CLEVELAND — Marco Rubio on Wednesday firmly endorsed Donald Trump for president, ending a months-long awkward embrace of the Republican nominee that bounced him from the presidential race.
The Florida senator, in a pre-recorded video message played during the Republican convention, said that only Trump would cut taxes, curb spending and get the national debt under control. Rubio also vouched for Trump’s foreign policy, which he took major issue with during their competition for the Republican nomination, saying that only Trump would rebuild the military and defeat the Islamic State.
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“After a long and spirited primary, the time for fighting is over,” Rubio said. “It’s time to come together and fight for a new direction for America. It’s time to win in November.
Rubio’s clear endorsement of Trump over Democrat Hillary Clinton ended months of waffling.
From march 15, when Trump knocked Rubio out of the 2016 contest by defeating him in his home state primary, the senator had offered only tepid backing for the the Republican nominee.
Rubio was among the New York businessman’s harshest critics during that race, calling him a “con man” who would ruin the Republican Party. The senator doubted whether he could ever endorse the real estate mogul.
As he began to walk back his hard line against Trump, Rubio at first said only that he intended to endorse the GOP nominee.
Later the senator said in an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper that he would be proud to speak on Trump’s behalf in Cleveland, only to backtrack and say that he was backing the reality television star because he was committed to stopping Hillary Clinton.
Rubio proceeded to cancel his plans to attend the convention, and said as a part of his surprising announcement that he was running for re-election to the Senate that voters could count on him to serve as a check on the president, whether the next commander in chief is Clinton or Trump.
Finally, with the convention underway, Rubio backed Trump in a short video recorded last week in Washington. He plans to attend a watch party in Tampa, Fla., on Thursday to view the nominee’s formal acceptance speech.
“We had a very spirited primary, you guys watched it on television. As a Republican, it’s time for Republicans to stop fighting against each other,” Rubio said during an interview with local reporters in Florida. “That will be my message tonight.”
Sources said Rubio’s message would focus on uniting the party and touting Trump as a better choice than presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
Rubio, 45, was one of the final four candidates standing out of 17 that ran in a crowded and competitive primary. He had already decided not to run for a second Senate term, and the assumption was that he was gearing up to run for president again in 2020. His hesitation to back Trump was viewed in that context.
But Rubio’s calculation changed in late June after he decided to run for re-election. The senator had been known as a politician who was unhappy in the Senate and coveted the White House.
His close confidants now say that Rubio has altered the way he sees public service and his political career, at least in the short term. Republicans familiar with his thinking say they could see a scenario in which he never runs for president again.
“He has talked about this,” said one source. “None of his advisers said he should run for re-election to position himself for the presidency. It’s a riskier path to take.”
Top Republicans positioning for 2020 showed up in Cleveland and either have or will speak to the convention.
That includes Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, who hasn’t endorsed Trump and was the last candidate the nominee had to beat to win the primary; and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who previously endorsed Cruz and withheld his support from Trump until recently.
Rubio is staying away to campaign in Florida. He faces an Aug. 30 primary against Carlos Beruff, a wealthy businessman who has offered his wholehearted support to Trump and traveled to the convention.
Republicans operatives in Florida, both those critical of him as well as allies, attribute his absence to, for the critics, vacillation, and among his supporters, wanting to have it both ways.
Rubio, they say, wants to accrue the benefits of endorsing Trump without being to closely tied to him to suffer for it politically in a state where Clinton is the favorite to win in November.
Either way, it’s a smart strategy, and fits with how Rubio feels about Trump. The senator has never disavowed his criticism of the nominee, but argued that, No. 1, he signed a pledge to support the Republican nominee, and No. 2, that Clinton would be worse for the country.
Republicans close to Rubio said that, as he decompressed from the heated campaign and allowed some time to pass, keeping his word regarding voting for the nominee weighed heavily on him. It’s also true that Trump has considerable Republican support in Florida, votes Rubio is going to need in what is expected to be a close re-election race.
“Rubio made a smart move with this decision,” GOP consultant Ron Bonjean said. “He has to strike a balance with being a party loyalist while at the same time running for re-election for his seat in a diverse state that may not be supportive of Trump.”
