- The Washington Times - Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a likely 2016 GOP presidential contender, said Monday that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is responsible for a number of the the nation’s foreign policy woes.

Speaking at a “Faith and Freedom” barbecue fundraiser Monday for Rep. Jeff Duncan in South Carolina, Mr. Rubio said, according to CNN, that Mrs. Clinton, who is generally considered an early frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination, “is responsible for at least four of the six yeas of this disastrous foreign policy.”

“She was the secretary of state, the chief foreign policy officer of the Obama administration at a time when it is now universally accepted that his policy is a fiasco,” he said.

Mr. Rubio has called for a more robust approach to foreign policy as he looks to lay the groundwork for a presidential run.

South Carolina is the third stop on the nomination calendar. In 2012, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich won the state’s primary.

Mr. Rubio came under fire from his right flank last year after he became the face of an immigration bill that passed the Senate, but was not taken up in the House, thanks to conservative opposition.

The proposal would have quickly legalized most illegal immigrants in exchange for bolstering border security. It also included a path to citizenship.

CNN reported that Mr. Rubio’s speech was interrupted by “dreamers,” the young adults who were brought illegally to the U.S. as minors, who criticized him for distancing himself from the immigration bill after coming under fire from conservatives that play such a big role in the GOP presidential nomination race.

“We are a sovereign country that deserves to have immigration laws,” Mr. Rubio said, according to CNN. “You’re doing harm to your own cause because you don’t have a right to illegally immigrate to the United States.”

The crowd, CNN reported, cheered.

• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.

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