United States Senator Marco Rubio is known for absenteeism. He happens to possess the lowest attendance out of all of the current Senators and also happens to possess the poorest voting record out of all of them. Despite that, he still managed to figure out a way to squeeze in the time to harm international relations recently. He recently obstructed Roberta Jacobson’s nomination. She’s President Obama’s choice to serve as the United States ambassador to neighboring nation Mexico.
Jacobson has received significant praise from the Los Angeles Times for her extensive knowledge regarding Latin American matters. The publication also noted that the diplomat is highly adept at handling trade discussions that involve traveling between the borders. President Obama nominated her half a year ago. The Senate responded to that nomination with significant bipartisan acceptance. Mexico has seemed happy with the nomination, as well. The country was even ready to host her visit to its capital city, Mexico City.
Jacobson’s nomination got the OK with a 12 to 7 vote within the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. This committee is guided by Republicans. Her nomination has also been submitted for a complete Senate vote, as well. Rubio, according to Senate guidelines, has the power to delay the vote, and that he did. He did so due to his strong resistance to President Obama’s current diplomatic dealings with Latin American nation Cuba. Jacobson was involved in these dealings due to her position as the United States’ Assistant Secretary of State.
The “problem” with Jacobson was that she was a prominent figure in Obama’s peaceful dealings with Cuba the year before. Rubio is upset with Obama and Jacobson because he believes that the pair have not seen to it that Cuba strengthen their human rights policies prior to regaining a relationship with the nation. Rubio also believes that the pair have ignored the Cuban government’s fondness for repressing disagreements from people. Rubio’s parents are immigrants from Cuba. He also has a background in the corporate realm.
Mexico is a significant export division for various states in the United States, California included. One million Americans also reside in the nation. The country has a border with the United States that spans 2,000 miles. The two countries are also joined together by various security policies that pertain to the trafficking of weapons, the training of policemen and extradition. Rubio’s seemingly insincere courage and ethics interfere with his ability to get a grasp of the United States’ economic dealings with Mexico. He seems to be taking advantage of his role as a Senator to keep Jacobson away from the position of ambassador.
Eric Olson serves as the Wilson Center in Washington’s Latin American program associate director. He states that interfering with Jacobson’s nomination communicates a negative idea to the United States’ partners in Mexico. He said that it does the same to the American citizens who have to rely on the United States’ peaceful interactions with Mexico to keep up their careers and ways of life. It’s no mystery why Jacobson has seemed unwilling to talk about the nomination procedure.
However, she has stated that many Americans have had great openings in life due to changes in Mexico’s economic structure. She said that these openings are particularly abundant in the telecommunications and energy fields. Rubio so far has had absolutely nothing to say in response to the Los Angeles Times feature on this topic. While the politician frequently discusses his Cuban background, many people are currently questioning his actions. The Senator will hopefully start bettering his attendance so he can make his ideas clearer to others.