President-elect Donald Trump is expected to appoint Florida Senator Marco Rubio to serve as Secretary of State in his administration.
The New York Times reported that Trump has mostly settled on Rubio after also previously considering him as a running mate.
However, it seems Rubio has been auditioning for Secretary of State all along. Since being elected to Senate in 2010, Rubio has carved out a reputation as a foreign policy hawk, with hardline foreign policy stances on China and Iran.
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On Russia’s war with Ukraine, Rubio, like proposed National Security Adviser Rep. Mike Walz, has mostly stayed close to Republican talking points in saying that the war is at a stalemate and “needs to be brought to a conclusion.”
The latest job alert out of Trump HQ comes on the heels of reports that the president-elect is hunkered down in Mar-a-Lago, with Elon Musk among other advisers, pouring over “digital dossiers” to select Cabinet members.
Judging by his picks so far, the ratings-minded Trump has leaned into those who have been loyal to him and liked by conservatives.
Despite Trump previously taunting him as “Little Marco,” Rubio was one of the final GOP surrogates to join Trump on the campaign trail before the election in Raleigh, North Carolina. Rubio also made an appearance at Trump’s 78th birthday party in June, signaling that previous rough patches between the two had been smoothed over.
So far, Trump has nominated “fighter” Elise Stefanik to serve as UN Ambassador, appointed climate change skeptic and former Rep. Lee Zeldin to head the Environmental Protection Agency, and made history by naming Susie Wiles as his chief of staff. He also named Tom Homan as his “border czar,” a Project 2025 contributor and supporter of a “zero-tolerance” policy at the border.
