Rubio slams Biden over Venezuela, immigration in Doral campaign stop
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio on Friday slammed President Joe Biden’s talks with government officials of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro, called his reelection opponent a candidate “handpicked” by Democratic leaders Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer and said the odds of passing immigration reform are “impossible” under the Biden administration.
“It is impossible — and I say it with all sincerity — it is impossible to do absolutely anything about immigration while this emergency we have right now continues to exist,”
Rubio said during a campaign event with supporters at a Doral restaurant.
He cited the expected uptick in migrants showing up at the Southern U.S. border following the Biden administration’s latest move to end Title 42, a Trump-era COVID policy that allowed federal authorities to swiftly deport migrants.
“We’re talking about the fact that in a week, we’re going to have more people than those who came through the Mariel [boatlift],” he said.
Rubio spoke to Venezuelan supporters as he campaigns for reelection against U.S. Rep. Val Demings, an Orlando Democrat. He never mentioned her directly by name, but referenced Demings to say that, if she were elected to the Senate, her first vote would be to “vote for Schumer” to be the Senate leader. He also accused Demings of only
speaking about Venezuela after announcing her run for the Senate.
Christian Slater, communications director for Demings’ campaign, responded to the criticism by countering that Rubio “refuses to allow Venezuelans fleeing Maduro’s regime to build a stable life in the U.S.”
“Marco Rubio is just another weak politician launching desperate attacks because he turned his back on the Venezuelan community, putting his political bosses ahead of doing what’s right for Floridians,” the statement read.
Rubio focused much of his appearance at Il Forno Ristorante on attacking the Biden administration’s policies toward Latin America. He singled out National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and the National Security Council’s