Florida Sen. Marco Rubio will refrain from criticizing Donald Trump over the course of the general election, but will not actively campaign on behalf of his party’s presumptive presidential nominee.
Rubio, who ended his White House bid in mid-March after losing his home state in a landslide to Trump, told CNN on Tuesday that he will follow through on his previous pledge to support the Republican nominee.
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But the first-term senator simultaneously emphasized that his concerns about Trump’s foreign policy and his rhetoric on the campaign trail remain unchanged.
“Here’s what I’m not going to do over the next six months is sit there and just be taking shots at him,” Rubio told CNN’s Jake Tapper in his first TV appearance following the suspension of his campaign.
“I know what I said during the campaign … I stand by the things that I said, but I’m not going to sit here and become his chief critic over the next six months because he deserves the opportunity to go forward and make his argument and try to win,” he added.
Rubio plans to spend most of his time between now and November finishing his Senate term strong and helping Republicans maintain a majority in the Senate by campaigning with colleagues of his who face tough reelection contests.
“I think that is where I can be of most use,” Rubio told CNN, doubling down on his previous claim that he is not interested in becoming Trump’s running mate.
Rubio, who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has long taken issue with Trump’s non-interventionist approach to foreign affairs and his record on immigration. The Florida senator blasted Trump during a debate in February, alleging that was the “only person” on stage who had once hired illegal immigrants, and calling him an “erratic individual” unfit to handle the nuclear codes.
However, “with the right people around him,” Rubio suggested Trump could make the right foreign policy decisions.
“I’ve stated my differences with him, but in fairness, he hasn’t held public office before,” the senator told CNN. “Some of these issues are issues [Trump] is learning about for the first time and my sense is that as he learns more about them, the way a nominee should and a president will, he’ll have more information upon which to make decisions about these issues.”
Despite suggesting that Trump’s capacity for understanding both domestic and foreign policy might change in the coming months, Rubio didn’t seem to think the billionaire’s demeanor will evolve as well.
“My sense is he is going to continue to be who he is and that’s who the Republican voters wanted and I respect that decision,” he said.
