In this March 21, 2018 file photo, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., left, accompanied by Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, right, speaks before a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on election security on Capitol Hill in Washington. The Senate intelligence committee has concluded that the Kremlin launched an aggressive effort to interfere in the 2016 presidential contest on behalf of Donald Trump. The Republican-led panel on Tuesday released its fifth and final report in its investigation into election interference. (AP/Andrew Harnik)
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WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — President-elect Donald Trump named Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida as his nominee for secretary of state on Wednesday, setting up a onetime critic who evolved into one of the president-elect’s fiercest defenders to become the nation’s top diplomat.
The conservative lawmaker is a noted hawk on China, Cuba and Iran, and was a finalist to be Trump’s running mate this summer.
On Capitol Hill, Rubio is the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He has pushed for taking a harder line against China and has targeted social media app TikTok because its parent company is Chinese. He and other lawmakers contend that Beijing could demand access to the data of users whenever it wants.
“He will be a strong Advocate for our Nation, a true friend to our Allies, and a fearless Warrior who will never back down to our adversaries,” Trump said of Rubio in a statement.
Trump made the announcement while flying back back to Florida from Washington after meeting with President Joe Biden.
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