Rubio: Attacks On Credit Cards ‘Discredited,’ Trump Changed Immigration Position To Run for President

Republican presidential candidate Florida Senator Marco Rubio stated that the attacks on his handling of credit cards are “discredited” and that his only debt is a mortgage on his primary residence and “it would be good for this country to have a president that knows what it feels like to have your house lose its value” because of the federal government while accusing fellow Republican candidate Donald Trump of being “a supporter of amnesty, and of the DREAM Act, and he changed his position on those issues just to run for president” on Wednesday’s “America’s Newsroom” on the Fox News Channel.

Rubio said, “I own one home, it’s the only debt I have in the world is the mortgage on my home. And actually, I think it would be good for this country to have a president that knows what it feels like to have your house lose its value because of irresponsible and reckless behavior by Fannie and Freddie, by the Federal Reserve. I think it would be good for this country to have a president that knows what it’s like to owe money and student loans like I once did. Someone who grew up paycheck to paycheck. That’s why I look forward to that debate with Hillary Clinton. How is she going to say that I don’t understand the plight of people that are struggling in America, when I myself, through my parents and our upbringing lived it? So, I’m proud of where I come from, my parents weren’t rich people, but I’m proud of what they left us with, which is the chance at a better life, and we’ve been able to achieve that, and so I look forward to that debate, especially against the Democrats.”

He added that criticism of his credit cards is “a discredited attack. I mean that, for example, a Democratic activist, when I ran against Charlie Crist, they filed a complaint, and they — the ethics committee looked at it and dismissed it. It was a charge card with American Express, and I was secured under my personal credit, and — in conjunction with the Republican Party, and every month I would go through the bills, and if there was something on there that was personal, I paid it, directly to American Express. And if it was the party’s, the party paid for it. And of course, the media when they initially reported, kind of convoluted all of this, and so it creates these stories, but it’s been largely discredited. And we’ll address it. We have no problem addressing it. I’m running for president. But I think this campaign has to be about the future of America, and about what kind of country we’re going to be in the 21st century, and that’s what I’m going to continue to focus my attention on.”

Rubio also stated that Trump’s bankruptcies have been “touched on,” but “that’s important for voters to continue to focus in on, and I think — I hope he’ll continue to be asked about it, because it’s legitimate. I can tell you for me, it’s true, I didn’t inherit any money. I mean, my parents weren’t able to pay for me to go to school, so I had student loans that I had to pay off. We owned a home in Miami, and like anyone who bought a home in Miami in 2005, because of the housing meltdown, it lost value, it’s recovered some today. The only debt I have in the world is a mortgage on my primary residence.”

When asked about the polls in Florida, Rubio and fellow candidate former Florida Governor Jeb Bush trailing Donald Trump, Rubio answered, “Donald was a supporter of amnesty, and of the DREAM Act, and he changed his position on those issues just to run for president, but beyond it, I would say I don’t think that’s the issue [immigration] that’s driving it. You know, Florida voters are following the national trends, and they’re watching the news cycle. I’m confident that as we get closer to a real election in Florida, those numbers are going to change, and they will.”

He continued, “But I would just say on immigration, it is a very legitimate issue we — we’re not going to be able to pass a comprehensive approach to the immigration problem. The votes don’t exist. We tried that two years ago, the votes aren’t there, even less now, after two unconstitutional executive orders, after a migratory process on the border. The only way to move forward on immigration begins by enforcing our immigration laws. Part of that is a wall on key sectors of the border, but we also need E-Verify, we also need an entry-exit tracking system, and until you do that, you’re not going to be able to do anything else on immigration.”

Rubio was also asked about Jeb’s criticism of him in the last debate. He responded, “I control my campaign, and my campaign isn’t going to be about attacking any other Republicans. My campaign is going to be about what I’ll do if given the chance to be president. So, I’m going to continue to focus on that, because that’s what the people at home deserve.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett

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