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ICYMI: Rubio Joins The Aaron Renn Show

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) joined The Aaron Renn Show to discuss Rubio’s Labor Day report on working (and non-working) men. See below for highlights and listen to the full interview here. On protecting American jobs and interests: “We made a series of economic...

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ICYMI: Rubio Debates Coons on China, Environment

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Next Week: Rubio Staff Hosts Mobile Office Hours

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio’s (R-FL) office will host in-person and virtual Mobile Office Hours next week to assist constituents with federal casework issues in their respective local communities. These office hours offer constituents who do not live close to one of...

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Rubio Habla en Maxima 92.5 de Tampa Bay

El senador estadounidense Marco Rubio (R-FL) habló con Nio Encendio de Maxima 92.5 de Tampa Bay, sobre cómo la inflación ha impactado a las familias, sobre las olas de migración ilegal, sobre el juicio político de Biden vs. el de Trump, sobre el canje de prisioneros...

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Tallahassee Democrat: Rubio Sees Progress In Training Afghans To Protect Themselves

Feb 3, 2011 | News

U.S. troops are making significant progress training Afghan security forces to protect the country after U.S. soldiers leave, although problems remain, Sen. Marco Rubio said Monday from Afghanistan.

The Florida Republican, who also joined other senators in visiting Pakistan, declined to estimate when U.S. troops will leave Afghanistan.

The U.S. timetable calls for withdrawing in 2014, but Rubio said that will depend on how many local governments are prepared to take over after Americans leave.

“2011 is going to be a critical year for Afghan security forces,” Rubio said by phone from Kabul. “They are going to step up and play a bigger role. We are heartened by some of the early success that we’ve seen.”

But after watching U.S., British and Jordanian troops conduct a training exercise with Afghan troops, Rubio said much more needs to be accomplished. He noted that some trainees who will have to use a Humvee to sweep for mines had never driven any vehicle before joining the military.

“They are certainly a world away from where they were,” Rubio said. “There are real challenges. What we learned is that for a significant period of time, there was no serious training effort. It will take time to ramp up.”

Rubio visited Afghanistan and Pakistan with fellow Republican Sens. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Richard Burr of North Carolina, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania.

The group toured a market in Nawa and Camp Leatherneck in southern Afghanistan. The open-air market was evidence the local police force is doing better keeping the area secure.

“They’ve got a long ways to go economically and socially in the progress they have to make, but they have well-trained police officers on the ground,” Rubio said. “There is no way to overestimate how serious the challenge is. But we are headed in the right direction.”

Read the full story here.