Rubio: I’d Rather Spanish Speakers Hear Me Convey Conservatism Directly, Not Through a Translator

After Donald Trump criticized Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio for speaking Spanish on the campaign trail, Sen. Marco Rubio defended the practice, arguing it’s better for Spanish speakers to hear his message directly:

I agree English is the unifying language of our country. Everyone should learn to speak it and it’s important. Somebody that didn’t know English well is my grandfather. He came in the 1960s escaping Cuba and lived with us growing up, and my grandfather loved America. He understood what was so special about this country. He loved Ronald Reagan and would be proud of the fact we’re here this evening.

My grandfather instilled in me the belief I was blessed to live in one society where even I, the son of a bartender and maid, could aspire to have anything and be anything I was willing to work hard to achieve, but taught me that in Spanish because it was the language he was most comfortable in and he became a conservative even though he got news in Spanish.

I believe that free enterprise and limited government is the best way to help people who are trying to achieve upward mobility and if they get their news in Spanish, I want them to hear directly from me, not from a translator at Univision.