Donald Trump will name his former nemesis Florida Sen. Marco Rubio as Secretary of State, sources tell DailyMail.com.
Rubio, who was elected to the Senate in 2010, is considered a foreign policy hawk and will lead Trump’s prowess on the world stage.
He currently serves as the top Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee and was considered to be on Trump’s shortlist for vice president earlier this year.
Rubio is the son of Cuban immigrants and has built his brand in Washington as being hard on Iran and China.
Trump is determined to end Russia’s war in Ukraine on Day One of the second term of his presidency.
And the Middle East, which has been plunged into chaos amid Israel’s conflict with Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran, will prove to be challenging as China continues its efforts to sabotage the U.S.
Rubio ran for president unsuccessfully in 2016 against Trump in a crowded field of GOP hopefuls.
And although the two sparred during the primary, Rubio stumped for Trump on the campaign trail in recent weeks.
The days of Trump calling Rubio ‘Little Marco’ and ridiculing him seem to be in the past.
Rubio said recently that Trump’s brash language could win him the presidency because candidates that use emotional words get more votes in times of crisis.
It proved to be true as Trump swept all seven swing states and won the popular vote for the first time in decades for the Republicans.
Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., praised Trump’s selection of Rubio.
‘Congratulations to our very own SECRETARY OF STATE — who will be the highest serving Hispanic in American History!’ he wrote on X.
Sen. Bill Hagerty, who was considered to be on the short list for the position, congratulated Rubio Monday evening.
‘Congratulations to my friend on being nominated for Secretary of State! I have no doubt that he is ready to implement President Trump’s America First, peace-through-strength agenda around the world.’
Rubio will follow Trump’s former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
The president-elect ruled out Pompeo returning to his next administration in a post on Truth Social over the weekend.
In a post on his Truth Social, Trump said that former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley and Pompeo would not be included in his second administration.
‘I will not be inviting former Ambassador Nikki Haley, or former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, to join the Trump Administration, which is currently in formation,’ Trump posted on social media.
Haley had been a brutally honest critic of the former president, even after his Madison Square Garden final rally in the run-up to the election, which she predicted was ‘gonna make women uncomfortable.’
Pompeo, who also served as director of the Central Intelligence Agency under Trump, was considered by The Wall Street Journal to be a possible defense secretary.
The Florida senator’s selection comes as Trump is working overtime to shape his future Cabinet from his headquarters in Palm Beach, Florida.
The president-elect named top immigration adviser Stephen Miller as his deputy chief of staff for policy earlier Monday as his administration zeros in on an unprecedented border crackdown.
Miller was the architect of Trump’s immigration plan during his first term and will be on the frontlines of the president-elect’s scheme to carry out the largest mass deportation in history.
The decision comes less than 24 hours after Trump picked former Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Tom Homan as his border czar.
He tapped Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., for the position of U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
And Rep. Michael Waltz of Florida will serve as his National Security Advisor.
Waltz, a former Army Green Beret, has established himself as one of the foremost China hawks in the House and was selected following Trump’s busy day of firming up his Cabinet.
Among the various China-related bills Waltz has co-sponsored are measures designed to lessen U.S. reliance on critical minerals mined in China. He’s also known as a NATO skeptic amid its work during the war in Ukraine.
Waltz, like other advisors to the White House, would not require Senate confirmation as heads of departments do. Trump has already signaled he will bypass the Senate through recess appointments.
Trump had varying luck with four National Security Advisors during his first term in office.
Michael Flynn, H.R. McMaster, Robert O’Brien and John Bolton all served in the position.
Rubio recently called for an investigation into Kamala Harris’ VP pick Tim Walz after romance with CCP official’s daughter
The Minnesota governor and Kamala Harris’ former running mate had the fling while he was living and teaching in China in 1989.
Walz became romantically involved with Jenna Wang, 59, who claims the VP hopeful showered her with gifts and seduced her at his poky staff accommodation in the Guangdong Province.
The pair were sexually active, traveled together and frequently went on dates, Wang told DailyMail.com, and they hid it all from her father, who was then a high-ranking CCP official.
After the close ties between Walz and Wang were uncovered, Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio demanded to know more.
He said Walz must be investigated over his relationship with Wang because ‘voters deserve to know.’