Marco Rubio of Florida, who was elected to the Senate this week and considers himself a tea party member, is set to arrive in Israel on Sunday, Nov. 7.
Political pundits say that Rubio’s visit, so soon after the election win, is meant to show that the Congress in its current form will continue where it left off — at least where Israel is concerned.
According to FloridaIndependent.com, Rubio gave a speech on Israel in June to the Republican Jewish Coalition. He called on the United States to move its embassy to Jerusalem and talked “about the need for the United States to stand with Israel without equivocation or hesitation.”
In that speech, according to the website, he also criticized the Obama administration’s handling of the U.S.-Israel relationship and said that the U.S. should not push Israel to a settlement freeze before negotiations. Like America, he said, Israel is an “exceptional” nation.
Jennifer Rubin of Commentary reportedly called it the best speech on Israel “since George W. Bush went to the Knesset.” — ynetnews.com