Marco Rubio to lead Senate Intelligence Committee after Burr resigns

Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio will lead the Senate Intelligence Committee, one of the most influential roles in Washington, after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell named him to the post on Monday on an interim basis.

Rubio will lead the committee, which often conducts classified work and led a high-profile investigation into Russian influence of the 2016 election, after North Carolina Sen. Richard Burr announced his resignation Thursday from the chairmanship while the FBI investigates his stock transactions.

“The senior senator for Florida is a talented and experienced Senate leader with expertise in foreign affairs and national security matters,” McConnell said in a statement. “Senator Rubio was the natural choice for this temporary assignment on the basis of accumulated committee service. His proven leadership on pertinent issues only made the decision easier.”

Burr’s exit, which came after his cellphone was seized by FBI agents last week as part of an ongoing insider trading investigation, was Rubio’s gain. Burr dumped millions of dollars in stocks after receiving classified coronavirus briefings — before the market tanked in March.

Rubio was the third highest-ranking Republican on the committee after Burr and Idaho Sen. Jim Risch. But Risch already leads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The Intelligence Committee has special rules that give McConnell the power to name the committee chair over traditional Senate seniority rules.

In a statement, Rubio said he plans to continue the committee’s serious work on intelligence matters around the world.

“I am grateful to Leader McConnell for his confidence in me to lead the Senate Intelligence Committee during Senator Burr’s absence from the chairmanship,” Rubio said. “The committee has long been one that conducts its work seriously, and I look forward to continuing that tradition.”

McConnell praised Rubio’s work and long tenure on the Intelligence and Foreign Relations committees as part of his basis for the selection.

“Senator Rubio has spent a decade as a leading member on the Intelligence and Foreign Relations Committees,” McConnell said. “His care for our nation’s security, advocacy for our values and interests, and vigilance toward threats have earned a national reputation. On subjects ranging from China and Russia to Iran and North Korea to tyranny and unrest in our own hemisphere, Senator Rubio has been on the case for years.”

This is Rubio’s highest-profile post in his decade-long Senate career. He largely avoided big-ticket Senate fights after his bipartisan “Gang of Eight” immigration overhaul passed the Senate in 2013 but stalled in the GOP-controlled U.S. House.

Instead, Rubio focused on a 2016 run for president and vowed not to run for Senate again. But after losing to now-President Donald Trump, Rubio ran for reelection to the Senate. Over the last four years, Rubio has gained publicity for changing U.S. policy toward Cuba, criticizing China and Venezuela and arguing that Republicans need to be more focused on families instead of corporations while crafting policy.

Rubio will now also become one of eight lawmakers to receive regular intelligence briefings from the White House, joining the Senate Majority and Minority leaders, the Speaker of the House and Minority leader and the leaders of the House and Senate Intelligence Committees.

The Intelligence Committee, previously led by Burr and Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner, largely avoided strict partisanship during its investigation into Russian election influence and possible ties with President Donald Trump’s campaign. Burr in particular drew criticism from Trump allies after the committee subpoenaed Donald Trump Jr. in 2019.

Warner praised Rubio’s experience in a statement.

“Senator Rubio has been a great partner on intelligence and national security issues and I look forward to working with him in his new role as acting chairman,” Warner said.

Rubio also leads the Senate Small Business Committee, which is typically a lower-profile role but gained greater importance as the body responsible for the $650 billion Paycheck Protection Program. The program, designed in response to the coronavirus pandemic, is supposed to help small businesses keep their workers on the payroll while the government forces many people to stay home.

It’s not clear how long Rubio will lead the committee. Burr has pledged to step aside as long as the investigation into his stock trades is active, and he doesn’t intend to seek reelection in 2022.

Rubio will likely lead a committee vote this week on Trump’s Director of National Intelligence nominee, Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe of Texas, which is expected to pass. The committee will also soon release the final installment in its investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

“By and large, our nation’s intelligence professionals are dedicated, hard-working men and women who counter foreign threats and keep Americans safe,” McConnell said. “We also need proactive leadership from within and thorough oversight from Congress to keep partisan bias and political interference out of these sensitive activities.”

“I appreciate the Acting Chairman’s commitment to lead on all these fronts during this temporary assignment — to help ensure the intelligence community stays ahead of our adversaries, out of politics, and out of the press.”

This story was originally published May 18, 2020 at 4:35 PM.