Rubio: ‘We Are Lacking in Every Component’ of National Security

KILMEADE: “And joining us live, that very man, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida joining us from Milwaukee. Senator, you’ve had three strong debates. Do you think this was your best?”

RUBIO: “Well, I don’t know. I mean I never view them that way. It’s not an athletic competition or a cage match. It’s an opportunity to talk to the American people. In that instance it’s about national security. That’s the most important thing the federal government does. That’s the reason why we have a federal government. We don’t have a federal government to do K–12 education and common core. We have a federal government whose primary obligation is to keep us safe. And that means secure our borders, and build up our military so we can confront and defeat any adversary.”

KILMEADE: “So, where are you going to get the trillion dollars from that Rand Paul says we shouldn’t be spending?”

RUBIO: “First of all, before we fund anything, the federal government should be fully-funding national security. It is the most important obligation of the federal government. Without it, none of these other things matter. You can’t grow your economy if you’re under duress. You can’t grow your economy if you’re sucked into wars because of weakness. You can’t grow your economy if your people aren’t safe, because they’re coming under terrorist attack. So before we fund anything, we should fully-fund defense, and then with the money that’s left over, we can decide what the proper role of the federal government is. But the one thing only the federal government can do, and the reason why we have a federal government, is to provide for the national security and the common defense.”

KILMEADE: “Where are we lacking? We lacking in the navy, We lacking with foot soldiers in the army, Do we need more marines? Where do you see it?”

RUBIO: “In everything. Let me tell you what’s happening under President Barack Obama. We are on pace to have the oldest and the smallest air force and navy in a generation. We are reducing 40,000 positions in our army. The Chinese are practicing how to shoot down our satellites, we have no answer for it. They hacked into our computers through cyber warfare we have no answer for it. We are lacking in every component and we’re not doing research and development to confront the challenges that are around the corner that lie ahead in the years to come.”