US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stepped in to deliver his first White House press briefing, drawing laughter from reporters as he made a light-hearted entrance. A clip shows Rubio briefly peeking through the door before walking into the briefing room, prompting chuckles from those present.
Smiling, he greeted the room with, “Okay. Hello!” as members of the press responded.
Rubio confirmed at the outset that he was temporarily taking over briefing duties.
‘Filling in’ during maternity leave
“I’ll be filling in for Karoline today, obviously… So I’ll have brief remarks here, and then we’ll get to your questions,” he said, referring to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Leavitt is currently on maternity leave ahead of the birth of her second child.
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Rubio began his remarks by addressing the ongoing situation involving Iran. “They are insane in the brain,” Rubio said of Iranian leaders, calling the country a “vicious regime” run by “radical” clerics.
“The world is a victim of Iran because they are terrorists… but the people of Iran are daily victims of the regime and the president has deep sympathy for what they are going through,” he added.
Rubio also criticised Iran’s position on the Strait of Hormuz. “This is what Iran is saying: we will shut down the Straits… no country in the world can go through, unless we allow you to go through… That’s crazy. Who would agree to that?” he said.
During the briefing, Rubio also talked about the details of “Project Freedom,” a plan announced by President Donald Trump. He said the initiative aims to escort ships and “rescue nearly 23,000 civilians from 87 different countries that are trapped inside the Gulf,” describing it as “a favor to the world.”
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“For more than two months now, these innocent sailors have been stranded,” Rubio said, adding that the operation is defensive in nature.
“This is not an offensive operation… there’s no shooting unless we’re shot at first. We’re not attacking them, but if they’re attacking us or they’re attacking a ship, you need to respond to that,” he added.
Another role added to Rubio’s portfolio
According to The Daily Beast, Rubio’s appearance adds to an expanding list of responsibilities. In addition to serving as Secretary of State, he is also acting national security adviser and has previously taken on other interim roles within the administration.
His temporary stint at the briefing podium comes as part of a broader arrangement, with multiple senior officials expected to rotate press duties during Leavitt’s absence.
