There are backhanded compliments and backhanded endorsements, like the one Marco Rubio delivered for Donald Trump's flailing presidential campaign Tuesday, Politico reports.
Rubio still backs Trump for president, but that doesn't mean he agrees with him, save for his disavowing Hillary Clinton's candidacy.
"I ran against Donald Trump. And while I respect that voters chose him as the GOP nominee, I have never hesitated to oppose his policies I disagree with," Rubio wrote in a statement. "And I have consistently rejected his offensive rhetoric and behavior.
"I disagree with him on many things, but I disagree with his opponent on virtually everything. I wish we had better choices for President. But I do not want Hillary Clinton to be our next President. And therefore my position has not changed."
Rubio's re-affirmation of his shaky Trump endorsement came Tuesday after a challenging tweet from his Florida Senate opponent, Patrick Murphy. Rubio had tweeted disgust of Trump's hot-mic comments to NBC's Billy Bush last Friday, which prompted his Democratic opponent for Florida's Senate seat to tweet:
Rubio does not intend to campaign for Trump in Florida the remainder of his election cycle, according to Politico.
"Marco is 100 percent focused on his reelection. Period," the insider told Politico.
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