This week, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., joined “Special Report with Bret Baier” on Fox News to discuss the impending government shutdown, the possibility of a Saudi-Israeli normalization deal, and the indictment of U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-NJ.
Rubio said the following.
On whether the Senate’s short-term spending bill will prevent a government shutdown:
“I’m realistic about the fact that whatever we pass here still has to be consulted with the House. The only way to pass something around here is to get both chambers to pass it. I’m not going to get involved in the House’s business.… The last thing they need or want is senators telling them what they need to be doing. Suffice it to say that you know what we pass here is probably not going to be what the House can pass, at least under the current outlines.
“I hate these shutdowns. I don’t think we should have them…. The right way to do this is to pass appropriations bills. We had time to do more of that here in the House and Senate. It got caught up for some reasons, but at least we got them out of committee. The House is going to try to do that now. But that can’t happen by Saturday night in time to prevent a shutdown. So something’s going to have to happen to keep the lights on.”
On what the House is asking for:
“There’s a lot of things that I would like to see done. There’s a lot of things the House members have proposed that I would love to see be part of our spending. Unfortunately, Democrats control the Senate. That’s why these elections matter so much. That’s why I hope we’re in the majority in the future, so we can drive more of what’s in that policy.
“Look at what’s happening at the border. It’s a self-inflicted wound that we knew was going to happen. These policies continue to encourage that. This administration doesn’t really want to do anything meaningful about it. I think there’s legitimate issues to be raised.
“I’ve been a supporter of Ukraine funding, because I think it would be devastating to our alliances and our reputation around the world [to end it]. That would be like Afghanistan times 10 in terms of the hit we would take. But there’s got to be a strategy around it. There’s got to be a clear plan. There’s got to be numbers around it that make sense to people. The money they’re asking for now is a lot of money. It’s only for three months, so we’re going to be here a year from now? $100 billion, they’re saying the cost is.
“All these things have to be worked through, and they should be worked through as part of regular appropriations bills. But that’s not an option at this point, between now and Saturday. That’s the situation we continue to find ourselves in, no matter who’s in charge, it appears.”
On whether a Saudi-Israeli normalization deal is possible:
“I do [think a deal is possible], and I hope it happens. It would be an important moment for the region and ultimately for the world. Israel is a close ally of the United States. Saudi Arabia is a key strategic ally of the United States. They both have deep and rightful concerns about Iran and worries about Iran.…
“So I think that would be an important achievement. Obviously, there’s some impediments that are going to have to be worked through, but I think it’s an achievable goal and one that we should be hoping for and doing everything we can to help make it happen.”
On whether Senator Menendez should resign due to his indictment:
“The allegations that are made against him are very disturbing. The evidence is not the kind of thing you can just dismiss offhand. But in this country, in the United States, guilt is proven in front of a jury. The government has to make that case, not because a bunch of politicians in Washington decide their party might lose a seat in the Senate if he doesn’t resign. That’s what’s happening now. He was also indicted, unfortunately, in 2015, and they didn’t call for him to resign then, because there was a Republican governor at the time.
“Ultimately, like anybody, the decision about whether to stay or go is his to make. But we can’t set a standard that just because the prosecutor indicts you, no matter how disturbing the indictment, that automatically means you have to resign. If he decides he wants to go before a jury and force the government to prove its case and poke holes in it, he has every right to do that, even as I would acknowledge that it was not easy to read the reporting on this, because I don’t think it’s good for him, or for anybody, for that matter.”
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