Vice President Vance swore in Marco Rubio as the new U.S. Secretary of State on Monday morning during a ceremony held in the vice president’s ceremonial office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. The event began at approximately 9:20 a.m.
Vance opened the remarks by praising Rubio: “Marco is one of my favorite people in Washington.” He highlighted Rubio’s background, saying, “He grew up in very humble beginnings, but he has an incredibly deep love of our nation. He is a bipartisan solutions seeker, a guy who can actually get things done.”
Vance also described Rubio as a “conservative of great principle and great vision” and noted that Rubio “more than almost anybody that I’ve met in Washington … understands the distinctive priorities of President Trump.”
Vance then administered the oath of office, pointing out that it was his first time performing this duty. “Let’s do it,” he said before reading the oath. Rubio’s wife stood by his side and held the Bible used for the ceremony.
After taking the oath, Rubio delivered brief remarks, starting by thanking his wife and recognizing his four children, who were also in attendance. He acknowledged Sen. James Risch (R-Idaho), whom he called “one of my closest friends.”
Rubio said President Trump had given him “a very clear mandate” for his role at the State Department.
“Everything done by the State Department must make the country stronger, safer, or more prosperous. If it doesn’t do one of those three things, we will not do it,” Rubio said. “It’s a transformational moment.”
Rubio also spoke briefly in Spanish, though the translation was unavailable. He later joked, “I just said I saved a bunch of money by switching to Geico.”
He concluded his remarks by expressing gratitude to Trump. “I want to thank President Trump for his confidence,” Rubio said.
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