Rubio denies plans to leave Trump administration

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday rejected media reports that he is considering leaving President Donald Trump's administration. The reports emerged after Republicans suffered losses in Tuesday's midterm elections to the US Congress. Rubio also serves as Trump's national security adviser and is widely seen as a potential successor to Trump in the 2028 presidential race.

In an interview with The New York Times, Rubio said it had "always been my plan" to work for Trump until the end of his term. Asked about his political future, he declined to answer, saying he would "literally not talk about 2028 anymore." On the reports of a possible exit, he said he did not know where such stories came from.

What was reported and how the State Department responded

Earlier on Thursday, Bloomberg News reported that Rubio was weighing whether to step down. According to that report, he had spoken with White House officials about leaving and was asked to stay.

The State Department pushed back sharply. Dylan Johnson, Assistant Secretary of State for global public affairs, called the Bloomberg article "totally made up." He also described a report by The Independent, which said Rubio was planning to seek the 2028 Republican presidential nomination, as "completely baseless fake news."

Background

Just days before the midterms, Rubio made an unusual appearance alongside Trump at a campaign rally, briefly stepping onto the podium to address the cheering crowd. Rubio has previously said he would back Vice President JD Vance if Vance ran for president. Vance is also widely considered a possible 2028 candidate.