who said of the bill’s sponsors, “They forgot what country they represent. This is the U.S. where boycotting is a right & part of our historical fight for freedom & equality.”[29] Rubio accused Tlaib of employing the anti-Semitic canard of dual loyalty in response.[30]

While Democrats blocked the bill from advancing in the Senate during the government shutdown—arguing that no legislation should be enacted that did not address that crisis—they were split on the bill once the government opened. Rubio pressed the case that Democrats were not supportive of Israel and, in his words, “A significant [number] of Senate Democrats now support BDS and Democratic leaders want to avoid a floor vote that reveals that.”

One observer described the attempt to frame the debate in partisan fashion as “Rubio attempting to paint the Republican Party as the ‘saviors of Israel’ and the Democrats as the party of boycott.”[31] Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) challenged Rubio, stating, “You know it isn’t true that ‘a significant [number] of Senate Dems support BDS’. Really dangerous to play politics with support for Israel.”[32]

The New York Times described the Republican effort as “an opportunity for Republicans to draw out the new generation of insurgent liberal representatives who have been critical of Israel. Republicans are trying to paint them as extremist, and even anti-Semitic, as they try to push moderate voters away from a Democratic Party moving left.”[33] The effort further cemented Rubio’s position as a leader of Republican hawks in the Senate.

Rubio is a well-established supporter of right wing pro-Israel politics. In 2015, after the Palestinian Authority (PA) declared it would pursue legal action against Israel in the International Criminal Court (ICC), Rubio along with Sen. Kirsten Gilibrand (D-NY) sponsored an American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC)-drafted letter that pushed for severe penalties against the PA.[34]

In December 2017, after the United Nations General Assembly voted to condemn President Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, Rubio tweeted, “Given its tendency to be forum for anti-Semitism & anti-Americanism, reevaluation of US role as single largest donor to UN is long overdue.”[35]

In 2012, Rubio delivered a speech at the Brookings Institution that Salon’s Simon Maloy characterized as making “the case for intervention basically everywhere.” Rubio stated: “[W]hat happens all over the world is our business. Every aspect of our lives is directly impacted by global events. The security of our cities is connected to the security of small hamlets in Afghanistan and Pakistan and Yemen and Somalia.”[36]

Rubio has also criticized international institutions like the United Nations on a general basis. “The (Obama) administration has somewhat often had an overreliance on institutions, global institutions, whether it’s the Security Council or it’s the United Nations, to take the lead on some of these issues,” he said in 2012. “In those instances, where the veto power of either China or Russia impedes the world’s ability to deal with a significant threat, it is the United States that will have to organize and lead coalitions with or without Security Council resolutions.”[37]

According to Rubio, “George W. Bush … did a fantastic job as president over eight years.”[38] He has said that the Iraq War was a worthwhile cause, telling Fox News in March 2015 that he does not believe the war was a mistake because “the world is a better place because Saddam Hussein doesn’t run Iraq.”[39]

 

Senate Hawk

In the Senate, Rubio has “consistently articulated a robust internationalist position closest to that of George W. Bush.”[40] As a member of the Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee, Rubio has pushed for interventionist foreign policies, advocated increased military spending, and strongly opposed the Obama administration’s diplomacy with Cuba and Iran.[41] The National Review described Rubio as the “standard-bearer of the Republican hawks”[42] while a scholar at the libertarian Cato Institute argued that “Rubio looks, walks, and quacks like a dyed-in-the-wool neocon.”[43]

Col. Lawrence Wilkerson, who served as Secretary of State Colin Powell’s chief of staff in the George W. Bush administration, said of Rubio’s rhetoric: “Like much political talk these days—particularly if it comes from Frank Luntz, Karl Rove, Roger Ailes and their ilk—Rubio’s rhetoric trips off the tongue patriotically while disguising all manner of venality, corruption, nastiness and even downright evil lurking beneath it.”[44]

Rubio’s take on foreign affairs also appears to impact his views on domestic problems. For instance, during his presidential primary campaign, Rubio back-tracked on his support for legal immigration purportedly because of the emergence of ISIS in Iraq and Syria. In response to a question during a January 2016 Republican presidential debate, Rubio said: “The issue is a dramatically different issue than it was twenty-four months ago. Twenty-four months ago, thirty-six months ago, you did not have a group of radical crazies named ISIS. … The entire system of legal immigration must now be reexamined for security first and foremost.”[45]

One observer quipped: “Intellectually, Rubio’s answer was pitiful. ISIS has been around since he launched his presidential campaign, but only now, with Trump and Cruz beating him in the polls, is he using it as an excuse to restrict legal immigration.”[46]

A few months before the debate, in the wake of killings at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado and a health center in California in late 2015, Rubio sought to differentiate between the two acts. While he was clear that the California massacre, which was perpetrated by people who had sympathies for ISIS, signified “the most dangerous terrorist threat we’ve ever faced,” he said that the killings at Planned Parenthood were more the result of “mental illness in a deranged individual.” In either case, Rubio was unequivocal in lambasting calls for more gun control in the wake of the killings, arguing that even people on the government’s terrorist watch list should still be able to buy guns.[47]

In January 2016, Rubio accused President Obama of having “deliberately weakened America,” arguing: “He has made an intentional effort to humble us back to size. As if to say: We no longer need to be so powerful because our power has done more harm than good.”[48]

Rubio argued that he would “use American power to oppose any violations of international waters, airspace, cyberspace or outer space.” He added that he would treat as “casus belli” any “economic disruptions caused when one country invades another, as well as the chaos caused by disruptions in choke points such as the South China Sea or the Strait of Hormuz.”[49]

Presidential Candidacy, Pro-Israel Donors, and Neoconservative Advisers

In April 2015, Rubio announced his candidacy for the Republican Party’s 2016 presidential nomination.[50] He quickly gained the backing of numerous well-known neoconservative figures and rightwing “pro-Israel” donors. Less than a year later, Rubio dropped out of the campaign, spurred in part by a humiliating defeat to Donald Trump in his home state of Florida during its primary election in March 2016.[51]

Rubio’s campaign slogan, “A New American Century,” appeared to be a clear reference to the influential neoconservative advocacy group the Project for the New American Century (PNAC), which played an important role generating elite support for the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and other early foreign policy fiascos of the George W. Bush administration. As Mother Jones reported, PNACs “original members included future Bush administration officials, such as (Dick) Cheney, (Donald) Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, and Elliott Abrams. Rubio is campaigning as a visionary and new generational leader, yet his foreign policy ideas—and his key national security advisers—are Bush-era throwbacks.”[52]

Among Rubio’s most important campaign supporters was the controversial casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, who has spent hundreds of millions of dollars trying to influence the outcome of recent U.S. elections and is also an important backer of rightwing Likud Party officials in Israel. According to an April 2015 report by Politico, Adelson views Rubio as “the future of the Republican Party.” The piece reported that Rubio “has emerged as the clear front-runner” to win the “Sheldon Adelson primary” according to “nearly a half-dozen sources close to the multibillionaire casino mogul.”[53]

Politico’s Alex Isenstadt reported that Rubio “reached out to Adelson more often than any other 2016 candidate” and “provided him with the most detailed plan for how he’d manage America’s foreign policy.” Isenstadt added: “Since entering the Senate in 2011, Rubio has met privately with the mogul on a half-dozen occasions. In recent months, he‘s been calling Adelson about once every two weeks, providing him with meticulous updates on his nascent campaign.”[54]

In mid-2015, Bloomberg reported that Adelson’s free Israeli paper, Israel Hayom, “all but anointed Marco Rubio.” The piece added that Rubio “received singular treatment” by Israel Hayom and noted that an interview Israel Hayom had done with Rubio “was accompanied by photos of derogatory stories from U.S. newspapers about Hillary Clinton.”[55]

Another billionaire backer was the hedge fund investor Paul Singer, who, like Adelson, supports one-sided U.S. policies toward Israel and has been a major funder of neoconservative groups. In April 2015, Rubio “wooed” a crowd of hawkish donors at Singer’s residence. Reported Buzzfeed: “According to sources who attended the dinner, Rubio was well-received among attendees—one said that ‘people who walked out of the room were totally in love’—a sign that he could be coming into favor among people influential with the New York Jewish Republican donor class, among whom Singer is the most sought-after.”[56]

Singer formally endorsed Rubio in October 2015, describing him in a letter to donors as “the best explainer of conservatism in public life today” and the “strongest choice” for the Republican presidential nomination. CNN stated at the time that the endorsement would be a “significant blow to [Jeb] Bush’s candidacy, because the billionaire has a vast network of people who will give hard dollars to Rubio and lots of money to his super PAC.”[57]

Just before receiving Singer’s endorsement, Rubio released a video in which he declared that “what this president and his administration are doing in Israel is a tragic mistake … they [Israel] need America’s support unconditionally.” He added: “If I become president, that’s exactly what they’ll have.”[58]

Quipped one observer: “Whatever unspecified policies Rubio is taking issue with, the generic message—Obama: Bad for Israel—is no doubt exactly what his most hawkish prospective donors, including Sheldon Adelson and Paul Singer, want to hear.”[59]

Singer is a longstanding Rubio donor, having served as Rubio’s “second largest source of campaign contributions between 2009 and 2014,” according to LobeLog.[60]

Singer’s financial contributions have drawn criticism amid allegations that recipients of his money have been among the more vocal proponents of the idea that Argentina has tried to cover up alleged Iranian terrorist attacks. Singer—whose practice of purchasing the debt of developing nations has earned him the moniker “vulture Singer”[61]—has had a long-running dispute with Argentina over its debt, which his hedge fund bought up after Argentina defaulted in 2001.[62]

In May 2015, Rubio introduced a Senate resolution accusing Argentina’s government of attempting “to cover up Iranian involvement in the 1994 terrorist bombing” of a Jewish center in Buenos Aires and called for a “swift and transparent” investigation into the death of an Argentine prosecutor who was critical of the country’s president and had originated the allegations regarding Argentina’s ties to Iran.[63]

According to investigative journalist Greg Palast, “[Rubio] made direct approaches to the State Department on behalf of his top donor. Paul “The Vulture” Singer is the number one donor to Marco Rubio. And Rubio kept banging on the State Department to back his vulture donor against our ally, Argentina. This is just way out of line, even in a country where money talks. This was money screaming.”[64]

After Argentina elected a new president, whom Singer had backed, and agreed to pay 75 percent of its debt to Singer, Rubio led a bipartisan group of US senators applauding the new government and the “strengthening ties” between Argentina and the United States.[65]

Rubio also has close ties to hawkish, pro-Israel, Florida billionaire Norman Braman. According to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), Braman “isn’t just the single-largest backer of Rubio’s presidential campaign,” he also “helped finance the young senator’s legislative agenda, employed Rubio as a lawyer, hired Rubio’s wife (a former Miami Dolphins cheerleader) as a philanthropic adviser, helped fund Rubio’s position as a college instructor and assisted Rubio with his personal finances.” JTA also noted that “in 2010, Bramanand Rubio went to Israel together shortly after Rubio’s election to the U.S. Senate.”[66]

Braman, who has given $311,000 to an illegal Israeli settlement in the Occupied West Bank, has said about the Israel-Palestinian peace process: “How do you make peace with people who want to destroy you and are dedicated to your destruction?”[67]

As one reporter put it, Rubio “is courting the most Israel-centered and Likudist wing of the Republican Party. His outright rejection of the Obama administration’s efforts to constrain Iran’s nuclear program and repudiation of some four decades of official U.S. opposition to Israeli settlements in occupied territories suggests that a Rubio presidency could not only result in a break with Washington’s closest European allies on Middle East policy. It would also offer encouragement to right-wing Israeli extremists to achieve their dream of a ‘Greater Israel.’”[68]

Neoconservative Alignment

Numerous prominent neoconservatives have reportedly advised Rubio on foreign policy, including Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol, neoconservative ideologue Robert Kagan, former Sen. Jim Talent, former George W. Bush national security advisor Stephen Hadley, and deputy national security adviser Elliott Abrams.[69]

In early 2013, Rubio hired Jamie Fly, the former executive director of the neoconservative Foreign Policy Initiative, to be his “counselor for foreign and national security affairs.”[70]Fly – who previously held posts in the Bush administration’s National Security Council and in the office of former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld – is known for a 2012 paper he co-wrote with Gary Schmitt, formerly of the Project for the New American Century, that called for a military attack on Iran that would “destabilize the regime.”[71]

According to the National Review, neoconservative writer Robert Kagan—who has argued that the preservation of the “modern world order” rests on “bolstering America’s hard power”—has had a “major influence on Rubio’s worldview.”[72] Reuters has also reported that former Dick Cheney advisor Eric Edelman “regularly briefs” Rubio.[73] Another former Cheney aide, Cesar Conda, has served as Rubio’s chief of staff.[74]

Elliott Abrams, a veteran of the Reagan and George W. Bush administrations who was convicted (and later pardoned) as part of the Iran-Contra scandal, has also advised Rubio and has said that he is “really impressed” with him.[75]

Phil Rosen, a board member of the Sheldon Adelson-backed Republican Jewish Coalition, argues that Rubio “can win the general election” because he “has three constituencies in which Republicans have not done well in recent years: he appeals to young people, to women, and to Hispanics. Those constituencies are going to be crucial to winning the general election. And in the primaries, he has an appeal to conservatives and all parts of the Republican Party. His looks, his charm, his speaking ability.”[76]

“Rubio Doctrine”

Rubio gave his first major foreign policy speech as a presidential candidate in mid-May 2015 at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). During the speech he outlined what observers called the “Rubio Doctrine,” which one journalist described as coming “straight out of the neocon playbook, calling for a robust military and aggressive approach to intervention.”[77]

Rubio proclaimed during the talk that he is “open to Ukraine joining NATO,” which experts widely hold would be an immensely provocative act against Russia.[78] He also echoed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by stating he does not believe “the conditions exist” today for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.[79]

Rubio went on to claim that the potential nuclear deal with Iran is “an unacceptable risk” because it “allows Iran to obtain the capability to enrich uranium,” and further stated that the Obama administration is “holding back against ISIS” because “it doesn’t want to upset Iran.”[80]

With respect to Cuba, Rubio said he would “reimpose sanctions” on the country lifted by the Obama administration and would only lift them “through reciprocal steps on behalf of the Cubans,” such as allowing “freedom of the press” in Cuba. Charlie Rose, who was conducting the interview with Rubio at CFR, cited President Obama’s rebuke to Rubio’s strategy: “[T]he president quickly says all the sanctions have been in place for 50 years and they’ve achieved none of the objectives that you want to achieve.”[81]

While at CFR, Rubio backtracked on earlier statements he had made unequivocally supporting the Iraq War in light of criticisms against fellow potential Republican presidential contender Jeb Bush for his comments that he would have supported going to war in Iraq “knowing what we know now.” Rubio stated that “not only would I not have been in favor of it, President Bush would not have been in favor of it.”[82] Soon after, however, in an interview with Fox News, Rubio spurred criticism for saying the war was “not a mistake, given the fact what the president knew at the time.”[83]

One observer described the Rubio Doctrine, as described in his CFR speech: “The Rubio doctrine … consists of funding the military in order to restore and maintain American military strength; opposing ‘any violations of international waters, airspace, cyberspace, or outer space’; and supporting the spread of freedom, both economic and political, across the globe.”[84]

Simon Maloy of Salon said of Rubio’s CFR address: “Rubio should have given W. at least some credit, given that the foreign policy vision he laid out was undiluted neoconservatism molded by a coterie of neocon advisers plucked from the most recent Bush administration.”

Rubio expressed support for the 2015 Saudi-led military strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen, arguing that the United States should provide “logistical and air support” and deploy “special operations forces.”[85]

Iran

Given Rubio’s strong ties to neoconservative advocacy circles and Israel-centric megadonors, it is no surprise that the senator has been among the more vocal critics of U.S. efforts to pursue diplomatic solutions to overseas disputes. Pointing to President Obama’s efforts in this regard, Rubio claimed during a May 2015 address: “The deterioration of our physical and ideological strength has led to a world far more dangerous than when President Obama entered office.”[86]

A vehement opponent of the nuclear negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 world powers that led to a comprehensive agreement in July 2015, Rubio has said that if elected president he would “absolutely” be willing to go against the wishes of European allies and other international partners like Russia and China to revoke the nuclear deal.[87]

Rubio framed Iran’s nuclear program in fear-mongering terms, stating in early 2015: “They want a weapon to trigger a global cataclysm that will bring about the arrival of the Thirteenth Imam! I know this sounds bizarre!”[88]

Rubio also said in April 2015 that he wanted to add an amendment to an Iran bill in the Senate that would stipulate Iran would have to recognize Israel as part of a nuclear agreement.[89]

After Iran and the P5+1 successfully concluded negotiations on a comprehensive nuclear deal in July 2015, Rubio complained that the Obama administration “consistently negotiated from a position of weakness, giving concession after concession to a regime that has American blood on its hands.”[90] Rubio also misleadingly claimed that the nuclear deal requires the United States to protect Iran’s nuclear facilities against potential attack or sabotage, saying shortly after the agreement was reached: “[I]f any other country tries to undermine [Iran’s] nuclear program, we have to help them defend themselves against Israel, Egypt, Saudis, our own allies.”[91]

Politifact debunked Rubio’s assertion, pointing out that the provision was meant to help prevent theft of nuclear material, for instance by terrorists, and potential hazards that could lead to a serious nuclear accident. It went on to state, “[E]ven if you adopt Rubio’s more expansive interpretation, nothing in the agreement says the United States will ‘have to’ offer assistance, as Rubio puts it; the language of the provision offers significant wiggle room surrounding who, if anyone, might provide such assistance. We rate the claim False.”[92]

In January 2016, after Iran briefly detained 10 U.S. sailors for drifting into Iranian waters, Rubio declared: “You know why they did this? Because they know they can get away with it. Because they know Barack Obama is weak. Because they know he won’t do anything about it.”[93]

Said one commentator: “The thing is, of course, that Obama did do something about it—he secured the expeditious release of the sailors, who suffered no injury during their very brief captivity. A potential crisis was averted and no shots were fired.”[94]

After the International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed that Iran had abided by its commitments under the nuclear deal and significantly downsized its nuclear program, opening the door for the country receiving sanctions relief, Rubio opined: “By channeling this money to Tehran and giving the mullahs international legitimacy, the Obama administration is fueling the greatest growth in Iranian power since the Islamic Republic was established in 1979.”[95]

“Rubio is wrong or misleading in everything he says here,” wrote a pundit for the American Conservative magazine. “The money that has been freed up by sanctions relief are Iranian assets that had been inaccessible to them because of sanctions on their nuclear program. Now that Iran has complied with the terms of the deal, they are gaining access to their own money from which they had been cut off.”[96]

In October 2017, after President Trump declined to certify Iran’s compliance with the nuclear deal, despite offering no evidence to counter the otherwise universal agreement that they were, Rubio encouraged even further action to kill the deal, tweeting, “I support @POTUS decision to decertify. Now Congress must either fix #IranDeal by creating triggers for sanctions or deal should end.”[97]

 

SOURCES 

[1] Justin Logan, “Where the Neocons Went, Rubio Is Following,” US News and World Report, March 26, 2013, http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/world-report/2013/03/26/rand-paul-gets-foreign-policy-right-while-rubio-calls-for-war.

[2] Eli Clifton, “Rubio Anointed Neocon Choice,” Lobelog, November 2, 2015, https://lobelog.com/rubio-anointed-neocon-choice/.

[3] Maegan Vazquez, “Marco Rubio is Turning Heads with His 180 on Endorsing Trump for President,” Independent Journal Review, April 21, 2016, https://ijr.com/2016/04/589529-marco-rubio-donald-trump-nominee/

[4] Zachary Warmbrodt, “Rubio: White House needs to reduce friction and drama,” Politico, May 21, 2017 https://www.politico.com/story/2017/05/21/rubio-white-house-needs-to-avoid-unnecessary-friction-238650

[5] Jessica Estepa, “President Trump, Sen. Marco Rubio praise each other,” USA Today, June 16, 2017 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2017/06/16/president-trump-sen-marco-rubio-praise-each-other/102924500/

[6] Patrick Leahy, “Reaction Of Senator Patrick Leahy To President Trump’s Decision To Tighten Restrictions On Americans’ Travel To And Trade With Cuba,” June 16, 2017 https://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/reaction-of-senator-patrick-leahy-to-president-trumps-decision-to-tighten-restrictions-on-americans-travel-to-and-trade-with-cuba

[7] Marco Rubio, Twitter, July 16, 2018, https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/1018909308162052096

[8] Emily Tillett, “Rubio on Trump’s messaging on Russian meddling: ‘Not a good moment for the administration,’” CBS News, July 22, 2018, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/rubio-on-trump-messaging-on-russian-meddling-not-a-good-moment-for-the-administration/

[9] Peter Baker and Edward Wong, “On Venezuela, Rubio Assumes U.S. Role of Ouster in Chief,” New York Times, January 26, 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/26/world/americas/marco-rubio-venezuela.html

[10] Donald Trump, Twitter, February 15, 2017, https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/832016501657968640

[11] David Nakamura, “How an Oval Office meeting led to a Trump tweet that changed U.S. policy toward Venezuela,” Washington Post, October 6, 2017, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/how-an-oval-office-meeting-led-to-a-trump-tweet-that-changed-us-policy-toward-venezuela/2017/10/06/87e9b178-a52b-11e7-ade1-76d061d56efa_story.html?utm_term=.ad021f3a10b0

[12] Christine Armario and Joshua Goodman, “Rubio fills void at Americas summit left by absent Trump,” Associated Press, April 12, 2018, https://www.apnews.com/1e1284be71914116b82c25ebada5d6f0

[13] Marc Caputo, “Trump packs foreign policy team with Cuba hardliners from Florida,” Politico, August 31, 2018, https://www.politico.com/story/2018/08/31/mauricio-claver-carone-cuba-national-security-council-805571

[14] Josh Rogin, “Bolton promises to confront Latin America’s ‘Troika of Tyranny,’” Washington Post, November 1, 2018, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/bolton-promises-to-confront-latin-americas-troika-of-tyranny/2018/11/01/df57d3d2-ddf5-11e8-85df-7a6b4d25cfbb_story.html?utm_term=.c65a4d9bdc26

[15] Ramsey Touchberry, “Rubio Suggests U.S. Military Intervention in Venezuela,” Newsweek, September 1, 2018, https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/msn/rubio-suggests-us-military-intervention-in-venezuela/ar-BBMKitM

[16] Daniel Larison, “Rubio and the Horrible Idea of Attacking Venezuela,” American Conservative, September 1, 2018, https://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/rubio-and-the-horrible-idea-of-attacking-venezuela/

[17] Marco Rubio, “US should go big on Brazil,” CNN, January 29, 2019, https://edition.cnn.com/2019/01/29/opinions/us-should-go-big-on-brazil-rubio/index.html

[18] Mariana Alfaro, “As tensions in Venezuela heighten, Marco Rubio says US should ‘go big’ on its relationship with Brazil’s new right-wing president,” Business Insider, January 29, 2019, https://www.businessinsider.com/marco-rubio-op-ed-on-us-brazil-ties-bolsonaro-venezuela-2019-1

[19] Lisa Mascaro, “Senate reasserts foreign policy role, reshapes Trump agenda,” Tacoma News Tribune, February 2, 2019, https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/nation-world/article225447110.html

[20] Jim Lobe, “After 53 Years, Obama To Normalize Ties with Cuba,” LobeLog, December 17, 2014, http://www.lobelog.com/after-53-years-obama-to-normalize-ties-with-cuba/.

[21] Sam Brodey, “Marco Rubio’s Cold War Approach to Cuba Is Losing Him Voters,” Mother Jones, May 13, 2015, http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/05/marco-rubio-cuba-policy-2016

[22] Eli Clifton, “ Meet Marco Rubio’s Far-Right Neocon Donors,” The Nation, December 11, 2015, http://www.thenation.com/article/meet-marco-rubios-far-right-neocon-donors/.

[23] Kyle Feldscher, “Marco Rubio: Trump’s Cuba policy will help Cubans, undermine regime,” Washington Examiner, June 18, 2017, http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/marco-rubio-trumps-cuba-policy-will-help-cubans-undermine-regime/article/2626329

[24] Patricia Mazzei, “Rubio: ‘Bureaucrats’ to blame for softening Trump Cuba policy,” Miami Herald, November 8, 2017, http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba/article183486726.html

[25] “S.1 – Strengthening America’s Security in the Middle East Act of 2019,” Congress.gov, https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/1?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22S.+1%22%5D%7D&r=1&s=1

[26] Eric Cortellessa “Progressive groups rage against Rubio’s anti-BDS bill,” Times of Israel, January 8, 2019, https://www.timesofisrael.com/progressive-groups-rage-against-rubios-anti-bds-bill/

[27] Marco Rubio, Twitter, January 8, 2019, https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/1082703922211508224

[28] Kate Ruane and Abdullah Hasan, “Marco Rubio and His Colleagues Need a Refresher on the First Amendment,” ACLU, January 9, 2019, https://www.aclu.org/blog/free-speech/marco-rubio-and-his-colleagues-need-refresher-first-amendment

[29] Rashida Tlaib, Twitter, January 6, 2019, https://twitter.com/RashidaTlaib/status/1082095303325609984

[30] Marco Rubio, Twitter, January 7, 2019, https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/1082273356777431040

[31] Philip Weiss, Senate is unlikely to debate BDS — so long as gov’t remains shut down,” Mondoweiss, January 7, 2019, https://mondoweiss.net/2019/01/significant-democrats-support/

[32] Chris Murphy, Twitter, January 7, 2019, https://twitter.com/ChrisMurphyCT/status/1082282062546112512

[33] Catie Edmondson, “Senate Advances Pro-Israel Bill as G.O.P. Searches for Democratic Divisions,” New York Times, January 28, 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/28/us/politics/senate-israel-boycott-democrats.html

[34] Mitchell Plitnick, “Congress Takes Aim At the Palestinians,” LobeLog, February 3, 2015, http://www.lobelog.com/congress-takes-aim-at-the-palestinians/.

[35] Marco Rubio, Twitter, December 21, 2017, https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/943906460991287296

[36] Simon Maloy, “Marco Rubio’s grand whitewash: Iraq, neoconservatism and the foreign policy catastrophe he wants us all to forget,” Salon, May 14, 2015, http://www.salon.com/2015/05/14/marco_rubios_grand_whitewash_iraq_neoconservatism_and_the_foreign_policy_catastrophe_he_wants_us_all_to_forget/

[37] Rebecca Kaplan, “Rubio Says U.S. Should Be Less Constrained by International Institutions,” National Journal, April 2012, http://www.nationaljournal.com/2012-presidential-campaign/rubio-says-u-s-should-be-less-constrained-by-international-institutions-20120425.

[38] Simon Maloy, “Marco ‘Dubya’ Rubio: GOP’s bright young hope promises to revive George Bush’s calamitous foreign policy,” Salon, May 14, 2015, http://www.salon.com/2015/05/14/marco_w_rubio_gops_bright_young_hope_promises_to_revive_george_bushs_calamitous_foreign_policy/

[39] Alexandra Jaffe, “Marco Rubio weighs in on Iraq question,” CNN, May 14, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/13/politics/rubio-iraq-war-shift/.

[40] Eliana Johnson, “The Neocons Return,” The National Review, October 6, 2014, http://www.nationalreview.com/article/389598/neocons-return-eliana-johnson.

[41] Pema Levy, “Marco Rubio Wants to Make Neocons Cool Again,” Mother Jones, May 13, 2015, http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/05/marco-rubio-neocon-advisers-bush-council-foreign-relations.

[42] Eliana Johnson, “Meet the Rubio Doctrine, Which Sounds a Lot Like the Truman Doctrine,” National Review, May 13, 2015, http://www.nationalreview.com/article/418290/marco-rubio-tries-his-wings-foreign-policy-hawk-eliana-johnson.

[43] Justin Logan, “Where the Neocons Went, Rubio Is Following,” US News and World Report, March 26, 2013, http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/world-report/2013/03/26/rand-paul-gets-foreign-policy-right-while-rubio-calls-for-war.

[44] Lawrence Wilkerson, “Rubio’s Foreign Policy is Rash, Reckless and Risky,” Newsweek, January 15, 2016, http://www.newsweek.com/rubios-foreign-policy-rash-reckless-and-risky-416351

[45] Peter Beinart, “Marco Rubio Sells Out His Principles,” The Atlantic, January 15, 2016, http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/01/marco-rubio-changes-course/424329/.

[46] Peter Beinart, “Marco Rubio Sells Out His Principles,” The Atlantic, January 15, 2016, http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/01/marco-rubio-changes-course/424329/.

[47] Kailani Koenig, ” Rubio: San Bernardino Attacks Represent ‘Most Dangerous’ Threat,” NBCNews, December 4, 2015, http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/rubio-san-bernardino-attacks-represent-most-dangerous-threat-n474581.

[48] Ledyard King, “Marco Rubio criticizes ‘isolationist’ rivals in GOP field,” USAToday, January 4, 2016, http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/01/04/marco-rubio-criticizes-isolationist-rivals-gop-field/78258292/.

[49] Doug Bandow, “Marco Rubio Gets Desperate: War-Mongering Neoconservative Attacks Unnamed ‘Isolationists,’” Huffinton Post, January 11, 2016, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/doug-bandow/marco-rubio-gets-desperat_b_8953092.html.

[50] David Drucker, “Marco Rubio jumps in, will leave Senate,” Washington Examiner, April 13, 2015, http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/marco-rubio-jumps-in-will-leave-senate/article/2562951.

[51] Kelly Riddell and Stephen Dinan, “Rubio drops out of presidential race after humiliating loss in Florida,” Washington Examiner, March 15, 2016 https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/mar/15/marco-rubio-ends-presidential-bid-after-humiliatin/

[52] Pema Levy, “Marco Rubio Wants to Make Neocons Cool Again,” Mother Jones, May 13, 2015, http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/05/marco-rubio-neocon-advisers-bush-council-foreign-relations

[53] Alex Isenstadt, “Marco Rubio takes lead in Sheldon Adelson primary,” Politico, April 23, 2015, http://www.politico.com/story/2015/04/marco-rubio-takes-lead-in-sheldon-adelson-primary-117268.html#ixzz3Y8Cx5KtE.

[54] Alex Isenstadt, “Marco Rubio takes lead in Sheldon Adelson primary,” Politico, April 23, 2015, http://www.politico.com/story/2015/04/marco-rubio-takes-lead-in-sheldon-adelson-primary-117268.html#ixzz3Y8Cx5KtE.

[55] Jonathan Ferziger, “Sheldon Adelson Beats 2016 Drum for Marco Rubio Through Free Israeli Newspaper,” Bloomberg, June 16, 2015, http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-06-16/adelson-beats-2016-drum-for-rubio-through-free-israeli-newspaper?utm_source=Newsletter+subscribers&utm_campaign=57b839153b-Daily_Briefing_6_18_2015&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_2dce5bc6f8-57b839153b-25355665.

[56] Rosie Gray, “Rubio Wooed Pro-Israel Crowd At Paul Singer’s House,” Buzzfeed, April 7, 2015, http://www.buzzfeed.com/rosiegray/rubio-wooed-pro-israel-crowd-at-paul-singers-house#.ctOJYqw8pl.

[57] Theodore Schleifer, Sunlen Serfaty, and Dana Bash, “Top Republican billionaire Paul Singer endorses Marco Rubio,” CNN, October 31, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/30/politics/marco-rubio-paul-singer-endorsement/.

[58] Eli Clifton, “Rubio Blames Obama For Palestinian Violence, Promises ‘Unconditional Support’ to Israel,” LobeLog, October 14, 2015, http://lobelog.com/rubio-blames-obama-for-palestinian-violence-promises-unconditional-support-to-israel/.

[59] Eli Clifton, “Rubio Blames Obama For Palestinian Violence, Promises ‘Unconditional Support’ to Israel,” LobeLog, October 14, 2015, http://lobelog.com/rubio-blames-obama-for-palestinian-violence-promises-unconditional-support-to-israel/.

[60] Eli Clifton, “Following Paul Singer’s Money, Argentina, and Iran (Continued),” LobeLog, May 8, 2015, http://www.lobelog.com/following-paul-singers-money-argentina-and-iran-continued/.

[61] Greg Palast, “Uber-Vultures: The Billionaires Who Would Pick Our President,” Truthout, October 6, 2011, http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/3772:ubervultures-the-billionaires-who-would-pick-our-president.

[62] Jim Lobe and Charles Davis, “Following the Money: The New Anti-Semitism?” LobeLog, May 1, 2015, http://www.lobelog.com/following-the-money-the-new-anti-semitism/.

[63] Eli Clifton, “Following Paul Singer’s Money, Argentina, and Iran (Continued),” LobeLog, May 8, 2015, http://www.lobelog.com/following-paul-singers-money-argentina-and-iran-continued/.

[64] Greg Palast, “The Vulture: How Billionaire Rubio Backer Paul Singer Made Billions off Argentina Debt Crisis, Democracy Now!, March 11, 2016, https://www.democracynow.org/2016/3/11/the_vulture_how_billionaire_rubio_backer

[65] Marco Rubio, “Rubio, Colleagues Applaud Recent Economic Reforms Strengthening U.S.-Argentina Partnership,” Press Release, January 17, 2017, https://www.rubio.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=0257B8D5-4BA7-48A7-A80D-4C8908217C01

[66] Uriel Heilman, “Marco Rubio’s big Jewish backer and 7 other things to know about him,” Jewish Telegraphic Agency, October 29, 2015, http://www.jta.org/2015/10/29/news-opinion/politics/marco-rubios-big-jewish-backer-and-7-other-things-to-know-about-him.

[67] Eli Clifton, “Rubio Adviser Says Obama Feels ‘Entitled to Screw Israel,’” LobeLog, October 12, 2015, http://lobelog.com/rubio-adviser-says-obama-feels-entitled-to-screw-israel/.

[68] Eli Clifton, “Rubio Adviser Says Obama Feels ‘Entitled to Screw Israel,’” LobeLog, October 12, 2015, http://lobelog.com/rubio-adviser-says-obama-feels-entitled-to-screw-israel/.

[69] Eliana Johnson, “The Neocons Return,” The National Review, October 6, 2014, http://www.nationalreview.com/article/389598/neocons-return-eliana-johnson.

[70] Alex Leary, “Rubio adds to foreign affairs staff,” Tampa Bay Times “The Buzz” blog, January 18, 2013, http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/content/rubio-adds-foreign-affairs-staff.

[71] Pema Levy, “Marco Rubio Wants to Make Neocons Cool Again,” Mother Jones, May 13, 2015, http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/05/marco-rubio-neocon-advisers-bush-council-foreign-relations.

[72] Eliana Johnson, “The Neocons Return,” The National Review, October 6, 2014, http://www.nationalreview.com/article/389598/neocons-return-eliana-johnson.

[73] Steve Holland and Alistair Bell, “Hawkish U.S. foreign policy at heart of Rubio’s presidential bid,” Reuters, April 13, 2015, http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/04/13/us-usa-election-rubio-idUSKBN0N40W720150413.

[74] Pema Levy, “Marco Rubio Wants to Make Neocons Cool Again,” Mother Jones, May 13, 2015, http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/05/marco-rubio-neocon-advisers-bush-council-foreign-relations

[75] Pema Levy, “Marco Rubio Wants to Make Neocons Cool Again,” Mother Jones, May 13, 2015, http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/05/marco-rubio-neocon-advisers-bush-council-foreign-relations

[76] Jonathan Mark, “Who’s Ahead in The ‘Sheldon Adelson Primary?’” The Jewish Week, July 22, 2015, http://www.thejewishweek.com/news/new-york/whos-ahead-sheldon-adelson-primary.

[77] Pema Levy, “Bush v. Rubio: Who Will Win Neocons’ Hearts and Minds?” Mother Jones, May 15, 2015, http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/05/bush-rubio-neocons-project-for-a-new-american-century.

[78] John Mearsheimer, “Why the Ukraine Crisis Is the West’s Fault,” Foreign Affairs, September/October 2014, http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/141769/john-j-mearsheimer/why-the-ukraine-crisis-is-the-wests-fault.

[79] Council on Foreign Relations, “A Conversation with Marco Rubio,” May 13, 2015, http://www.cfr.org/united-states/conversation-marco-rubio/p36511.

[80] Council on Foreign Relations, “A Conversation with Marco Rubio,” May 13, 2015, http://www.cfr.org/united-states/conversation-marco-rubio/p36511.

[81] Council on Foreign Relations, “A Conversation with Marco Rubio,” May 13, 2015, http://www.cfr.org/united-states/conversation-marco-rubio/p36511.

[82] Council on Foreign Relations, “A Conversation with Marco Rubio,” May 13, 2015, http://www.cfr.org/united-states/conversation-marco-rubio/p36511.

[83] Evan Hurst, “Marco Rubio Gets His Chance To Flub Iraq Question, Nails It,” Wonkette, May 18, 2015, http://wonkette.com/585942/marco-rubio-gets-his-chance-to-flub-iraq-question-nails-it.

[84] Eliana Johnson, “Meet the Rubio Doctrine, Which Sounds a Lot Like the Truman Doctrine,” National Review, May 13, 2015, http://www.nationalreview.com/article/418290/meet-rubio-doctrine-which-sounds-lot-truman-doctrine-eliana-johnson.

[85] A.J. Delgado, “Marco Rubio Invades the World,” The American Conservative, July 6, 2015, http://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/marco-rubio-invades-the-world/.

[86] Joshua Keating, “The Rubio Doctrine Sounds an Awful Lot Like the Romney Doctrine,” Slate, May 13, 2015, http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2015/05/13/the_rubio_doctrine_sounds_an_awful_lot_like_the_romney_doctrine.html.

[87] Sahil Kapur, “Marco Rubio’s Foreign Policy Evolution From Moderate to Ultra-Hawk,” Bloomberg, May 12, 2015, http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-05-12/marco-rubio-s-foreign-policy-evolution-from-moderate-to-ultra-hawk.

[88] Nick Hankoff, “5 Marco Rubio Quotes That Prove He’s the Neocon Dream Candidate,” Voices of Liberty, April 13, 2015, http://www.voicesofliberty.com/article/5-marco-rubio-quotes-that-prove-hes-the-neocon-dream-candidate/.

[89] Jim Lobe, “Iran Hawks Clearly Unhappy with Corker,” LobeLog, April 18, 2015, http://www.lobelog.com/iran-hawks-clearly-unhappy-with-corker/

[90] David Sherfinski, “Marco Rubio: Iran deal ‘undermines our national security,’” Washington Times, July 14, 2015, http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/jul/14/marco-rubio-iran-deal-undermines-our-national-secu/.

[91] Amy Sherman, “Marco Rubio says Iran deal means we have to help defend Iran from Israel or other allies,” PolitiFact, July 23, 2015, http://www.politifact.com/florida/statements/2015/jul/23/marco-rubio/marco-rubio-says-iran-deal-means-we-have-help-defe/

[92] Amy Sherman, “Marco Rubio says Iran deal means we have to help defend Iran from Israel or other allies,” PolitiFact, July 23, 2015, http://www.politifact.com/florida/statements/2015/jul/23/marco-rubio/marco-rubio-says-iran-deal-means-we-have-help-defe/

[93] Simon Maloy, “Rubio’s desperate Iran spin: In his twisted neocon logic, dodging an international crisis is somehow a bad thing,” Salon, January 14, 2016, http://www.salon.com/2016/01/14/rubios_desperate_iran_spin_in_his_twisted_neocon_logic_dodging_an_international_crisis_is_somehow_a_bad_thing/.

[94] Simon Maloy, “Rubio’s desperate Iran spin: In his twisted neocon logic, dodging an international crisis is somehow a bad thing,” Salon, January 14, 2016, http://www.salon.com/2016/01/14/rubios_desperate_iran_spin_in_his_twisted_neocon_logic_dodging_an_international_crisis_is_somehow_a_bad_thing/.

[95] Daniel Larison, “Rubio’s Iran Tantrum and the Hawkish Loathing of Diplomacy,” The American Conservative, January 18, 2016, http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/rubios-iran-tantrum-and-the-hawkish-loathing-of-diplomacy/.

[96] Daniel Larison, “Rubio’s Iran Tantrum and the Hawkish Loathing of Diplomacy,” The American Conservative, January 18, 2016, http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/rubios-iran-tantrum-and-the-hawkish-loathing-of-diplomacy/.

[97] Marco Rubio, Twitter, October 13, 2017, https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/918791236290600960?lang=en