Senate confirms Marco Rubio as secretary of state

Marco will be great at this!

What a fine group of ladies and gentlemen in the bottom photo. Also a few former democrats in it.

Always liked the guy, Congrats!

He was dismissed as a RINO in the past.

Part of the swamp or something.

He was dismissed as a RINO in the past.

Absolutely...Trump and MAGA-world ridiculed him in 2016..."Little Marco" - and that was one of the less nasty things they called him...

Part of the swamp or something.

Par for the course - Tillertsen, Cohn, Mattis, Kelly, Epstein, Barr, et al....now Rubio...

Trump loves the swamp - or cesspool...

If I was Marco, I'd have a backup employment plan handy...

One of few nominees Tramp got right.

Hope to see a lot of the beautiful Tulsi. I loved it that time she destroyed Harris.

I would have liked to see that job go to Tulsi Gabbard, but at least the guy is better than the predecessor. Blinken, acting as minister of war, was a disaster for the country, and in fact the world.

Joe Rogan podcast watchers seem to all like Tulsi Gabbard.

Free-thinking or something.

JimizoToday  03:24 pm JST

Joe Rogan podcast watchers seem to all like Tulsi Gabbard.

Free-thinking or something.

Don't watch podcast. But do like beautiful women.

Rubio is a China hawk and doesn't think too highly of Putin's war. In the end, though, he will just be ignored by the Dullard in Chief. Everyone knows the state department is meaningless under 47.

 Blinken, acting as minister of war, was a disaster for the country, and in fact the world.

Absolutely, but that is the nature of United States of America, the essence of warmongering which the new guy will try to pursue in accordance with the US industrial military complex guidelines, like every SoS has done since President Eisenhower.

Let's not forget about his important message about the modus operandi of the Washington apparatus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gg-jvHynP9Y

While I am not a Trump supporter, we are in hyper-competitive times and both China and Russia are empire-building. Perhaps this is the time to re-open the United States to new member-states to ensure the future. Do we really want a future in which Canada joins the EU, Russia rules the Arctic and China runs Latin America? Because that is the way geopolitics is heading.

Dirk TToday 12:00 am JST

While I am not a Trump supporter, we are in hyper-competitive times and both China and Russia are empire-building. Perhaps this is the time to re-open the United States to new member-states to ensure the future. Do we really want a future in which Canada joins the EU, Russia rules the Arctic and China runs Latin America? Because that is the way geopolitics is heading.

The solution is to halt our adversaries expansion and not to engage in wars of aggression that will damage alliances we do have.

The solution is to halt our adversaries expansion and not to engage in wars of aggression that will damage alliances we do have.

Who has mentioned "wars of aggression?"

Dirk TToday 02:32 am JST

So you think other areas will voluntarily join the US? Maybe Puerto Rice and Washington DC. Trump should start there.

Another govt employee who needs massive fact checking to split the 80% lies from the 20% truth.

For a long time, the basic US policy has been to keep things as they are, fight against aggression, fight against authoritarian/dictatorships, and try to point out human rights issues around the world. Stability is the main goal for the US.

Then there is the Trump bluster policy. Make up crazy ideas. Publicly state them, make completely unreasonable demands, let the other people run around for 2-6 weeks, then claim "I won" when absolutely nothing actually changed, except lots of people did many "what if" international relation scenarios.

We've all had bosses who did stuff like this, not realizing what they were doing. That's Trump. He's a terrible person to work for and Rubio is about to learn that. He thinks this will be a step toward becoming President, since it will give him more international relations experience. OTOH, he will forever be tainted by the Trump-Stink that makes people completely unsuitable for any future job.

So you think other areas will voluntarily join the US? Maybe Puerto Rice and Washington DC. Trump should start there.

Greenland has only two seats in Denmark’s 179-member parliament. Which is more empowering, that or two seats in the U.S. Senate? A $57 billion buy-out package would make every Greenlander an instant millionaire.

Dirk TToday 03:24 am JST

So you think other areas will voluntarily join the US? Maybe Puerto Rice and Washington DC. Trump should start there.

Greenland has only two seats in Denmark’s 179-member parliament. Which is more empowering, that or two seats in the U.S. Senate? A $57 billion buy-out package would make every Greenlander an instant millionaire.

MAGAs can't even get Puerto Rico and Washington DC their rightful senators. Greenland isn't going to sell out for fake promises that can't be delivered by the 53 seat MAGA majority in the Senate. Canada even less so.

MAGAs can't even get Puerto Rico and Washington DC their rightful senators. Greenland isn't going to sell out for fake promises that can't be delivered by the 53 seat MAGA majority in the Senate. Canada even less so.

MAGA doesn't want senators from Puerto Rico or DC and you know why. I am throwing out scenarios. There is nothing bizarre about the USA acquiring Greenland through purchase in the context of its history.

Both Canada and Greenland will need serious help to stand up to Russia's and China’s aggressive ambitions.  Who will come to their aid?

Dirk TToday 04:11 am JST

MAGA doesn't want senators from Puerto Rico or DC and you know why.

The same reason applies to Greenland and Canada. These are not MAGA areas. Hense why they will not join the US because they will not be allowed their rightful representation.

I am throwing out scenarios. There is nothing bizarre about the USA acquiring Greenland through purchase in the context of its history.

A purchase has to be with the approval of the seller and Denmark says no a thousand times.

Both Canada and Greenland will need serious help to stand up to Russia's and China’s aggressive ambitions. Who will come to their aid?

Well clearly not the US as Trump isn't even standing up to Russia's aggression.

^^^ Trump is an elderly man and won't be with us much longer (thankfully). Don't you think that those who have influence in geopolitics are looking forward to a time when Don & Vlad are dead?

China is now the number one trade partner and source of investment in South America. The Chinese will be more than happy to take all the energy, minerals, and food they can. At the same time, climate change will devastate these vulnerable economies in the decades ahead, knowing massive numbers of climate migrants escaping that desperate situation will head to North America — not China.

The model modern USA imperialists seem to be contemplating is the "free association" model similar to what Palau has meaning that technically Greenland would be independent but the USA provides defense and other aid. "Free association" nations are forced to rubber-stamp anything in the UN that the USA wants. See Palau's voting record on Israel. No Senate seats are in the offing.

No Senate seats are in the offing.

You are thinking short-term only. There was a time when one could say there were no Senate seats in the offing for Alaska and Hawaii either.