Keeping Trump’s Favor May Test New Secretary of State

WASHINGTON — For Marco Rubio, the easy part is over. He was confirmed by the Senate as secretary of state with unanimous support, as Democrats joined Republicans in praising his acumen and judgment.

Now comes the task that will make or break his tenure: retaining the full backing of his new boss, Donald Trump.

The 53-year-old Rubio is stepping into the job with more experience than President Trump’s previous secretaries of state, having spent the past 14 years in the Senate and becoming intimately acquainted with U.S. foreign policy from the Indo-Pacific to the Middle East and Latin America. However, this traditional experience, along with Rubio’s longstanding hawkish views on Russia and support for America’s role in NATO, may put him at odds with Trump.

“Rubio is going to face some challenges as he and the president try to come to terms about what is the purpose of American power?” said Thomas Shannon, a former U.S. diplomat who often worked with Rubio during the Obama and first Trump administrations.

Still, it was a collegial scene Tuesday as Rubio was sworn into office. Vice President JD Vance, who served alongside him in the Senate, called him a friend and a “bipartisan solutions seeker” as he delivered the oath.

Rubio echoed Trump in his own brief remarks, emphasizing that anything the government and State Department do must make the country stronger, safer, or more prosperous. “If it doesn’t do one of those three things, we will not do it,” Rubio declared.

He reiterated that sentiment during his first appearance at the State Department, telling staffers that both his mission and theirs would be to defend and execute Trump’s “America First” policies.

Rubio’s support in Washington carries an establishment tone, with many hopeful he will provide steady leadership during this time of global upheaval. In interviews with various lawmakers and former diplomats, he was frequently described as the “responsible” choice to represent the U.S. abroad, a known quantity both domestically and on the global stage.

“I think he’ll be able to deliver that message, country by country, continent by continent, and that’s uncompromising, but also that’s comforting,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer, a Republican from North Dakota. “Not that I’m looking for every other country to be comfortable with us, but in a way that I think is not alarming.”

Rubio’s worldview is shaped largely by his own history: the son of Cuban immigrants who arrived in Miami in May 1956 “with nothing but the dream of a better life.” His father was a bartender, and his mother was a hotel maid. “Because of them, I had the privilege to be born a citizen of the greatest nation in the history of the world,” he remarked.

The “only in America” narrative helped him ascend to public office in Florida, moving from city commissioner to the Florida House of Representatives, ultimately becoming the first Cuban American speaker in the Legislature’s history. His tenure as speaker was substantial, symbolizing a message directed towards Cuba, whether received or not.

Rubio’s ascent continued in 2010 as he was elected to the Senate as part of the “tea party” wave, which sought to challenge the status quo in Washington. His first Senate speech highlighted the “American miracle” that attracts immigrants from around the globe to the U.S., aiming to “leave their children better off than themselves.”

A few years later, he was part of a bipartisan group advocating for a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. His efforts contributed to a wide-reaching immigration bill that passed the Senate but failed to progress in the House due to a strong conservative backlash.

Over the past decade, Rubio’s stance on immigration shifted towards a more hard-line position, aligning himself with Trump, who aggressively pursued deportations and restrictions on entry into the U.S. during his second term.

In his confirmation hearing, Rubio mirrored Trump’s grim view of the U.S. immigration system, stating that “despots and narco-terrorists” have exploited “open borders to drive mass migration, traffic women and children, and flood our communities with fentanyl and violent criminals.”

This represents a significant shift for Rubio, who is striving to maintain congruence with Trump’s statements. While some believe he is conforming to Trump’s rhetoric, there is hope he will uphold certain mainstream views.

“I think Marco is a hawk, but he’s also an internationalist, and I think the challenge for him will be to maintain the tradition of America being indispensable in world affairs,” said Sen. Brian Schatz, a Democrat from Hawaii. “There are people in the Trump world who want us to step back from our leadership role on the global stage. I hope Marco’s instincts towards American strength prevail.”

Both sides acknowledge that it will ultimately be Trump who decides if Rubio is “MAGA enough” to stay as a member of his administration and represent his ideologies worldwide. Trump has previously demonstrated a willingness to dismiss his secretaries of state, including Rex Tillerson, whom he let go via tweet.

When asked if he believes Rubio will endure in this role, Rep. Michael McCaul, a former chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, noted the unpredictable nature of the Trump administration: “Well, it is the Trump administration,” McCaul remarked. “But I think he’s a survivor.”