Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio stopped by Smokey Row Coffee Shop in Oskaloosa Saturday morning. Oskaloosa was one of multiple stops for Rubio, as he continued his campaign swing through Iowa.
Rubio warmed up the crowd with a few jokes.
“Thank you so much for being here today. I thank you to come here, I mean, I know how hard it is. I know every time we get these snow storms in Miami, it’s hard to get to where we’re going” said Rubio.
Rubio then went on to explain why he’s running.
“I’m running for president because I want this to continue to be the kind of country where parents can do for their children what my parents did for me, and quite frankly what your parents did for you” said Rubio.
Rubio spoke about how he believes America needs leaders that will reinvigorate the economy. The candidate said that America needs a tax code to allow the US to be competitive around the globe. Rubio also pointed out how tax codes should be pro-growth and pro-family, so families can more easily raise their children.
Rubio also spoke about how the cause of America’s debt.
“The causes of our debt is not foreign aid, I know a lot of people point to that. Foreign aid is less than 1{99cd714f394079a7f0ed2eb1518dd31342ff3ceb5b6c267c3ad8acd5b5a7d66b} of our budget,” said Rubio, “The causes of our debt are the way social security and Medicare are structured for future generations.”
Rubio touched on multiple subjects, including America’s energy sources, vocational studies, student loan debt, the military, and foreign policies.
After speaking for around 35 minutes, Rubio fielded questions from the full house at the coffee shop for about 25 minutes. He was asked questions about outsourcing jobs, education, and Veterans Affairs.
Rubio spoke on the problems of the H1B Visa program.
“Under this program, you are supposed to attest, sign a piece of paper that says ‘We tried to hire Americans to do this work, but we couldn’t find anybody, and so therefore we hired this foreigner,’ Rubio said. “But all you have to do is sign this piece of paper, you don’t have to prove it, you just have to attest to it, and that’s not being enforced. Even if you could prove that the company’s not telling the truth, no one is enforcing it.”
Rubio is currently sitting in the top 5 of the national polls, behind GOP front-runner Donald Trump.
The campaign is running toward the Iowa Caucuses, which kicks off the nomination process, on February 1st.
Story provided by George Henry
