Rubio's charm conceals a brutal truth

What a difference a year makes. At this weekend's Munich Security Conference, Secretary of State Marco Rubio was given a standing ovation for a speech that echoed what Vice President JD Vance had said so scandalously 12 months earlier. Rubio accused Europeans of trying "to appease a climate cult" that has impoverished the continent by forcing it to adopt catastrophic energy policies. Like Vance, he also criticised Europe's immigration policies and its dogmatic commitment to global free trade, which he said has fuelled deindustrialisation and hollowed out supply chains. He even lamented the transfer of sovereignty to international organisations — a swipe not just at the UN and international legal bodies, but at the EU itself.