The hearing involving U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the House Foreign Affairs Committee took place in an extremely tense atmosphere and was accompanied by sharp exchanges between the head of the State Department and Democratic congressmen.
For almost four hours, lawmakers questioned Rubio about foreign policy and the activities of the Donald Trump administration. While Republicans largely supported the Secretary of State, Democratic representatives subjected him to harsh criticism.
At one point, Rubio could not hide his irritation.
"Is this the Foreign Affairs Committee? Or is this a circus? What is this?" he stated.
Dispute over Trump
One of the sharpest episodes was the confrontation with Democratic Congressman Ted Lieu.
During his speech, the politician showed video recordings that, according to him, depicted Donald Trump falling asleep during official events. After that, Lieu accused Rubio of making false statements, reminding him of his words that he had never seen the president sleepy at working meetings.
"Mr. Secretary Rubio, instead of conducting government meetings in a North Korean style, where everyone walks around the room kissing Donald Trump’s behind, I ask you to be honest with the American people and with the White House," Lieu stated.
Question about the elections and "too big shoes"
Another verbal exchange occurred between Rubio and Congresswoman Sara Jacobs.
She asked the Secretary of State to answer who won the 2020 presidential election. However, Rubio refused to discuss domestic political issues, emphasizing that he came to the hearing to talk about foreign policy.
After that, Jacobs recalled a The Wall Street Journal publication, according to which Trump allegedly bought shoes for members of his administration, and ironically noted that one of those pairs of shoes turned out to be too big for Rubio.
"Mr. Secretary, it seems you have a problem acknowledging facts. You cannot say that the president lost the 2020 election, just as you do not want to admit that President Trump is losing this reckless war by his own choice, and just as you could not acknowledge that the shoes the president bought you were too big," she emphasized.
In response, Rubio stated that he did not understand what shoes she was talking about. However, he later added that the shoes given to him by the president, made by Florsheim, fit him "perfectly."
"Is this a hearing or a dunk tank?"
At the conclusion of the hearing, the Secretary of State engaged in a dispute with Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove.
According to Rubio, many lawmakers asked questions but did not allow him to answer them.
"This is not a hearing. Is this a dunk tank? What is this?" the head of the State Department ironically remarked.
In the opinion of the editorial team, the hearing demonstrated a high level of political tension in Washington and deep disagreements between the Trump administration and the Democrats in Congress. Despite the fact that the meeting was formally dedicated to foreign policy issues, a significant part of the discussion turned into a sharp political debate about the U.S. president and the activities of his team.
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