GOP senator throws Rubio’s words back in his face as Trump ignores secretary’s warning

U.S. President Donald Trump with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington, D.C., March 6, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard

A Republican senator who President Donald Trump recently threw under the bus is now throwing a top Trump official’s words back in his face — and over an issue that economically impacts every American.

“I recall Secretary Rubio saying that would not be proper for any country. Am I wrong?” Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) told NOTUS journalist Igor Bobic regarding Trump saying the United States will toll the Strait of Hormuz. Ever since Trump invaded Iran, the Strait of Hormuz has been hotly contested, with Iran’s throttling of the key waterway raising prices on essential products like oil and fertilizer for ordinary Americans.

Cornyn was referring to how Trump recently announced that the United States will be the new so-called “guardian of the Hormuz Strait” and as such start collecting a 20 percent toll on ships that transit across the globally-utilized shipping route.

“The Hormuz Strait is OPEN, and will remain OPEN, with or without Iran,” Trump posted on his Truth Social account. “We are reinstating the THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE, so named because it is only stopping Iran’s ships or customers from entering or leaving. All other countries will have fair and open use of the Strait.”

He added, ”The U.S.A. will be, from this point forward, known as ‘THE GUARDIAN OF THE HORMUZ STRAIT,’ but as such, and as a matter of FAIRNESS, will be reimbursed, at the rate of 20 percent on all cargo shipped, for any and all costs necessary to do the job of providing safety and security to this very volatile section of the World.”

Trump’s remarks clearly contradict Secretary of State Marco Rubio promising that America would follow international law, which prohibits the charging of tolls and fees on the waterway.

“That’s the law,” Rubio said in June. “It’s an international waterway. No country is allowed to charge tolls or fees on an international waterway.”

He continued, “That’s existing international law. That’s the way it is in international waterways all over the world and that’s the way we’ll expect it’ll be here.”

Cornyn may have personal as well as political reasons to draw attention to Trump’s seeming flip-flop on the issue of Strait of Hormuz tolls. In May, despite Cornyn overwhelmingly supporting Trump’s agenda in the Senate, the president endorsed Cornyn’s primary challenger, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who ultimately prevailed. By contrast, Rubio has risen in Trump’s estimation as a potential 2028 presidential candidate to succeed him instead of Vice President JD Vance, who has reportedly fallen out of Trump’s favor because of his voiced skepticism about invading Iran.

Ever since Trump invaded Iran, Americans have suffered from rising prices due to Iran’s actions shutting down the Strait of Hormuz. Speaking with AlterNet in April, White House spokesperson Kush Desai argued that the economic pain caused by the Iran war will be temporary.

“President Trump has been clear about short-term disruptions as a result of Operation Epic Fury, and the Administration went into this military engagement with a plan to mitigate these disruptions to America’s long-term economic resurgence," Desai told AlterNet at the time. "As energy markets begin to stabilize, historic tax refund checks hit the mail, and the rest of the Trump administration’s pro-growth agenda continues taking effect, Americans can rest assured that the best is yet to come.”

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