More than 300 people showed up in Cedar Falls Thursday night to hear Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio outline his vision for the country. It was Rubio’s first stop on a two-day swing through Iowa, and his first time addressing the Cedar Falls crowd.
After giving his routine stump speech about foreign policy, education reform, a new tax code, and his humble background, Rubio opened up for questions from the audience. The small community asked for Rubio’s ideas on alternative energy, especially fracking.
“I think that we need to fully utilize our energy resources,” said Rubio. “Fracking has allowed us to have access to natural gas that is not only important for our economy but also for our geo-political status. But we have to do this in a safer way. I don’t think anyone is in favor of destroying the environment, and I want America to lead the world in energy efficiency.”
Rubio did not explicitly say that he wants to invest in solar and wind energy, which Iowa is a leader in, but he said he wanted to capitalize on efficient energy policies and practices.
“I want our innovators to make our cars more efficient, our homes more efficient,” said Rubio. “I want the air to be cleaner, our water to be drinkable, but I’m not in favor of things that will destroy our economy. And that’s the problem I have with a lot of these environmentalists…because they will do nothing to improve our environment – they will be devastating to our economy. Ultimately, we have to balance our environmental concerns with our economic concerns. We cannot make America a more expensive place to work and a more expensive place to live.”
The Florida Senator was also asked his views of Planned Parenthood and Congress’s effort to defund the women’s health group.
“I’m pro-life, and I don’t believe Planned Parenthood should receive any federal funding,” said Rubio. “They can raise all the money they want from private services, but they shouldn’t be receiving federal money. Just look at these videos – we haven’t had our questions answered. Is this IRS looking into how they use some of that money? I haven’t heard about that. If that was any other organization, they would be investigated, but they’re actually being protected.”
Rubio was criticized by some for missing the Senate’s vote on the bill that would defund Planned Parenthood earlier this week. GOP presidential contender Lindsey Graham was also not present to cast his vote for the controversial bill, while Senators Rand Paul and Ted Cruz voted to defund the agency. Rubio had previously come under fire for his lack of attendance in the Senate on key voting measures.
Rubio remains in the Cedar Rapids area on Friday to host several town hall meetings and meet and greets with voters. He is slated to speak at the Iowa GOP’s “Growth and Opportunity Party” later this month.
