Rubio repeatedly says he’s not going to talk about 2028: ‘Wasting your time’

Secretary of State Marco Rubio rejected questions from reporters on Monday about whether he is planning a presidential run in 2028.“I don’t know why you’re wasting your time,” Rubio told a reporter who asked about the 2028 presidential race. “I’m not going to talk about 2028.”Rubio, who had an unsuccessful bid for the Republican nomination in 2016, has long been floated by pundits and President Donald Trump himself as a possible challenger to likely candidate Vice President JD Vance in the next presidential election cycle. As Rubio has previously downplayed the idea of running for president in 2028, speculation has built recently in response to reports that he was considering resigning after the results of the 2026 midterm elections. Rubio and the State Department denied the reports of his allegedly impending resignation following 2026’s blue wave, with the Republican from Florida telling the New York Times that it has “always been my plan” to finish out his full term in the Trump administration and that he doesn’t “know where these things come from.”A reporter asked Rubio on Monday about a statement he gave NBC News in May in which he said he would “be the first person to sign up and support” Vance if he runs for president.“If JD runs for president, I think you’ve been a phenomenal candidate,” Rubio had said. “I’ve said publicly, and I’ll say it again, I’ll be the first person to sign up and support him. I think JD would do great.”But Rubio has recently changed his tune, saying he is not going to talk about 2028 at all.“Here’s my answer. You ready? I’m not going to discuss 2028. I’m not going to discuss it in any form or fashion,” Rubio said.When pressed why he had said that in May and is now deciding not to talk about the incoming presidential elections, Rubio said he has “that choice” and he “can make it.”BYRON YORK: IN THE GOP, A NEW 2028 RACE“I can make a choice, but I told you, I’m not going to answer that question,” Rubio said. “You can ask it eight different ways, and you’re not going to get it.”Rubio is scheduled to deliver his first speech since the 2026 midterm elections at 5 p.m. on Nov. 15 at the Federalist Society’s National Lawyers Convention in Washington, D.C.