More of This: Secretary Rubio Schools Van Hollen, Uses Senate Rules Against Him

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is no longer in the U.S. Senate, but that doesn’t mean he’s forgotten how the game is played. Earlier today on Capitol Hill, Secretary Rubio was testifying in front of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Rubio made one thing very clear—he hasn’t lost a step when it comes to Senate procedure and his ability to embarrass colleagues on the other side of the aisle. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) found that out the hard way.

Van Hollen, fresh off his trip to El Salvador to push for the release of an illegal alien MS-13 member, was not ready for his debut against Secretary Rubio. During the exchange, Van Hollen states his regret in voting to confirm Rubio to his current position:

VAN HOLLEN: I have to tell you directly and personally that I regret voting for you for Secretary of State. I yield back.
RUBIO: Well first of all, your regret for voting for me confirms I'm doing a good job.
VAN HOLLEN: Well, that's just a flippant statement, Mr. Secretary.

Rubio’s response, stating essentially that he doesn’t care about Van Hollen’s regretful vote and the mention that it also proves he’s doing a good job, really got under Van Hollen’s skin. The problem for Van Hollen? He had already yielded the floor and forfeited his chance to speak in response to Rubio. This is where things get interesting. Rubio is allowed to respond and continues to use Senate rules, which he knows very well, against Van Hollen.

RUBIO: May I respond, Mr. Chairman?
CHAIR: You may.
RUBIO: I can’t respond to everything he said because much of these are untrue, but I’ll go through a few. First of all, I’m actually very proud of the work we’ve done with USAID. For example, I don’t regret cutting $10 million for male circumcisions in Mozambique. I don’t know how that makes us stronger and more prosperous as a nation. I don’t regret Psycho-Social Support Services for USAID—

Van Hollen works to cut Rubio off and is rebuked by the Chair. Rubio continues.

RUBIO: I can go on, I mean, there’s other things here. We spent $227,000 for Big Cats YouTube channel from USAID. We spent $14 million for social cohesion in Mali, whatever the hell that means. So I can go on and on, I’ve got the list here, and there's more — I didn't even bring the whole list.

This is a master class by Secretary Rubio here. Not only does he shut down Senator Van Hollen, he completely embarrasses him. Even further, he then gets to highlight the insane USAID spending uninterrupted while Van Hollen can only listen in disbelief. While it’s normal for senators to disagree with cabinet secretaries on the opposing side of the aisle, it’s nice to see a former Republican senator who understands Senate procedure embarrass a grandstander like Senator Van Hollen.

Not only did this not work out the way Van Hollen had hoped, it has actually had the opposite effect. Now, it’s just another embarrassing video of him on the internet. In a time when he could use some good press, after his El Salvador debacle, Senator Van Hollen has stepped in it again.

These are the days we have waited for. This is exactly what we voted for. It’s a breath of fresh air to see confident republicans working on behalf of the American people to get President Trump’s agenda accomplished. If some Democrats get embarrassed along the way, so be it.

Editor's Note: The Democrat Party has never been less popular as voters reject its globalist agenda.

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