In his final months in the Senate, Marco Rubio is urging Congress to back President Barack Obama’s call for almost $2 billion to battle Zika.
Rubio appeared on CNN on Tuesday to weigh in on the Zika funds, Puerto Rico’s debt problem and his goals for his last eight months in the Senate.
Rubio doubled down on his support of Obama’s proposal to spend $1.9 billion to fight Zika. He also jabbed fellow Republicans for opposing Obama on the matter.
“I care a lot about the Zika issue,” Rubio said. “I’m disturbed that members of my own party are standing in the way of fully funding a response to what’s an emerging public health crisis."
Rubio also called for more congressional response to Puerto Rico’s $70 billion in debt.
“I hope we can get some action on what’s happening in Puerto Rico,” Rubio said. “I’ll continue to get and be engaged in these national security issues that await us.”
At the end of last month, Rubio took to the Senate floor and said the Puerto Rican debt problem was impacting Florida.
“It’s going to cause some serious problems, and not just for the people of Puerto Rico – who let’s not forget are American citizens – but also for millions of others throughout the United States,” said Rubio in that speech. “I’ll focus on one example today of an American community that would be very negatively impacted, and that’s the city of Jacksonville in my home state of Florida.
“Jacksonville is a port city, so its residents, its businesses, and families depend in large part on trade,” Rubio continued. “And a recent article in the Florida Times-Union detailed exactly how close the relationship is between Puerto Rico and the shipping industry in Jacksonville.
“In 2009, as much as 75 percent of the goods coming in and out of Puerto Rico flowed through the ports at Jacksonville, which brought about a billion dollars’ worth of economic impact to the city. In just the past year, between October and March, JaxPort has seen a 32 percent increase in cargo tonnage from the island,” Rubio added.
On Tuesday, Rubio said he hoped to “finish strong here in the U.S. Senate” before his term ends.
“I love the work I’m doing and we’re going to be able to get some meaningful results before this is all said and done,” Rubio told CNN. “And then, you know, I’ll become a private citizen. I’m looking forward to that. I’ve always wanted to do things other than politics.
“You know, being in public service is what I do; it isn’t who I am. And I’ve enjoyed it,” Rubio added.
Rubio is not running for a second term in the Senate. He bowed out of the race for the Republican presidential nomination after losing his home state of Florida to Donald Trump back in March. In recent days, Rubio has said he won’t be Trump’s running mate.
