Marco Rubio's 2016 comments on Donald Trump resurface as he slams man who is now his boss

As we continue to watch US president Donald Trump’s chaotic second term play out in front of us, social media users have been rediscovering old clips of his closest associates being highly critical of the Republican politician they now work for - such as vice president JD Vance, and now, secretary of state Marco Rubio.

Back in 2016, as the US prepared for that year’s presidential election, Rubio told the New York Times that the rhetoric of Trump reminded him of “third-world strongmen”.

When CNN asked him to explain this comparison, Rubio said: “Here’s what happens in many countries around the world: you have a leader that emerges, and basically says, ‘don’t put your faith in yourselves, don’t put your faith in society, put your faith in me, I’m a strong leader, and I’m going to make things better all by myself’.

“We have a president. The president works for the people, not the people for the president, and if you listen to the way he describes himself and what he’s going to do - he’s going to single-handedly do this and do that, without regard for whether it’s legal or not.

“I can tell you this: whatever happens in this election, for years to come, there are many people on the right, in the media, and voters at large, that are going to be having to explain and justify how they fell into this trap of supporting Donald Trump, because this is not going to end well, one way or the other.”

You can say that again, Marco - there was an insurrection, for goodness’ sake.

The clip has since resurfaced online, and Twitter/X users have described the comments - and how they compare to his support of Trump today - as “extraordinary”:

Another said it was “embarrassing” for Rubio:

Others have said the comments are particularly “prescient”:

And it's not the only Rubio clip to resurface in recent days, as back in 2014 he was filmed stressing the need to defend Ukraine in a speech, which has now aged terribly following Trump's decisions to withdraw military support and intelligence sharing.

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