Rubio will hold two positions for at least six months, but Trump is thinking of leaving it like this forever – Politico

Marco Rubio is expected to serve as both Secretary of State and national security adviser for at least six months, and a number of President Donald Trump's top advisers are interested in keeping Rubio in the role permanently, Politico reported , citing three anonymous senior White House officials.

Rubio's dual position is seen as "much more" than a short-term solution. One official said, "This was not designed as a stopgap measure."

Officials noted that the secretary of state did not seek the position of national security adviser, but Trump and his chief of staff, Susie Wiles, asked Rubio to step in and take "more complete control" of the administration's entire foreign policy bloc.

This is a significant boost for Rubio, who was Trump's rival in the 2016 primaries and traded personal attacks with him as they fought for the future of the Republican Party, and who is viewed with suspicion by some members of Trump's MAGA movement.

"He’s [Rubio] just a quintessential team player that is willing to accept whatever task is necessary to deliver for the president – including the hard or risky ones ," an unnamed official told Politico.

Another official said Rubio's job will be to provide stability and "reorient" the National Security Council so that its decisions are "fully reflects the president’s vision." The official added that the secretary of state is "the perfect person" for the role because "he understands process and foreign policy, and works well with the team – which is a big deal ."

Rubio's loyalty is one of his greatest assets, officials say. Since taking office, he has retreated from many of his previous positions, including his former hawkish support for Ukraine. He has also become a vocal defender of Trump's controversial deportation policy, despite being born to Cuban immigrants. The shift in views has drawn criticism from some traditional Republicans and other foreign policy experts who viewed Rubio as an ally.

"You need a team player who is very honest with the president and the senior team [...]. He is singularly focused on delivering the president’s agenda ," the first official said.

There was some initial concern about the scope and workload of combining the positions of Secretary of State and National Security Advisor. The only person to have held both positions before was Henry Kissinger in the 1970s. The official used this to exert his own influence on processes and became one of the most significant aides to a US president in history.

As senior Trump staffers have been mulling the idea over the past few days, they have concluded that the synergy between the two positions is an advantage.

The national security adviser's job is to be an organizer, fact-gatherer, and policy spokesman, while the secretary of state's job is to be a diplomatic leader, another official said. The two roles "may be more complementary" than he had thought, he concluded.

The official also spoke about those who are applying for the position of national security adviser: "Everyone should stop. We have a sensational person [Rubio] willing to do it."

• On May 1, Trump confirmed the dismissal of his national security adviser, Waltz, who will be the new US ambassador to the United Nations.
• Waltz rose to fame during the Signal secret chat scandal, which accidentally implicated the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic magazine. At the same time, Trump consistently publicly supported his advisor, and the White House said that the scandal was "closed" and that Waltz remained on the team.
• On May 2, Axios media sources said that White House Deputy Chief of Staff Miller is the most likely candidate for the position of national security adviser to the president.