Jenna Buzzacco-Foerster
Marco Rubio is standing by his party’s presidential nominee, saying he does not want Hillary Clinton to be the next president of the United States.
Rubio broke his silence Tuesday after many wondered whether the Miami Republican would revoke his support of Donald Trump after video surfaced of Trump making lewd comments about women.
The Washington Post and NBC News on Friday released a 2005 video in which Trump describes trying to have sex with a married woman. He also brags about women letting him kiss and grab them because he is famous. In the days following the report, Republicans across the country withdrew their support of Trump.
On Friday, Rubio tweeted that Trump’s “comments were vulgar, egregious and impossible to justify. No one should ever talk about any woman in those terms, even in private.” Rubio did not make any additional public comments about the issue and his support for Trump.
That ended Tuesday when Rubio released a statement saying he didn’t agree with Trump but didn’t want Clinton to win.
“I ran against Donald Trump. And while I respect that voters chose him as the GOP nominee, I have never hesitated to oppose his policies I disagree with. And I have consistently rejected his offensive rhetoric and behavior,” he said in a written statement. “I disagree with him on many things, but I disagree with his opponent on virtually everything. I wish we had better choices for President. But I do not want Hillary Clinton to be our next President. And therefore my position has not changed.”
Rubio’s statement comes as Rep. Patrick Murphy is expected to appear with Clinton and former Vice President Al Gore in Miami. The Murphy campaign has slammed Rubio for continuing to support Trump.
“Marco Rubio’s failure to stand up to Trump proves he will never stand up for Florida in the U.S. Senate,” the Treasure Coast Democrat tweeted Tuesday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report, reprinted with permission.
