SOTU 2013: Marco Rubio Response Preview

SOTU: Foreign Policy Edition is back and ready to tune out all non-foreign-policy-related news for the evening! While we wait for the speech to start, let's take a look at the main event after it events, when Republican Senator Marco Rubio delivers the official GOP response.

Politically, Rubio has recently invested the most effort in passing an immigration reform package, aligning himself with the moderate wing of the party. He has worked hard since the election to sell the plan to party elites as well as its base.

When Rubio addressed the broader topic of foreign policy last spring, he presented himself as relatively moderate, supportive of U.S. power abroad while cognizant of its limitations.

However, in recent months he has ramped up his criticism of the president, largely in line with the rest of his party's response to the Benghazi attacks. If the letter released earlier by Graham, Ayotte and McCain is any indication, Benghazi will be the focus of Rubio's foreign policy criticism. Other issues like North Korea, Iran, Israel and Syria may merit a smaller mention.