Rubio: A Trump nomination means 'the end of the modern conservative movement'
Marco Rubio brushed off Ted Cruz's call for candidates who have yet to win a state to "prayerfully consider" dropping out of the race, telling NBC News he understands "Ted's spin on this," but he's not going anywhere.
"Once we are in the winner-take-all phase, the map gets a lot friendlier for us," Rubio said. "If a couple people weren't on the ballot, we would have won Virginia tonight, and a couple other states as well." Rubio wondered aloud how Donald Trump could get to 1,237 delegates, and said the party will never "call for us to get behind him. They know the nomination of Donald Trump means the end of the modern conservative movement and the end of the modern Republican Party in a very devastating way."
After calling Trump a "con artist" and saying a vote for him now is a "vote for Hillary Clinton in November," Rubio turned his attention to Cruz. "Ted was supposed to clean up tonight," Rubio said. "His entire campaign was built on…sweeping the Southern states, and tonight was the night he was going to claim victory. That didn't happen." The map "only gets worse" for Cruz moving forward, Rubio continued, and he'll never be able to "unify the Republican Party, and he certainly can't grow it."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
OpenAI announces ChatGPT Gov for government use
Speed Read The artificial intelligence research company has launched a new version of its chatbot tailored for the US government
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Caroline Kennedy urges Senate to reject RFK Jr.
Speed Read Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s cousin said he should not become President Donald Trump's health secretary, calling his medical views 'dangerous'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
GOP senator reneged on voting against Hegseth
Speed Read North Carolina senator Thom Tillis provided the deciding vote to confirm Pete Hegseth as defense secretary
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump sparks chaos with spending, aid freezes
Speed Read A sudden freeze on federal grants and loans by President Donald Trump's administration has created widespread confusion
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump feuds with Colombia on deportee flights
Speed Read Colombia has backed off from a trade war with the U.S., reaching an agreement on accepting deported migrants following tariff threats from President Donald Trump
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump proposal to 'clean out' Gaza gets cool reception
Speed Read U.S. allies Jordan and Egypt rejected President Donald Trump's suggestion that Palestinians leave Gaza
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump orders release of JFK, RFK, MLK Jr. files
Speed Read The president signed an executive order to release classified documents related to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Judge pauses Trump's birthright citizenship ban
Speed Read A federal judge in Seattle temporarily blocked President Donald Trump's 'unconstitutional' executive order to overturn birthright citizenship
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published