Marco Rubio told pro-Palestine protesters that he did not want a ceasefire in Gaza and that Israel should “destroy every element of Hamas they can get their hands on” in a video that has reemerged since he became Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of state.
The Florida senator, 53, is reportedly set to be appointed by Mr Trump, eight years after the pair sparred on the campaign trail, earning him the nickname “Little Marco”.
His appointment is likely to mark a significant change of policy from the Biden administration, which has unsuccessfully pursued a ceasefire-for-hostages deal between Israel and Hamas.
In a video circulated online after Mr Rubio’s new role was reported, he told pro-Palestinian demonstrators that he did not want a ceasefire, and that Hamas was “100 per cent to blame” for the deaths of civilians in Gaza.
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After being ambushed with demands for him to call for a ceasefire in December last year, he replied: “No, I will not. On the contrary … I want [Israel] to destroy every element of Hamas they can get their hands on.
“These people are vicious animals who did horrifying crimes.” To the activists, he added: “I hope you guys post that, because that’s my position.”
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Mr Rubio has since said he would only accept a ceasefire if Hamas surrendered and released all hostages.
News of his expected appointment came as Mr Trump’s legal team successfully delayed a decision on his sentencing in the New York hush money case, which he hopes to have thrown out.
He has not yet appointed an attorney general, who would oversee federal cases and may look to prosecute some of his enemies.
Mr Rubio’s expected appointment suggests Mr Trump intends to follow through on his plan to give Israel more diplomatic space to wage war in Gaza next year. In October, the president-elect told Mr Netanyahu: “Do what you have to do.”
Mr Rubio is also critical of China and Iran, having run on a hawkish foreign policy platform during the 2016 Republican primaries against Mr Trump.
He has since reigned in his view that the US military should participate in foreign wars, and fallen in line with Mr Trump’s “America First” agenda.
On Tuesday, Mr Trump confirmed that he would appoint Michael Waltz, a noted China hawk in the House of Representatives, as his foreign policy adviser.
Mr Waltz is a former Green Beret, who is married to a former homeland security adviser to Mr Trump.
He has been critical of plans for the UK to hand over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, fearing that China would “fill the vacuum” left by Britain and endanger the joint US-UK Diego Garcia air base.
The deal has since been finalised by Sir Keir Starmer’s government and is expected to be signed in the coming weeks.
Mr Rubio and Mr Waltz will become two of the most important diplomats in the world when Mr Trump takes office on Jan 20, and they are likely to steer his administration towards a tough line on China and a reduction in US military aid for Ukraine.
On Nov 6, Mr Rubio described Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine as a “stalemate war” that “needs to be brought to a conclusion”. Mr Trump is thought to be preparing for territorial negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow, and has warned Putin not to “escalate” the war further.
Mr Trump’s first appointments also suggest he will double down on his campaign promises to deport one million illegal migrants soon after taking office in January.
He has nominated Kristi Noem, the governor of South Dakota who has fiercely criticised migration policy under the Biden administration, as his secretary for the Department for Homeland Security.
Ms Noem was thought to be in contention to be Mr Trump’s running mate, but fell out of his favour after she published a memoir earlier this year revealing that she shot dead her 14-month old dog because it was not suited to hunting pheasants.
After the story emerged, the president-elect reportedly told aides he was concerned about Ms Noem’s grasp of “public relations”. The Department of Homeland Security employs the most dogs of any US government department, with a headcount of almost 3,000 as of December 2022.
Tom Homan, a former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement during the first Trump administration, has been appointed as “border czar” and will be given responsibility for reducing illegal migration.
On Tuesday, Mr Trump announced that Mike Huckabee, a baptist minister and former governor of Arkansas, would be the next ambassador to Israel.
“He loves Israel, and the people of Israel, and likewise, the people of Israel love him. Mike will work tirelessly to bring about Peace in the Middle East!”