By Carol Lucas
Who is the real Marco Rubio? That is a question that has been asked more than once since the young Floridian became senator and began his climb up the spiral staircase of politics, with its many twists and turns.
The son of poor Cuban immigrants, Rubio pledged to usher in a “new American century” — a tweak to the “morning in America” slogan of his political idol, Ronald Reagan — with a message that was conservative but optimistic.
According to some, Rubio was not just a telegenic young overachiever but much more. To hear the senator tell it, he was the key to renewing Republican political thinking.
The year was 2016. When he announced his presidential candidacy, Rubio said some people were urging him to hold off, but he simply could not.
“I believe our very identity as an exceptional nation is at stake, and I can make a difference as president,” Rubio said, portraying himself as a young and fresh new face for the Republican Party.
That was in April, two months before Donald Trump entered the race.
I think it’s fair to say that when Trump entered the 2016 presidential race, the rule of the day became “no holds barred.” This was very apparent in the debates that ensued, particularly the interaction between candidates Trump and Rubio.
When researching these exchanges, I found no lack of examples, most of which were personal jabs. Both engaged in what can only be called pettiness, and as I read, I was reminded of kids in a sandbox.
Topics like “bladder issues”, make-up (yes, Trump actually called attention to Rubio’s, saying it looked like it had been applied with a trowel), misspelled words in texts; con-artist. The list went on and on; believe it or not, Wikipedia actually has a list of names Trump has created to denigrate others. But I digress.
Perhaps the most famous volley occurred when Trump began using the name “Little Marco.” Rubio responded with this: “He’s always calling me Little Marco. And I’ll admit he’s taller than me. He’s like [6-foot-2], which is why I don’t understand why his hands are the size of someone who is 5-2. Have you seen his hands? They’re like this (demonstration of size). And you know what they say about men with small hands? You can’t trust them.”
And so this all begs the question, “How did such animosity dissipate?”
Neither individual seems to be of the inclination to let bygones be bygones. Why would Trump choose Rubio for Secretary of State and, shortly thereafter, (because of one of his many self-inflicted poor choices) that of national security advisor? And why would Rubio be so inclined to let himself be recruited by a MAGA administration, hardly the ilk of Ronald Reagan?
To answer the last question, one need only look at a rerun of the disgraceful meeting in the Oval Office when the Ukrainian President was berated by Trump, Vance, et al. You might remember that the Secretary of State sat there looking pained, not saying a word. His body language alone said it all because he knew the implications of what was happening. Yet he didn’t say a word.
Rubio’s position of high trust in Trump’s current administration would have been very difficult to foresee almost a decade ago, when he was representing the last gasps of the badly compromised GOP establishment against the ultimately successful challenge of Trump’s insurgent candidacy.
My idle speculation is that Rubio’s position on all that is happening in the present administration is pretty simple. By working ever so judiciously, and not creating any waves, Marco is going to build his credibility as a statesman. Yes, he will bend a knee as is required by all the minions, but he will “speak softly” and carry the big stick of experience into 2028.
Sadly, to accomplish this, he must become a Trump “team player.” That said, more and more Republicans are coming to see Trumpism for what it is: “three cubed.” In other words, crude, cruel, and crass.
When I began to write this piece, the song title “Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ye” came to mind. This was an Irish song popular in the music hall era. The tragic aspect of the piece centered on a young man’s return home, his arms and legs having been blown off fighting for the British Army.
While I have attempted to make the connection of this title to that profound change in Rubio, I also suggest you consider the “war” being fought in America at this time. It would seem that, little by little, we are losing the appendages of the body of democracy.
As I am often wont to do, I turn to Shakespeare for the last word. It is Hamlet’s soliloquy to which I hope Marco Rubio will relate at some point.
To be, or not to be, that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing, end them?
Carol Lucas is a retired high school teacher and a Lady’s Island resident. She is the author of the recently published “A Breath Away: One Woman’s Journey Through Widowhood.”
