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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
La orden del ministro de Defensa
Un tanque del ejército de Israel, cerca de la frontera con Gaza, este miércoles. Foto: REUTERS Benjamin Netanyahu reúne a su gabinete de seguridad
Más muertos en un centro de distribución de comida
Camiones con ayuda humanitaria esperan para entrar a la Franja de Gaza por el cruce de Rafah, en la frontera con Egipto. Foto: AP INTERNACIONAL
‘Should have been prepared’: GOP senators fight for unified message on Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’
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Now that the Senate has fled Washington until after Labor Day, Republicans finally have a chance to sell President Donald Trump’s «big, beautiful bill» to their constituents, but some fear that Democrats already have an advantage in the messaging war.
Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., said that Republicans could «absolutely» do better in selling the colossal bill to combat Democrats’ «lies.»
«Well, we should have been prepared right off the bat and talked about, ‘No, we’re not talking about reforming Medicaid designed for [women, children and the elderly]. We’re looking at how we can save and preserve it and repair the damage done by the Obamacare addition to it,’» he told Fox News Digital. «We should have been talking about that, but we didn’t.»
SENATE GOP READY TO GO NUCLEAR AFTER SCHUMER’S ‘POLITICAL EXTORTION’ OF NOMINEES
President Donald Trump in the East Room of the White House on July 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Since Trump signed the bill into law, and throughout the entire process to get it to his desk, Democrats have largely been unified in their attacks against the bill, rebranding it as Republicans’ «big, ugly betrayal,» and targeting cuts to Medicaid, food assistance and a litany of other policies.
«It’s a very unpopular bill, so if I were them, I would probably go out and start trying to spin,» Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., told Fox News Digital.
Messaging against the bill has become routine in Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s floor speeches, where he often targets the cuts to Medicaid touted by the GOP as reforms to a broken system.
«The more Americans learn about the Republicans’ bill, the more they are realizing that Donald Trump and Republicans sold them a raw deal,» the New York Democrat said in a floor speech last week. «The Republicans’ ‘big, ugly betrayal’ is one of the most devastating bills for Americans’ healthcare that we’ve ever seen.»
TRUMP TELLS SCHUMER TO ‘GO TO HELL’ OVER SENATE NOMINEE DEAL FUNDING DEMANDS AFTER NEGOTIATIONS COLLAPSE
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., turns to an aide during a news conference where he commented on Elon Musk’s criticism of President Donald Trump’s spending and tax bill, at the Capitol in Washington on June 3, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Polling of the bill’s favorability among Americans is also working against Republicans. A Fox News poll conducted in June after the House GOP passed the legislation found that 59% of respondents opposed the bill.
Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., charged that «90% of the media is lying» about the bill, and countered that Republicans were actually increasing Medicaid spending faster than the rate of inflation «to the tune of $200 billion a year when it’s all said.»
«This is not the first message like this that we’ve struggled to get the truth through,» he told Fox News Digital.
«Republicans need to lean into it,» he continued. «We worked really hard, and we’re going to save and preserve Medicaid for those who need it the most. And we need to be sharing that.»
TAX CUTS, WORK REQUIREMENTS AND ASYLUM FEES: HERE’S WHAT’S INSIDE THE SENATE’S VERSION OF TRUMP’S BILL
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) arrives for a Senate Republican Caucus luncheon at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on April 2, 2025. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., contended that Republicans shouldn’t be shy about the work they put into the bill.
Hawley, shortly after the bill passed early last month, held an event in his home state pushing the bill. He, alongside former Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., lauded the bill’s inclusion of his Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, which renewed and expanded compensation funding for people exposed to nuclear waste.
When asked if Republicans had gotten off to a slow start on selling the bill, he said that too much time had been devoted to talking «about Medicaid, for my own taste.»
«It’s less of that,» he said. «Talk about the tax cuts in this bill for working people, you know. I mean, that’s what people want. I mean, I was asked when I went home. I was asked immediately by people, ‘When are those no taxes on tips? When does that start?’ So, I mean, people are tracking it, but they’re tracking what’s for them.»
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And Sen. Tommy Tubberville, R-Ala., charged that Democrats had «zero credibility» when it came to bashing the GOP for cuts and reforms.
«We got a lot of time,» he told Fox News Digital. «There will be a lot of water underneath the bridge. You won’t hear about the ‘big, beautiful bill’ here in another year because there’s going to be a couple more big, beautiful bills.»
politics,senate,donald trump
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NATO member scrambles jets after Russian drone attack near border, as Witkoff meets with Putin
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Romania was forced to scramble F-16 jets after Russia carried out a strike just half a mile from the NATO nation’s territory.
The country’s Ministry of National Defense (MApN) confirmed in a post on X that Russia carried out a drone attack near its border.
«On the night of August 5-6, the Russian forces launched a massive drone attack on the civilian infrastructure in the Ismail area, Ukraine, in the vicinity of the border with Romania,» Romania’s defense ministry wrote in a post on X.
«The radar systems of the MApN detected air targets in Ukrainian space, close to Tulcea County. At 1:10a.m., the population in the north of the county was warned via RO-Alert,» the ministry added. RO-Alert is Romania’s official emergency warning system.
Flames and plumes of smoke in Ukraine seen from Romania as Russia continues the war. (East2West news)
NATO JETS SCRAMBLED AMID RUSSIA’S LARGEST DRONE ATTACK ON UKRAINE
The defense ministry stated that two F-16 fighter jets took off «to monitor the national airspace,» but no «unauthorized intrusions» were detected. The ministry said it would carry out checks in the area and keep NATO allies updated in real time.
The drones reportedly struck oil and gas pipelines at the Orlivka plant in Odesa, Ukraine. Bright orange flames and plumes of smoke were visible across the Danube River.
Nearby Lithuania has also suffered from Russia’s war on Ukraine. Drones from Putin ally Belarus crossed into its territory, according to Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Kęstutis Budrys, who said he spoke with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
«These repeated incidents represent an alarming sign of the spillover of Russia’s aggression against [Ukraine] onto [NATO territory],» Budrys said of the incident. «We cannot compromise the security of our country and citizens, nor the integrity of NATO airspace. We must remain vigilant, as the threat is real and growing.»
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomes U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff during a meeting in Moscow, Russia Aug. 6, 2025. (Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via Reuters)
RUSSIA LAUNCHED ITS LARGEST AERIAL ATTACK OF THE WAR, UKRAINE SAYS
This attack could signal that Russian President Vladimir Putin is not moving closer to reaching a ceasefire deal, despite President Donald Trump’s Friday deadline. It’s unclear whether Special Envoy Steve Witkoff’s visit will push the Russian leader to move toward peace. However, if Moscow fails to make a deal by Friday, the U.S. will impose sanctions on Russia and potentially secondary tariffs.
Trump is reportedly putting pressure on Witkoff’s visit. One person close to the administration told the Financial Times that «if Witkoff comes back empty-handed, with absolutely nothing, Trump is going to go ballistic.»
President Donald Trump meets with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the NATO summit in The Hague, Netherlands, June 25, 2025. (REUTERS/Brian Snyder)
Witkoff reportedly spent about three hours at the Kremlin and, according to Russian investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev, the «dialogue will prevail,» Reuters reported.
TRUMP CONFIRMS NUCLEAR SUBMARINES «IN THE REGION» AHEAD OF WITKOFF’S RUSSIA VISIT
Before setting the deadline, Trump reportedly spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about securing a deal that would end the brutal war more than three years after Russia’s invasion. Zelenskyy later confirmed the conversation took place, saying that the «key focus» was ending the war.
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«Today, we coordinated our positions – Ukraine and the United States. We exchanged assessments of the situation: The Russians have intensified the brutality of their attacks. President Trump is fully informed about Russian strikes on Kyiv and other cities and communities,» Zelenskyy wrote on X.
East2West News contributed to this report.
russia,nato,ukraine,europe
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