INTERNACIONAL
One-man Cabinet: Marco Rubio went from rival to Trump’s point man, but can he handle it?
In a surprising twist of fate, Marco Rubio has gone from bitter presidential rival to President Donald Trump’s go-to guy.
At the start of the new administration, current and former officials speculated Rubio would be one of the first Cabinet officials shown the door, as his America First credentials were called into question given his previously hawkish foreign policy views.
Instead, Rubio has only continued to find favor with the president – so much so that he now holds an unprecedented four different roles within the administration.
«When I have a problem, I call up Marco. He gets it solved,» Trump quipped earlier this month.
TRUMP TO TAP NEW NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR IN 6 MONTHS; CALLS WALTZ MOVE ‘UPGRADE’
In a turn of events that has shocked many, Marco Rubio has increasingly become President Donald Trump’s go-to guy. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
First, Rubio glided into the secretary of state role with a 99-0 Senate confirmation. Then, Trump and his team dismantled USAID and merged it under Rubio’s State Department leadership, naming him acting director. The secretary was subsequently tapped to lead the National Archives in an acting capacity, and as of last week, he’s also replaced Mike Waltz as acting national security advisor.
«This is an expression of trust,» said Andrew Tabler, a former senior official at State and the National Security Council (NSC). «It’s a sign that the president likes Secretary Rubio, despite the odds.»
Trump has suggested the interim arrangement could last up to six months, and while that may be an expression of the president’s confidence in Rubio, some are questioning whether one person can effectively juggle four high-profile roles.
«Marco Rubio is very talented but no one can do that,» said Joel Rubin, former senior State Department official.
Henry Kissinger was the last person to serve as both secretary of state and national security advisor, holding both roles for over two years from 1975 to 1977. But that was half a century ago, and threats facing the nation have only multiplied.
MIKE WALTZ, OTHER NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL STAFFERS OUT IN LATEST TRUMP PURGE FOLLOWING SIGNAL CHAT LEAK
Rubio has continued to find favor with the president – so much so that he now holds an unprecedented four different roles within the administration. (Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein/File Photo)
Rubin, who served under both Democratic and Republican administrations, called the workload «not fair to the individual, not fair to the taxpayer, and not fair to President Trump, who needs strong, independent advice from a national security advisor.»
«The president has assembled an incredibly talented team that is fully committed to putting America and Americans first,» a senior State Department official said in response to an inquiry on Rubio’s many duties. «Secretary Rubio looks forward to serving as his interim national security advisor while ensuring the mission-critical work at the State Department continues uninterrupted.»
The national security advisor is traditionally the president’s closest aide on matters of war, peace and global crisis – physically located near the Oval Office and ready to brief the president at any moment. That proximity is hard to maintain when the same person is flying overseas for diplomatic missions.
«If he has to fly off to Pakistan to stop a nuclear war, then the president’s national security advisor, who usually is sitting right next to him, is not there.»
The reshuffling follows a broader shake-up inside the National Security Council, which lost Waltz, deputy advisor Alex Wong, and a number of staffers in early April. That thinning of personnel, several sources said, has only compounded the stakes.
«There are major national security issues in three different theaters. Europe, Middle East and Asia. One’s a hot war, one is a half-hot war, and it’s really getting tense in Asia,» said one former NSC official. «The president’s national security team needs to be filled out, and many people at State and DOD still need to be confirmed.»
TRUMP TO TAP NEW NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR IN 6 MONTHS; CALLS WALTZ MOVE ‘UPGRADE’
National security advisor «is one of the president’s closest relationships,» said Michael Allen, former special assistant to the president and senior director at NSC. «The national security advisor needs to be near the president all the time. Or at least able to brief the president all the time. So this is more duties for Rubio and they’re already short-handed.»
Still, Allen said the president’s personal comfort with his top national security aide may outweigh structural concerns – for now.
«If the president feels like he needs Rubio there, then this is a good solution,» Allen said. «At least for the short to medium term.»
Yet others say Rubio’s promotion might be more symbolic than operational, particularly in a White House where influence doesn’t always match job titles.
Michael Waltz was replaced as national security advisor by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. (Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein)
«I think it’s not, ‘Can Marco Rubio do four jobs?’ It’s, ‘Is he allowed to do his one job – which is Secretary of State?’» said Mark Feierstein, a former senior official at USAID. «Foreign counterparts may see him as pleasant in meetings, but they don’t necessarily believe he can deliver.»
Feierstein pointed to the dismantling of USAID, the rise of informal advisors like Stephen Miller, and the proliferation of special envoys like Steve Witkoff who bypass Rubio entirely. «You’ve got loads of people who report directly to Trump or others. So now it’s just chaos,» he said.
Even Rubio’s ideological positioning raises questions. A staunch foreign policy hawk during his time in the Senate, Rubio has in recent months presided over a foreign policy apparatus that includes outreach to Russia and dramatic State Department budget cuts – moves he may once have opposed.
«He’s decided to accommodate,» Feierstein said.
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But Rubio’s ability to meet voters where they are – and serve as the president’s happy warrior – may be the key to his longevity. Sparring with voices like Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and Vice President JD Vance on foreign policy would only cause further headaches for the president.
Tabler, for his part, remained optimistic. «Rubio is energetic, he knows the issues. He’s been working on foreign policy for years,» he said. «It’s a positive sign. But how long one person can do that job – and under what circumstances – is up to him.»
Marco Rubio,State Department,Politics,White House,Executive
Costos y beneficios
Regreso al punto de partida
El presidente Donald Trump, a la izquierda, junto al primer ministro israelí, Benjamin Netanyahu, en el Ala Oeste de la Casa Blanca, el 7 de abril pasado. Foto AP
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FIRST ON FOX: A Senate Republican wants to build a paper trail of former President Joe Biden’s autopen usage with the end goal of calling more hearings, passing legislation or amending the Constitution to best address «a mentally incapacitated president.»
Sen. Eric Schmitt, chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, is requesting special access under the Presidential Records Act to a trove of Biden-era documents and memos that chronicle his usage of an autopen.
In a letter to Secretary of State and Acting National Archivist Marco Rubio exclusively obtained by Fox News, Schmitt argued that creating a paper trail of key directives made toward the end of his presidency would help in «deciding which legislative remedy is most appropriate.»
TOP BIDEN AIDE ADMITS TO CONGRESS SHE DIRECTED AUTOPEN SIGNATURES WITHOUT KNOWING WHO GAVE FINAL APPROVAL
Neera Tanden, the former director of Biden’s Domestic Policy Council, testified for more than five hours Tuesday behind closed doors as part of House Republicans’ investigation into the former president’s mental acuity and his use of an automatic signature tool. (Getty Images)
«In particular, the increased use of the autopen to sign pardons, executive orders, and other documents as his Presidency progressed became a poignant symbol of President Biden’s mental decline and has created questions about the validity of those orders and pardons if President Biden did not direct the use of the autopen,» he wrote.
Schmitt requested access to a slew of documents, including memos about procedures for usage of the autopen, who was granted authority to use the autopen and emails from staff authorizing or requesting authorization for autopen usage.
SENATE HEARING ON WHO WAS ‘REALLY RUNNING’ BIDEN WHITE HOUSE KICKS OFF WEDNESDAY
Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., arrives for a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in Dirksen building Tuesday, June 17, 2025. (Getty Images)
He also requested access to all White House records after Nov. 1, 2024, that refer or relate to presidential pardons; that prioritize briefing books, memos and decision memos for pardons; and, eventually, access to all White House records after Nov. 1.
«With that information, the subcommittee will be better positioned to ensure that any potential proposed amendment will be sufficiently comprehensive so as to address any plausible contingency concerning a mentally incapacitated President,» Schmitt wrote.
«It would be challenging enough to amend the Constitution once — much less more than once if it then subsequently turned out not all contingencies around presidential incapacity were adequately considered.»
Schmitt’s letter comes after the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing on Biden’s alleged mental decline while in office and how the autopen could have played a central role in his inner circle’s alleged attempt to skirt the Constitution while continuing to carry out the duties of the office.
EX-WHITE HOUSE OFFICIALS TO TESTIFY ON WHO ‘REALLY RAN THE COUNTRY’ DURING BIDEN ERA
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters while flying aboard Air Force One en route from Calgary, Canada, to Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, late Monday, June 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
It also explicitly mentions the closed-door, transcribed hearing with Biden’s former director of the Domestic Policy Council, Neera Tanden, conducted by the House Oversight Committee this week.
A source told Fox News Digital that during the transcribed interview, which lasted five hours, Tanden testified she had «minimal interaction with President Biden» in her role as staff secretary and that to obtain autopen signatures, she would send decision memos to members of Biden’s inner circle.
She said during the interview she was not aware of what actions or approvals happened between the time the memo was sent out and returned with approval.
However, Tanden’s opening statement, shared with Fox News Digital by her lawyer, Michael Bromwich, said that, as staff secretary, she was responsible for «handling the flow of documents to and from the President» and that she was authorized to direct that autopen signatures be «affixed to certain categories of documents.»
«We had a system for authorizing the use of the autopen that I inherited from prior Administrations,» Tanden said. «We employed that system throughout my tenure as Staff Secretary.»
She was later named director of Biden’s Domestic Policy Council and said she was no longer responsible for the flow of documents and was no longer involved in decisions related to the autopen.
«I would note that much of the public discussion on the subject matter of this hearing has conflated two very different issues: first, the president’s age and second, whether President Bident was in command as President,» she said. «I had no experience in the White House that would provide any reason to question his command as President. He was in charge.»
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Schmitt requested that access to the swathe of memos and communications be granted no later than July 16.
«It is important for this subcommittee to have a clear picture of President Biden’s decision-making capacity at the end of his presidency and to know the extent to which members of his inner circle possibly usurped the President’s decision-making authority,» he wrote.
Fox News Digital’s Liz Elkind contributed to this report.
INTERNACIONAL
China confirmó el acuerdo sobre tierras raras y exportaciones con EEUU tras una nueva ronda de negociaciones en Londres
China y Estados Unidos alcanzaron un acuerdo definitivo sobre la exportación de bienes estratégicos, incluidas las tierras raras, tras concluir su última ronda de negociaciones en Londres. Así lo confirmó este viernes el Ministerio de Comercio chino mediante un comunicado oficial, en el que informó que ambos gobiernos “mantuvieron una comunicación cercana” tras el encuentro y que “con aprobación, ambas partes confirmaron los detalles del acuerdo”.
El documento aclara que, como parte del entendimiento, “China revisará y aprobará las solicitudes de exportación de bienes controlados que cumplan con las condiciones con arreglo a la ley”, en una clara referencia a las restricciones impuestas por Beijing a principios de abril sobre la venta de minerales críticos como las tierras raras. Estos recursos son fundamentales para industrias clave, como la defensa, la tecnología avanzada o el sector automotriz.
A cambio, Estados Unidos se compromete a eliminar “una serie de medidas restrictivas” adoptadas contra China, aunque el comunicado no detalla cuáles serán levantadas ni en qué plazos. Esta medida corresponde a lo pactado en la conversación del 5 de junio entre el presidente chino Xi Jinping y su homólogo estadounidense Donald Trump, que habilitó la reanudación de los contactos comerciales a nivel técnico.
“Se espera que EEUU y China encuentren un término medio y cumplan con los importantes consensos y requisitos alcanzados por los jefes de Estado”, señala el comunicado, refiriéndose al diálogo presidencial que facilitó la reactivación de las negociaciones formales en la capital británica.
La confirmación de este acuerdo por parte del gobierno chino se produce un día después de que Trump asegurara que “Estados Unidos firmó un acuerdo con China” en una declaración pública, aunque sin ofrecer precisiones. Según había adelantado el mandatario republicano a mediados de junio, el pacto incluye un arancel del 55 % impuesto por EEUU a productos chinos y un 10 % recíproco por parte de Beijing sobre bienes estadounidenses.
El acuerdo de Londres sella un marco de cooperación basado en el “consenso” alcanzado en la llamada presidencial, pero se mantenía pendiente de la ratificación final de ambos líderes. La firma llega tras una serie de tensiones renovadas, motivadas por acusaciones cruzadas de incumplimiento del pacto alcanzado en mayo en Ginebra, que dio origen a una tregua comercial de 90 días.
En el marco de ese entendimiento previo, China había reducido sus aranceles a productos estadounidenses del 125% al 10%, mientras que Washington rebajó los suyos del 145% al 30% sobre bienes chinos. Sin embargo, ambas partes se acusaron mutuamente de violar el acuerdo: Beijing denunció restricciones estadounidenses sobre la exportación de chips de inteligencia artificial y software de diseño de semiconductores, así como medidas migratorias contra estudiantes chinos. Washington, por su parte, criticó las limitaciones chinas sobre la exportación de tierras raras.
La disputa comercial entre ambos países se intensificó desde el regreso de Donald Trump a la Casa Blanca, con una renovada ofensiva arancelaria que reactivó la guerra comercial iniciada en 2018. Esta escalada ha derivado en una situación de embargo parcial, con efectos globales sobre cadenas de suministro y mercados estratégicos.
Con este nuevo acuerdo, China y Estados Unidos buscan desescalar las tensiones mediante compromisos mutuos en comercio y exportaciones clave. No obstante, aún queda por determinar cómo se implementarán las medidas anunciadas y si ambas partes cumplirán los plazos y condiciones fijados. Por ahora, el entendimiento representa un paso más en la volátil relación bilateral entre las dos principales economías del mundo.
(Con información de EFE y AFP)
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