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Florida's Republican Sen. Marco Rubio sailed done his confirmation proceeding with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee connected Wednesday, each but assuring helium volition presume the relation of apical diplomat nether the caller Trump medication aboriginal this month.
Rubio’s confirmation proceeding — a process usually afloat of verbal diatribes, beardown governmental agendas and illusive answers — was afloat of pleasantries, with some Democratic and Republican lawmakers applauding his enactment successful the Senate and his in-depth cognition of analyzable issues crossed the globe.
Here were the apical moments from Rubio’s hearing.
RUBIO TO PITCH FOREIGN POLICY CREDENTIALS TO SENATE AS HE VIES TO BECOME AMERICA'S TOP DIPLOMAT
While Rubio whitethorn person been welcomed by his Senate colleagues, his proceeding wasn’t wholly contention-free.
The caput of state-hopeful’s opening remarks were interrupted by respective protesters affiliated with a group known arsenic Code Pink, who were protesting the Israel-Hamas warfare and wore pinkish shirts that work "stop sidesplitting the children of Gaza."
Two of the demonstrators forced to permission the enclosure were male, earlier a pistillate protester besides stood up and yelled retired successful Spanish.
She was rapidly escorted from the country and the proceeding promptly restarted.
"I get bilingual protesters," Rubio said to the sheet of senators with a grin earlier resuming his remarks.
Rubio’s quip astir the protesters appeared to acceptable the code for his hearing.
Though Rubio faced pugnacious questions astir elaborate geopolitical issues connected astir each continent, lawmakers connected some sides of the aisle besides joked astir with their Senate colleague.
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., introduced Rubio astatine the apical of the proceeding and quipped that "finally" helium volition get to beryllium the elder legislator of Florida aft the duo person served unneurotic successful the precocious enclosure since 2019.
Sen. Cory Booker , D-N.J., drew chuckles erstwhile helium said, "Sen. Rubio, the President [elect] made a large determination successful choosing you. You’re a thought person successful overseas policy. I, however, don’t deliberation astir Americans cognize however large of a thought person you are successful NCAA, NFL and precocious schoolhouse football, and I’m a small disappointed that you’re not going to the caput of the NCAA close now."
To which Rubio replied, "Not yet," garnering laughs from the room.
In different bipartisan infinitesimal seldom seen during Cabinet information hearings, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., told a touching communicative from 1 of her archetypal encounters with Rubio — a stark opposition to her questioning of defence caput nominee Pete Hegseth the time prior.
In 2018, not lone was Duckworth comparatively caller to the precocious chamber, but the soon-to-be caller ma was besides pushing the legislature assemblage to alteration its rules and let caller parents to bring their babe onto the Senate level during a vote.
Duckworth, who is physically disabled aft surviving a 2004 RPG onslaught connected her chopper successful Iraq, described rolling crossed the Senate level successful her wheelchair erstwhile she heard idiosyncratic telephone retired her name.
"And you came moving down from the apical backmost of the Senate chambers to archer me, ‘I’m with you. I volition enactment you’," she said. "And I conscionable privation to convey you for that kindness… It was a infinitesimal of existent bipartisanship."
Rubio responded and said, "I deliberation what I precisely said is, ‘What’s the large deal? This spot is already afloat of babies,'" erstwhile again drafting laughs.
The five-hour proceeding wasn’t each amusive and levity, arsenic Rubio was pressed connected issues with large information implications similar the warfare successful Ukraine, China, NATO and Artic security.
Rubio amazed nary 1 with his tough-on-China attack and his committedness to remaining a beardown state of NATO’s.
However, 1 country senators whitethorn person hoped Rubio would person travel retired much definitively was implicit what continued enactment for Ukraine whitethorn look similar and however the incoming Trump medication volition grip the question of Ukraine becoming a NATO member.
Both Ukraine and Russia person signaled they are unfastened to negotiating a cease-fire. But securing a lasting bid woody could beryllium hard arsenic Ukraine entering the NATO confederation has been deemed a non-negotiable by some Kyiv — who wants the alliance’s information — and Moscow — which has fervently opposed Ukrainian NATO membership.
"The information of the substance is that successful this struggle determination is nary mode Russia takes each of Ukraine. The Ukrainians are excessively brave, and combat excessively hard, and the state is excessively big," Rubio said.
But helium added that "there’s nary mode Ukraine is besides pushing these radical [Russians] each the mode backmost to wherever they were connected the eve of the invasion."
Rubio pointed retired that Ukraine volition not beryllium capable to support up with the sheer fig of bodies that Russia tin propulsion successful to the war.
"It's important for everyone to beryllium realistic. There volition person to beryllium concessions," helium said. "This is not going to beryllium easy. "[It's] going to necessitate a batch of hard diplomacy."
TRUMP CABINET PICKS PAM BONDI, MARCO RUBIO, OTHERS FACED A FULL DAY OF QUESTIONS FROM SENATORS
The information threats surrounding China came up successful astir each contented Rubio was asked to address, including its increasing beingness successful Africa and Latin America, its oppressive practices successful the South China Sea, concerns implicit trade, quality rights abuses, tech and its increasing relationships with different adversarial nations.
But 1 contented newer to headlines arsenic of precocious is China’s involvement successful the Panama Canal.
"This is thing that's existed present for astatine slightest a decennary successful my service," helium said, referring to a 2017 travel helium took to Panama. "Chinese companies power larboard facilities astatine some ends of the canal — the eastbound and the west. And the concerns among subject officials and information officials, including successful Panama, astatine that point, [was] that could 1 time beryllium utilized arsenic a choke constituent to impede commerce successful a infinitesimal of conflict."
"This is simply a morganatic contented that needs to beryllium confronted," Rubio added.
The contented of Chinese power implicit the large waterway resurfaced earlier this period erstwhile Trump refused to accidental whether helium would regularisation retired subject involution successful the Panama Canal.
Rubio was pressed connected the taxable aggregate times, though helium was wide that helium was not yet astatine a constituent wherever helium knew capable astir the ineligible parameters of U.S. involution successful Panama to springiness a thorough response.
Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., applauded Rubio for being "extremely well-prepared" for his confirmation proceeding arsenic the adjacent caput of authorities — a stark opposition to his tense engagement with Hegseth during the proceeding a time prior.
"We're utilized to seeing nominees who cognize a batch astir a mates of things, and sometimes, who cognize precise small astir virtually everything," helium said. "But I deliberation you've seen a proceeding with a nominee who — hold oregon disagree with the points he's made — he's not talking retired of a briefing book.
"He's not having a thumb done a binder to determine however to reply a peculiar question," Kaine continued. "I've ever been struck by moving with Sen. Rubio connected this committee, since I came to the Senate successful January 2013, that helium has a precise well-developed consciousness of the satellite and a passionateness successful each corners of it."
Kaine's sentiment appeared to beryllium shared by the entirety of the committee, and galore of the senators expressed assurance that Rubio volition beryllium unanimously confirmed for the apical job.
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