Rubio takes shots at Clinton in foreign policy speech

Sen. Marco Rubio took direct shots at Hillary Clinton during a major policy address on Wednesday.

In laying out the pillars of his foreign policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, the Florida Republican referred to the ex-secretary of state both obliquely and by name, in a direct attack on her term as the nation’s top diplomat.

{mosads}“We simply cannot afford to elect as our next president one of the leading agents of this administration’s foreign policy – a leader from yesterday whose tenure as Secretary of State was ineffective at best and dangerously negligent at worst,” he said. “The stakes of tomorrow are too high to look to the failed leadership of yesterday.”

Rubio also took shots at Clinton for her decision not to visibly push fellow Democrats to embrace trade legislation in Congress, a day after a failed vote in the Senate nearly derailed one of the few top priorities shared by both congressional Republicans and the White House. 

“Those such as Secretary Clinton — who preach a message of international engagement and ‘smart power’ yet are not willing to stand up to special interests and support free trade — are either hypocritical or fail to grasp trade’s role as a tool of statecraft that can bolster our relationships with partners and create millions of American jobs,” Rubio said.

The remarks came as Senate lawmakers had managed to bridge their differences and set up a string of votes for Thursday. 

Rubio used Wednesday’s speech to lay out the broad strokes of his foreign policy agenda as the Republican presidential primary season enters high gear.

The hawkish senator focused on his opposition to what he characterized as President Obama’s “concessions” to foreign leaders and unwillingness to assert the nation’s exceptional nature.   

“America plays a part on the world stage for which there is no understudy,” he said. “When we fail to lead with strength and principle, no other country, friend or foe, is willing or able to take our place. And the result is chaos.”