Rubio can’t name one issue he disagrees with Romney or Bush

Published October 6, 2015 5:31pm ET



Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) gave an interview with CNBC’s John Hardwood on Monday where he seemed stumped by multiple questions.

During the interview Hardwood asked Rubio to defend himself from an attack by a Donald Trump advisor that the senator was just a “cookie-cutter Chamber of Commerce Republican.”

“I have the most detailed policy agenda of anyone who is running and by no means is (it) cookie cutter anything. It’s a 21st century agenda,” Rubio replied.

Rubio’s presidential campaign website has some sparsely detailed policy issues on how he plans t0 increase sanctions on Iran, support the Ukraine to fight Russia, make China free it’s people, cut taxes, and reform education.

A guns-and-butter policy that includes nation building and spreading democracy around the world–where have I heard of that before?

Harwood followed up by asking the senator if there are any policy issues with which he disagrees with Mitt Romney or former President George W. Bush.

“Well, we’re in a different era. For example, my policies are about taking free enterprise and limited government, but applying them to the unique challenges of the 21st century,” Rubio said. “So you’ll hear me spend a tremendous amount of time talking about higher-education reform. Our higher-education model is outdated.”

“And I proposed concrete bipartisan ideas about how to fix some of those things. We’re in an era now of increased global competition where America no longer can put in place policies because we think ideologically it’s a good or bad idea,” he continued. “The fundamental question is does it make us competitive again. And on many of those issues, I’ve offered solutions and ideas that no Republican’s ever talked about before because they were not part of the 20th century debate.”

Rubio did not mention a single policy issue–from the war in Iraq to self-deportation–that he disagrees with Bush or Romney on.

Furthermore, Bush became president in 2001, was re-elected in 2004, and Romney ran for president in 2008 and 2012.

Was that not the 21st century? Does Rubio not know how centuries work?

And, both Bush and Romney had an extremely detailed education agenda

If Rubio’s going to be another Bush or Romney, at least he could be honest about it–and get a calendar.

Watch the full clip below at the 3:50 mark: