Politics

Rubio Still Not Sold On Tillerson

REUTERS/Carlo Allegri.

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Juliegrace Brufke Capitol Hill Reporter
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GOP Florida Sen. Marco Rubio is still unsure whether he will vote for former Exxon Mobil chief Rex Tillerson as secretary of state.

Rubio, who grilled Tillerson during last week’s conformation hearing on his alleged relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, said he’s waiting for answers to additional questions he requested from President-elect Donald Trump’s pick.

“We’re going to go through the transcripts of the hearing, which I’ve begun to do,” he told reporters in Miami, The Miami Herald reports. “We need to have a foreign policy that while always acting in the national interest of the United States is always rooted in our values as a nation.”

Rubio, an influential member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, could play a pivotal role in Tillerson’s success in making it through the upper chamber.

If Rubio joins the panel’s 10 Democrats, it could delay the confirmation process.

“I’m just working through the process,” he told Politico following the hearing. “It’s an important position. So we’re going to give him the serious consideration he deserves. He’s a decent man and a patriot who loves his country. So we’ve got to work through this process.”

Rubio, a strong proponent of NATO dismissed Trump’s claim the organization has become “obsolete,” noting Tillerson did agree with him in that arena.

“NATO is not obsolete. It most certainly needs to be reinvigorated, given the new challenges of the 21st century,” he continued. “Mr. Tillerson said, by the way, that he does believe in NATO’s importance.”

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