Senator Marco Rubio (R., Fla.) took to the Senate floor on Wednesday to address his conservative critics.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=lnW9Ah4ha4U%3Ffeature%3Dplayer_detailpage
“Getting to this point has been very difficult,” he said. ”To hear the worry, anxiety, and growing anger in the voices of so many people who helped me get elected to the Senate, who I agree with on virtually every other issue, has been a real trial for me. I know they love America, and they are deeply worried about the direction this administration and the political left are trying to take our country.”
“I realize that in the end, many of my fellow conservatives will still not be able to support this reform. But I hope you will understand that I honestly believe it is the right thing for our country,” he added. “In my heart, and in my mind, I know that we must solve this problem once and for all, or it will only get worse. It will only get harder to solve.”
Rubio said he would “continue to fight alongside” conservatives on other issues, such as reforming the tax code, balancing the budget, reducing regulations, and repealing Obamacare. “I will continue to work in the hopes of one day uniting behind a common conservative strategy on how to fix our broken immigration system once and for all,” he concluded.
His office is circulating the text of the speech in a letter, which can be found here.