One more Israeli advocate in US presidential run

Marco Rubio, the young Florida senator who has been a favorite of the conservative Tea Party movement, on Monday announced he would run for president in the 2016 race.

Rubio, 43, who is a staunch supporter of Israel, told top donors he is running for the Republican nomination because the 2016 race for the White House should be about the future, not the past.R

Rubio in February criticized Obama’s foreign policy for not being sufficiently supportive of Israel, and said the administration’s approach to Iran on its nuclear program was destined to fail.

“It is a foreign policy that treats the ayatollah of Iran with more respect than the prime minister of Israel,” Rubio said, speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference.

Following Israel’s March 17 national elections, Rubio said that Obama had sent top political advisers to the country to assist efforts aimed at preventing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s reelection, The Hill reported at the time.

On a visit to Israel two years ago, during which he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-president Shimon Peres, Rubio was quoted telling Peres that 'Jerusalem' (occupied al-Qods) is the capital of Israel.