Marco Rubio in Interviews during 2017-2019

On Corporations: Big corporations gave out bonuses instead of reinvesting

Most Republican congressmen remain entranced by the limited-government shibboleths, but Rubio's proposal, to double the tax credit to $2,000 per child and pay for it by making a small increase to the corporate rate his party wanted, was decried by some Republicans as socialism. The watered-down version they accepted, as the price of Rubio's support for the bill, excluded the poorest families. "There is still a lot of thinking on the right that if big corporations are happy, they're going to take the money they're saving and reinvest it in American workers," he says. "In fact they bought back shares, a few gave out bonuses; there's no evidence whatsoever that the money's been massively poured back into the American worker."

His golden back-story, as a son of poor immigrants, helps with that--and looks more relevant now than ever. "My relatives are firefighters and nurses and teachers and electricians," he says. "These are people who are not all that excited about the new economy."

Source: The Economist on 2020 presidential hopefuls Apr 26, 2018

On Families & Children: Increased child tax credit plus paid family leave

Mr Rubio suggests his new programme will involve more interventions such as the increased child tax credit he inserted into the tax reform passed last year, and a provision for paid family leave he is working on now. He mulls the need for more public spending on technological research and for education reform, to prioritise vocational skills. He advocates a more flexible benefit system, to help the retraining of disrupted workers.

From the lips of an orthodox Republican leader, these modest measures imply a serious reconsideration of the pre-eminent conservative ideals of a minimal government role in the economy.

"If we basically say everyone is on their own and the market's going to take care of it, we will rip the country apart, because millions of good hardworking people lack the means to adapt." Economic liberty is the freedom to enjoy "the dignity of work", says Mr Rubio. "There needs to be a conservative movement that addresses these realities."

Source: The Economist on 2020 presidential hopefuls Apr 26, 2018

On Free Trade: Bring back American car-manufacturing via high automation

Rubio's implication that Republicans have found no good answer to the problems Mr Trump describes: The president's scheme to revive the 1970s economy through protectionism and deregulation is unrealistic, as Mr Rubio--who these days dares not criticise Mr Trump--cannot help but acknowledge. "The future is going to happen," he says. "I have no problem with bringing back American car-manufacturing facilities, but, whether they're American robots or Mexican robots, they're going to be highly automated." Source: The Economist on 2020 presidential hopefuls Apr 26, 2018

On Education: Bad idea to arm teachers against school shootings

The mass shootings in Newtown, Orlando, and even Fort Lauderdale didn't get Sen. Marco Rubio to seriously reconsider his position on guns. But Rubio shifted on firearms as he weathered the righteous anger of a parent and of the students who survived the Valentine's Day massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and who then faced him onstage at a CNN town hall.

Jeered and booed by the crowd, buffeted by tough questions, Rubio stood alone as the only Republican onstage. He broke with President Trump on whether to arm teachers. Rubio said it was a bad idea. He said he would favor raising the minimum age to purchase an assault rifle from 18 to 21. And he said he would consider restricting the size of magazines for firearms.

It was a striking turnabout for Rubio, who never met a gun-rights bill he didn't vote for in the Florida Legislature and, later, in Congress. But Rubio said he wanted to prevent another massacre and said it was time for everyone to start rethinking their positions.

Source: Caputo & Morin in Politico.com on 2020 presidential hopefuls Feb 21, 2018

On Gun Control: Ban bump stocks; limit magazine size; more background checks

Rubio insisted he wasn't going to let the perfect be the enemy of the good, particularly when it came to his position on high-volume magazines. "It may not prevent an attack, but it may save lives in an attack," he said, suggesting that three or four lives might have been saved in Parkland had there been some restriction on magazine size.

Rubio steadfastly refused to consider banning semiautomatic rifles outright. And he said he would not refuse money from the National Rifle Association.

Rubio said, "I absolutely believe that in this country if you are [under] 18 years of age you should not be able to buy a rifle and I will support a law that takes that right away." Rubio was met with applause and went on to say he supports banning "bump stocks," which can make a semiautomatic fire like a machine gun. He also voiced support for better background checks & mental health funding. But when Rubio said an "assault weapons ban" would not have prevented Parkland's murders, the boos rained down.

Source: Caputo & Morin in Politico.com on 2020 presidential hopefuls Feb 21, 2018

The above quotations are from Interviews during 2017-2019, interviewing presidential hopefuls for 2020. Click here for main summary page. Click here for a profile of Marco Rubio. Click here for Marco Rubio on all issues.
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Page last updated: Nov 01, 2021