The News
Marco Rubio assured his former colleagues in Congress that he can at least partially repair the wreckage of US foreign aid, according to one Senate Democrat.
Whether the secretary of state can make good on that is another matter — one that could determine how many Democratic friends he has left after a turbulent few weeks.
As Rubio allies urge patience with his response to the blunt cuts of the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency, which has toppled the US Agency for International Development and largely stalled non-military foreign aid, many Democrats who had voted for their former colleague’s confirmation are now panning the Floridian’s performance. One of them, Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith, said she thought Rubio “would be a voice of reason. And he’s disappointed me.”
Sen. Chris Coons, a close ally of former President Joe Biden, is among the few Democrats still reluctant to criticize Rubio, for now.
“I’m withholding judgment until I see whether he actually delivers on the things that he’s been telling senators, both Republicans and Democrats, about his intention to fix the huge mess at AID that DOGE has made,” the Delaware Democrat told Semafor. ”It hasn’t happened yet.”
One of Democrats’ most consequential early choices in Trump’s second term was unanimously backing Rubio, and they are plainly second-guessing that decision. Many Democrats supported him to show they wouldn’t cause a clamor about all of Trump’s nominees, and for opportunity to gain an ally on the inside.
But after Rubio went viral last week with his subdued on-camera look while Trump and Vice President JD Vance dressed down Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the secretary’s willingness to use his power has become one of the most compelling mysteries in Washington.
Trump himself ribbed Democrats on the matter this week, telling them that “we appreciate you voting for Marco.”
The feeling is not exactly mutual. Asked if he regretted his vote, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., said, “I sure as hell regret what [Rubio’s] done since.”
“I have a feeling that he’s disappointed in himself, based off his facial expressions” during the Zelenskyy meeting, added Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., who served alongside Rubio on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Rubio ran against Trump in 2016 and had maintained more traditional GOP views on national security in the years afterward. Yet one person close to Rubio told Semafor that Democrats were wrong to assume that he would become a “Resistance secretary” because of his past differences with Trump, adding that their desire for him to push back reflects a “fundamental misunderstanding” of the role and Rubio’s perspective.
“President Trump respects Senator Rubio,” said Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., who is close with both Trump and Rubio. “He trusts him and values his judgment; the president will ultimately make the final decision.”
The person close to Rubio urged lawmakers to be patient about dismantled foreign assistance programs, saying Rubio understands the frustration among his former colleagues — yet he also sees the need for sweeping changes.
Inside Trump’s network, there’s clear skepticism that Rubio even supports what Democrats are asking for.
One person close to the president said it’s reasonable to assume Democrats would maintain ties to him over other, more pure-MAGA officials, and that Trump isn’t always expecting him to be a yes-man, but that the secretary’s work so far has focused on doing what Trump wants.
Rubio is facing “a lot of expectations to be an influencer,” this person close to Trump said, “and I think mostly all we’ve seen him do is implement.”
Know More
Rubio’s at the center of some of Trump’s most significant decisions so far. When Trump moved to shutter the USAID and shift it under the State Department, he made Rubio the acting administrator.
The secretary defended the move to dismantle the agency and review foreign aid, accusing USAID employees of “deciding that they’re somehow a global charity separate from the national interest or taxpayer dollars.”
That was bad enough for Democrats, but the buyer’s remorse deepened among them when Rubio sat quietly during the verbal skirmish with Zelenskyy. They later noticed Rubio was the first one sent on TV in the wake of the flap (which one White House official said was purposeful).
“He was partially eaten by the couch” in the Oval Office, said Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz. “And he needs to speak up and speak truth in that environment.”
The White House maintains that viral memes of Rubio sinking into the furniture don’t mean he disagrees with Trump’s approach, describing the two as in lockstep on foreign policy.
“I can’t think of one thing where there has been any distance,” the White House official said. “They were aligned [on the Zelenskyy meeting]. Even afterwards, privately, [Rubio] was saying, ‘This is exactly what you need to do.’”
Sens. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., and Chris Von Hollen, D-Md., each said over the weekend they regretted voting to confirm Rubio. But others, like Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., said they assumed Rubio would take on Trump’s positions: “I’m not really sure why that’s a meaningful pursuit,” Fetterman said of Democrats airing regrets over their Rubio votes.
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., the top Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee, said that within her party, “the buyer’s remorse isn’t for Marco Rubio, it’s for Donald Trump.”
Rubio hasn’t been a champion of open-ended Ukraine aid, anyway; he was among the Republican senators who voted against a bill that included billions of dollars in Ukraine funding last year.
He criticized the Biden administration for failing to define “victory” in Ukraine and said that the Russia-Ukraine conflict would ultimately end in a negotiated settlement — not to mention that he was in the running to be Trump’s vice president.
The View From Republicans
Even Republicans who don’t share Rubio’s worldview continue to support him. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., pulled Rubio aside at Trump’s address to Congress on Tuesday night to tell him that “he’s doing a great job.”
“I voted for him but with some reservations, because his opinion I thought really wasn’t in step with President Trump. I think he has done a great job of moving forward President Trump’s vision for foreign policy,” Paul said.
Other Republicans acknowledged the steep challenges of the job, given the myriad of global threats across Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
“Remember, this world is on fire,” said Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D. “He’s one of these guys that we all feel comfortable making contact with and we know that he fully intends to be a player.”
As for how the White House feels about Democratic remorse?
“Yeah, sorry about that,” the person close to Trump said. “Where do I send the sympathy card?”
Burgess, Morgan and Shelby’s View
It’s well-known how divided Democrats are over tactics and strategy, but Rubio’s vote represented one of their few unifying moments.
That support is now obviously fraying, and could sink further if foreign assistance doesn’t resume, or if DOGE comes for the State Department.
But for Democrats, there aren’t exactly a lot of other places to turn in times of crisis other than Rubio. As the person close to Trump put it: “What’s the alternative, Ric Grenell?”
Notable
- Rubio launched a program to identify pro-Hamas students and cancel their visas, according to Axios.
- The Nation’s take: All Democrats who supported Rubio should apologize.