Marco Rubio on Tuesday declined to offer Donald Trump a formal endorsement, but said he would support the GOP nominee in accordance with a pledge he made during the primary fight.
“I stand by the things that I said” during the campaign, the Florida senator told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “The Lead,” referring to his past criticisms of the presumptive nominee. “But I’m not going to sit here right now and become his chief critic over the next six months, because he deserves the opportunity to go forward and make his argument and try to win.”
But Rubio stopped short of offering Trump his clear backing.
“I signed a pledge, put my name on it, and said I would support the Republican nominee and that’s what I intend to do,” he said.
Rubio also dismissed the idea that supporters floated the prospect of his joining Trump’s ticket as his running mate last month, as sources close to the former primary rivals had told CNN.
“That would be impossible,” Rubio told Tapper, saying he doesn’t have advisers out in the field.
A Trump campaign source said a longtime Rubio adviser discussed the idea with party members at the Republican National Committee spring meeting in Hollywood, Florida, last month, pitching it as a possible way to attract Hispanic voters to Trump’s campaign.
Former Puerto Rico Gov. Luis Fortuno confirmed Rubio vice presidential conversations took place at the RNC meeting.
“This was RNC members, including myself, discussing different options,” Fortuno said. The conversations were based on “who could strengthen the ticket.”
Fortuno mentioned that he was not aware whether Rubio knew that his name was coming up as a potential running mate for Trump at the meetings. But the former governor noted there were approximately 160 members of the party engaged in these conversations.
Asked whether Trump and Rubio can overcome their differences, Fortuno was dubious. “Easier said than done, of course.”
On Monday, Rubio put out a statement saying he would not seek and does not want to be considered for the position.
“While Republican voters have chosen Donald Trump as the presumptive GOP nominee, my previously stated reservations about his campaign and concerns with many of his policies remain unchanged,” Rubio said Monday. “He will be best served by a running mate and by surrogates who fully embrace his campaign.”
But a Trump campaign source painted a different picture, telling CNN that Rubio’s team pitched the senator “hard,” saying “he would make a great VP and he wants it.”
When asked about Rubio’s statement, the Trump campaign source quipped, “plausible deniability,” noting people close to the senator had discussed the idea with party members.
A Republican who has advised Rubio for years confirmed the discussion took place, but said that “some things would have to change” for any formal alliance to emerge. “I think Marco has moved on,” he added.
In a Tuesday speech at the Hudson Institute in Washington, Rubio took a shot at Trump, who has cast doubt on America’s place in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, saying, “While it is true that there are certainly consequences and complexities presented by our engagement, I still think a world without our engagement is not a world we want to live in.”
Before he left the Republican primary race, Rubio called Trump a “con artist” whose business empire was built on inherited money and foreign labor.
But that final volley of attacks, for which he later apologized, failed to trip up Trump, who won Rubio’s home state of Florida by more than 18 points March 15.
Rubio dropped out that night. Returning to finish out his Senate term, Rubio has said he was “not going to be anybody’s vice president.”