Rubio: America Is Not In Decline, It’s In An Obama Presidency

04.15.2015 | Surge Wire |

Asked whether he’s confident the U.S. will be able to continue to compete with China and maintain a strong relationship with its Asian-Pacific allies, Republican senator and presidential candidate Marco Rubio said Wednesday the U.S. is only suffering temporarily from a bad president.

“Do you have a confidence about the U.S. presence in Asia?” A reporter with a Taiwan news outlet asked Rubio, pointing to growing concerns in Taiwan that a declining U.S. will not be able to maintain stability in the region in the face of a rising China with a growing military muscle.

“America is not in decline, we just happen to have a period of time where we have a bad president,” Rubio replied. “But we’re going to overcome that.” (RELATED: Congress Raises Alarm As Obama Ignores Chinese Expansion In South China Sea)

“We have a strong interest in increasing trade commerce and interaction with out allies in Japan and in South Korea and the Philippines and in Taiwan,” he added. “And part of that is America has to have a strong and robust economy.”

“So my message to our allies in Asia is: The american people are ready to enter a New American Century. They just need leadership in Washington that gives them the chance to do it. And if they do, America will be stronger than it’s ever been, and our alliance with Asia and around the world will be firmer and more stable than they’ve ever been.”

He made the remarks in a question and answer session at The Heritage Foundation, where he and Republican Sen. Mike Lee talked about their tax reform plan. (RELATED: Rubio, Lee Outline Aggressive Tax Reform Plan)

Rubio officially announced his candidacy for president Tuesday.

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