Trump hails Rubio’s performance as Secretary of State

President Trump praised Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s performance on the job during his address to the joint session of Congress on Tuesday.

“We have Marco Rubio in charge. Good luck Marco. Now we know who to blame if anything goes wrong,” Trump quipped, receiving laughs from Rubio and others in the chamber.

“Marco’s been amazing, and he’s going to do a great job,” the president said. “Think of it, he got 100 votes. You know he was approved with actually 99, but the 100th was this gentleman, and I feel very certain, so let’s assume he got a hundred votes, and I’m either very happy about it or very concerned about it,” he continued, referring to the unanimous vote in the Senate to confirm the then-senator as secretary of state.

“He’s a great gentleman. He’s respected by everybody and we appreciate you voting for Marco. He’s going to do a fantastic job,” he said.

Trump’s comments came hours after Vanity Fair reported on Tuesday that four Republicans close to the White House said Rubio was unhappy with his lack of foreign policy influence in the administration. Rubio was reportedly caught off guard when Trump chose nine foreign policy envoys. Additionally, the outlet reported that Rubio did not approve Trump’s move to revoke former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s government security detail.

A spokesperson from the State Department referred the outlet to readouts from Rubio’s recent meetings and public remarks “for insights and information on these matters.”

Foreign policy has taken center stage for the Trump administration amid the president’s falling out with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the announced tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China.

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