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The Senate on Monday unanimously confirmed Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fl.) as the 72nd secretary of state of the United States, putting in place the first member of President Trump’s cabinet on his inauguration day.
Rubio’s confirmation vote passed with overwhelming bipartisan support, 99-0. Rubio also got to vote for himself.
“No one in this body can doubt that Marco Rubio is a smart man with a remarkable understanding of American foreign policy and a very deep commitment to the American dream,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) in statements to the Senate.
Rubio’s Senate seat will be filled by Florida State Attorney General Ashley Moody.
As the son of Cuban immigrants, Rubio is the first Latin American to serve as the top diplomat.
A 14-year veteran of the Senate, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Rubio’s nomination as secretary of state relieved lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and the US allies abroad worried about Trump’s unpredictable and chaotic. approach to foreign affairs.
Along with Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Virg.), Rubio co-sponsored legislation that would prevent any president from withdrawing from NATO, a move seen as safeguarding America’s position in the alliance in the face of threats from Trump to withdraw the US.
Trump in recent weeks has telegraphed imperialist aims, expressing his desire to take ownership of Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark, as well as talking about making Canada the 51st state and taking over the Panama Canal in Panama.
“America will once again consider itself a nation on the rise, increasing our wealth, expanding our territory,” Trump said during his inaugural address.
Trump pointed in his speech to regaining control of the Panama Canal as an imperative to counter China’s influence in the strategic waterway. The president of Panama has rejected that the channel is under foreign influence.
Rubio, during his confirmation hearing, said the presence of Chinese companies on both sides of the channel has raised concerns among lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and poses a national security risk to the US, in an example of how it is planning. to thread the needle on explaining some of Trump’s threats.
“Actually, a foreign power today possesses, through its companies, which we know are not independent, the ability to turn the channel into a choke point in a time of conflict and this is a direct threat to the “national interest and security of the United States,” he said.
Rubio, seen as a China hawk, is sending the first signals of his focus on countering Beijing’s ambitions for global influence, scheduling bilateral and group meetings in Washington with US allies on the front lines of aggression Chinese the day after the inauguration.
This includes a bilateral meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya and a joint meeting with the foreign ministers of Japan, Australia and India, the so-called Quad.
The foreign ministers were on hand for Trump’s inauguration at the Capitol on Monday.
The group’s meeting demonstrates “ironclad commitment” to close cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong told reporters in Washington on Sunday, Reuters reported.
Wong posted a photo of Trump’s inauguration ceremony on Capitol Hill along with Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya and Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar. Also in the photo was the Deputy Prime Minister of Malta, Ian Borg.
The meetings are expected to take place on Tuesday, a nod to confidence that Rubio’s confirmation vote will move quickly.
Rubio has called for the State Department to become “very relevant” again, but it’s unclear how much influence the State Department will have in a Trump administration where the president has appointed a series of special envoys to take on specific challenges of foreign policy
Trump’s special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, already has a victory under his belt working hand-in-hand with the Biden administration to secure a cease-fire and hostage-release deal between Israel and Hamas. Trump has also appointed a special envoy for Ukraine and Russia as part of his push to end the nearly three-year war.
And Trump has anointed Richard Grenell, his former ambassador to Germany, whose name has been floated as a possible secretary of state, for the indefinite role of presidential envoy for special missions.
Rubio fills a role filled by two people during Trump’s first term: Rex Tillerson, a former oil executive who was fired by Trump after 423 days in office, and then Mike Pompeo, a former House member and director of the CIA under Trump.
Rubio was a fierce critic of Trump during the 2016 race for the Republican presidential nomination. But he has evolved into a staunch loyalist, a shift cemented when Trump tapped him as secretary of state a week after winning the elections He is widely seen as a potential candidate for the presidency again in 2028.
