Rubio defends Senate voting record
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) defended his widely-criticized Senate attendance record on Thursday, suggesting that most congressional vote outcomes are predetermined.
“[A] large number of the votes that are now taken in Congress in Washington, D.C., are precooked,” he said in an interview with Fox Business’s “Cavuto Coast to Coast.” “The votes are already counted. Oftentimes the votes are just for show in order to make a statement.”
{mosads}Rubio missed more roll call votes than any other senator last year. His voting record has come under constant fire over the past year, most recently in an escalating rhetorical battle with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
Rubio, however, fired back Thursday, saying that “Chris Christie is missing out of New Jersey most of the time. That’s why his numbers there are so terrible.”
The comments come after Christie — who is competing with Rubio for the Republican presidential nomination — said Wednesday that the Florida Republican “has never had a tough race in his life” and would crumble against Hillary Clinton, the Democratic front-runner.
An outside group backing Rubio launched an ad against the governor this week, suggesting that he’s embraced Obama administration policies and “could well be Obama’s favorite Republican governor.”
Both Rubio and Christie have drawn criticism from their presidential rivals, namely Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), who say they have both frequently been absent from their day jobs. Rubio’s office, however, has defended his voting record, saying that he shows up when he believes his vote could be decisive.
He added Thursday that the ad against Christie is “100 percent accurate” and that he’s running for president “so that the votes we take in the Senate matter again.”
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