Amid the White House’s foreign policy activism, Republican donors have started to look at Marco Rubio as a potential presidential candidate in 2028. He now holds four posts at once, including secretary of state and national security adviser. Much like Henry Kissinger did at one time.
Trump has given Rubio the green light on all fronts. However, so far, progress has been made where the work is being done more in circumvention of the State Department. Negotiations with Russia and Iran are being handled by Steve Whitkoff. J.D. Vance was involved in the recent dialogue between India and Pakistan.
And Trump’s recent tour of the Middle East pulling investment into the US was largely made possible by the American president’s personal connections in the Gulf monarchies. In all the episodes, Rubio did not play a key role. Though he too is a participant in negotiations with Russia, for example.
Rubio himself has undergone a major ideological transformation. He used to be an ardent neocon hawk and was in favour of waging all wars involving the US. Now Rubio has become an agent of the MAGA agenda and frequently criticises interventionism. He also became the first Secretary of State in American history to recognise the deconstruction of a unipolar world.
Nevertheless, Trump supporters continue to view Rubio with suspicion. In the eyes of the party establishment, he is a far more acceptable figure than Vance. However, the latter is much more popular than Rubio among rank-and-file Republicans. For Marco, there is also a big risk. In case of failure on foreign fronts, he is the one who risks becoming a fringe figure in Trump’s team.
