Former President Barack Obama gave a speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention that paved the way to his becoming the 44th U.S. President.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio gave a speech on October 7, 2026, from the Acropolis in Athens, Greece that similarly should ease his path to becoming the 2028 GOP candidate and the 48th U.S. President.
Rubio’s speech was polished and uplifting in a Western Europe that is plagued lately by decay, illegal immigration, and pessimism. He argued eloquently that “The ideal of many ideologies in our time has, frankly, become a world of perfect safety, devoid of risk or failure, with neither the glory of victory nor the shame of defeat. Too often these days, we build downwards. We design our standards to ensure no one will lose; we preoccupy ourselves more with the comfort of the worst than the potential of the best. We hold the most exceptional things among us hostage to the average, the ordinary, the mediocre.[1]” Amen to this and kudos to his call for exceptionalism!
Many in today’s radio and TV networks, as well as political circles, assume that Vice President JD Vance will lead the 2028 GOP ticket. But the only provision in the U.S. Constitution for this automatic transfer of power is due to the death of a sitting president — per the 25th Amendment. Only six Vice Presidents in the entire history of our Constitutional Republic have been directly elected to the U.S. Presidency – not a record to brag about.
While members of the Trump administration say that there are no differences in the foreign policy vision of Rubio and Vance, these comments are meant only for the media. There are significant differences in their worldviews.
Rubio has focused his attention in reorienting the U.S. foreign policy to the Western Hemisphere – our own backyard where repeated caravans of illegal immigrants have entered our Southern Border in the past and drug cartels have trafficked fentanyl into the U.S. that caused thousands of overdose deaths. Because of his family history escaping communism, he favored the take-down of Venezuelan Nicolas Maduro and the restoration of freedom to Cuba after 67 years of oppressing the Cuban people – as well as posing a national security threat to the U.S. Regarding the military operations in Iran, Rubio believes that it is impossible to reach any diplomatic agreement with the Iranian mullahs because they’ve violated the terms of past agreements and murdered over 40,000 of their own people. He holds hawkish views on foreign policy, defends a strong American leadership abroad, and advocates for the promotion of democracy and human rights as key goals of American interests.
Vance is more of a pragmatist who distrusts abstracts concepts and ideas and believes in what’s good for the American people. He argues that family and homeland deserve a more prominent role than some American’s traditional core ideas. He is a strong opponent of forever wars and most likely holds isolationist views. When he was in the U.S. Senate, he was extremely critical of the U.S. involvement in the war in Ukraine. He believes that the best way to resolve the Iranian conflict is through diplomatic means. He led the U.S. delegation to Pakistan — that led to the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran on June 17, 2026 — and the Switzerland talks. On July 7, President Trump announced the ending of the MOU because of Iranian violations regarding multiple Iranian strikes on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. As an intellectual, he’s got the smarts but lacks much in experience.
Many Republicans place all their bets when it comes to advancing someone’s career on the meritocracy. So, let’s go there and examine the qualifications of Marco Rubio and JD Vance.
Rubio was elected to the Florida House of Representative in 2000 and became Speaker of the Florida House from 2006 to 2008. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2010 and ran for the Oval Office in 2015. He got elected to a second term in the U.S. Senate in 2016 and re-elected to a third term in 2022. In November 2024, President Trump nominated him to become his U.S. Secretary of State and was confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate. In May of 2025, he also became acting National Security Advisor, Acting Archivist of the U.S. and Acting USAID Administrator.
JD Vance was elected to the U.S. Senate from Ohio in 2022, and President Trump selected him as his Vice President in 2024.
According to an August 2026 national poll by Emerson College[2], Marco Rubio outperforms JD Vance in the most hypothetical 2028 presidential matchups against the top Democratic candidates. Similarly, according to a May 2026 Overton Insights poll[3], Rubio beats Vance by 6 points (42% to 36%) in a one-on-one primary matchup.
There is no question that when you compare the two, Rubio rises to the top of the heap. Ideally, the best 2028 GOP ticket would be of Rubio for President and Vance for Vice President.
The traditional motto of the United States is “E pluribus unum” or “Out of many, one.” There has never been a Hispanic American who has occupied the Oval Office in its history.
I can’t think of a better way to symbolize to the 71 million (21%) Hispanic Americans that they are part of the Republican tent and fabric of this country than by selecting Marco Rubio – a superbly qualified Hispanic – to lead the 2028 GOP ticket and elect him as the 48th President of this great Nation.
[1] https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesman/2026/10/secretary-of-state-marco-rubio-remarks/
[2] https://emersoncollegepolling.com/august-2026-national-poll/
[3] https://overtoninsights.com/poll/overton-insights-poll-may-2026/
