Rubio stumps in Nevada capital, calls for stronger military

CARSON CITY — Florida U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio brought his Republican presidential campaign to rural Nevada on Tuesday, calling for a stronger military, more vocational training in the education system and reforms to Social Security and Medicare.

"There is nothing wrong in America that we cannot fix," he said.

Relaxed and at times humorous, Rubio told about 200 people gathered in the foyer of the Carson City Community Center that he would lower corporate business taxes and restrain the "regulatory budget that would cap how much regulations can cost our economy."

He said he's running for president because he wants to preserve the "American dream," where parents strive to provide a future for their children better than their own.

"The American dream has nothing to do with being rich and famous," he said, telling the crowd about his own humbling beginnings. "It's about obtaining happiness."

On education, he said not all jobs in the 21st century will require advanced college degrees.

"We have a higher education monopoly in America that can charge anything they want and do," he said. He said colleges should tell students how much they can expect to earn with a particular degree before they go deeply into debt with student loans.

"Should you borrow $50,000 to major in Roman philosophy?" he said.

He also called for more focus on vocational training.

"Welders make more than Greek philosophers," he said.

"We should start vocational education when people are young," he said.

Showing some levity, he quipped, "We need four-year colleges. How are we going to have college football without them?"

He proposed an alternative education system where credits are earned on what you know or what you learned, "not how long you sit in a classroom."

Rubio spoke briefly about so-called entitlement programs, Social Security and Medicare, and said those programs were driving the nation's debt.

"If you're retired or about to retire ... nothing needs to change," he said, drawing chuckles when he noted that a lot of people in his home state of Florida receive those benefits. "I"m against anything that's bad for my mother."

But he said he supports changes to extend the longevity of the benefits received by millions of Americans. "It's either going to look different or it's not going to exist."

Rubio drew applause with tough talk on foreign affairs and a strong military. He called North Korea leader Kim Jong-un a "lunatic" and Russian President Vladimir Putin a "gangster."

He denounced the nuclear agreement with Iran, saying, "You have almost a guarantee that Iran will obtain a nuclear weapon."

He said a stronger military is needed so "allies will know they can trust us and adversaries know not to test us."

Rubio asked the partisan crowd for their support in the February caucus.

"We need your help in these caucuses," he said.

Rubio spoke about 40 minutes in Nevada's capital city before traveling to Yerington for an afternoon campaign event. He was to wrap up his Northern Nevada swing in Fallon.

Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, spent his early years in Las Vegas before his family moved back to Miami. He is the cousin of state Sen. Mo Denis, a Las Vegas Democrat.

Contact Sandra Chereb at schereb@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3901. Find her on Twitter: @SandraChereb.