Donald Trump insulted not only Sen. John McCain, but every person in uniform who has been captured in battle by saying the from prisoner of war is
not a war hero, Sen. Marco Rubio says.
Rubio, one of Trump's 14 declared rivals in the GOP presidential race, appeared Sunday on CNN's
"State of the Union."
Trump said Saturday at the Iowa Family Leadership Summit that McCain, who recently
insulted Trump supporters, is "not a war hero. He’s a war hero because he was captured? I like people who weren’t captured."
"This makes the assumption that somehow if you are captured in battle, you are less worthy than someone who isn't?" Rubio countered. "It's not just absurd, it's offensive and ridiculous, and I think it's a disqualifier as a commander in chief."
Host Jake Tapper noted that some Democrats have said Republicans were slow to criticize Trump's slam on Mexicans who cross illegally into the United States after Trump said in his June 16 announcement that many of them are bringing crime into the country.
Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, said that he had criticized Trump back then.
"We have to remember this was a man who spent his life saying outrageous things," Rubio said of Trump. "People kind of said ignore it and move on and it will go away. This is what he does for a living."
Rubio also addressed the Iran nuclear deal announced last week. One of his presidential rivals, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, has said he would rip up the agreement his first day in office, while former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said he would have to consult his cabinet first.
Rubio said no consultation is necessary to re-impose the American portion of the sanctions against Iran.
President Barack Obama plans to lift America's sanctions with a security waiver, he said. But since the sanctions are actually law passed by Congress, they can simply be re-imposed by the next president reversing that waiver.
"In fact, I'm telling everyone if I'm elected president, we will not use the waiver to hold back sanctions, especially not as a result of this flawed deal that he is pursuing," Rubio said.
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