Source: United States Senator for Florida Marco Rubio
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) joined Washington Watch with Tony Perkins to discuss the Chinese Communist Party’s overseas police force, the Providing for Life Act, and the issue of abortion. See below for highlights and watch the full interview here.
On revelations about the Chinese Communist Party’s overseas police force:
“It should tell us that [Beijing authorities] have no limits to what they’re willing to do to further their agenda around the world. They don’t respect boundaries and borders and other countries. They have agents operating inside the United States for the purpose of harassing and in many cases trying to lure Chinese Americans back to the mainland of China, where they can then obviously do whatever it is they need to do to punish them for speaking out against China, for having positions [the authorities don’t like].
“In some cases, by the way, they’re harassing people in the U.S., Chinese Americans, because of what their relatives are doing back inside of China, like we’ve seen with the [Uyghur] Muslims. It shows you that we’ve reached the stage now where they’re not afraid to operate inside of our country in this manner.”
On the boldness of Beijing’s actions inside U.S. territory:
“I don’t know of any precedent for it or of any other country that has ever done that. It says a lot about the perception of America to the rest of the world. [The Chinese] watch our newscasts. They watch our society and our culture imploding from within. They see we’re a country obsessed with things that aren’t true, like men pretending to be women and all these other things. We have a president who cannot put sentences together coherently, an America that is constantly beating up on itself and talking about how terrible we are.
“They see a great power in decline, and they think that they are now strong enough that they can challenge us in this way. It does speak to that, and it’s a reality, one that we’re going to have to do something about.”
On Beijing’s growing ties with Moscow:
“What’s happening is that the Chinese and the Russians both share a common goal. They want a world that’s no longer a world where America is the most powerful country. They want a multipolar world, in which there is a sphere of influence that’s at least equal, if not more powerful, to the U.S.-led free alliance. And they’ve partnered up in that regard. Whatever differences they may have had historically, they share this common goal of diminishing the U.S.’ standing in the world and increasing their own.
“You see them doing things like not just aligning with one another, but you also see them going around the world trying to undermine our existing long-term relationships. The Brazilians are now cozying up to them, the president of Brazil was [in China] recently. Other countries have gotten closer to China. You saw the deals they’ve cut in the Middle East with the Saudis and Iran. It is a direct attack on America’s influence in the world with the goal of creating an alternative and ultimately a replacement to American leadership.”
On theProviding for Life Act:
“I think we want to be pro-life at every stage. That means if someone is in difficult circumstances and learns now they’re pregnant, we don’t want that woman feeling like a child is a burden. Children should not be a burden. I think we have an obligation to protect and support women who decide to carry children to term.
“That includes not just [basic] assistance…, but things like child support, as an example. In many of these cases, you have fathers, who are responsible for that life, who decide that they’re going to take off. It can be exhausting for women to chase after the men who are responsible for this [in order to get them] to do their part in supporting that child.
“[Being pro-life at every stage] means helping women continue to go to school, making accommodations so they can continue their degrees in colleges and universities, and [ensuring they don’t] lose their financial aid because they have to take a semester off.
“It’s a host of things to be supportive of mothers who decide that they’re going to carry their children to term. Because what we’re trying to say here is irrespective of the circumstances by which that pregnancy came about, that is a human being. No human child, whether they’re born or still in the uterus, should be considered a liability, a burden, or something bad that’s happening. It’s a blessing.”
On the issue of abortion:
“The most important thing is to be genuine with where you stand on this issue. I understand this is a conflicting issue, and there’s public opinion that’s divided in the country over it. That’s why it’s important to point out that [all] the Supreme Court decided last year was that…elected officials at the state level could decide what the state laws are.
“I’ve been pretty clear with people. I believe human life is worthy of the protection of our laws. I don’t think that that protection goes away because you’re only nine days old or nine weeks old and in your mother’s womb. I think that’s a human life. That’s the only thing it can become. It is a living being that is growing and developing. And that deserves the protection of our [laws].
“Of all people, the most vulnerable is the unborn. They can’t hire a lawyer. They can’t vote. They don’t have a name yet. We should protect them. Our laws should protect them. I just speak frankly about it. I’ve been consistent on it my whole life. It’s a moral issue to me.”