US President-elect Donald Trump has named Marco Rubio as Secretary of State in his upcoming administration.
Rubio, 53, is known as a China hawk, outspoken critic of Cuba’s Communist government and strong backer of Israel.
The U.S Senator is expected to push for a harder line on relations with China, Cuba and Iran.
On Capitol Hill, Rubio is the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
He has pushed for taking a harder line against China and has targeted social media app TikTok because its parent company is Chinese.
He and other lawmakers contend that Beijing could demand access to the data of users whenever it wants.
Trump made the announcement while flying back back to Florida from Washington after meeting with President Joe Biden.
The selection is the culmination of a long, complicated history between the two men.
Rubio was first elected to the Senate in 2010. He quickly gained a reputation as someone who could embody a more diverse, welcoming Republican Party. He was a key member of a group that worked on a 2013 immigration bill that included a path to citizenship for millions of people in the country illegally.
Trump also formally announced Stephen Miller, an immigration hard-liner, will be deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security adviser.
Blair was the political director for Trump’s campaign and, once Trump became the presumptive GOP nominee, the political director for the Republican National Committee.
He previously worked on Trump’s 2020 campaign in Florida and was a top aide for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
