Rubio Parts with Romney on China

Doesn't see value in possibly launching a trade war

Florida Senator Marco Rubio appeared this morning for coffee at Bloomberg View in New York and made a good impression, if you don't count his failure to identify even one tax loophole or deduction he would eliminate to help pay for a 20-percent reduction in tax rates. But he didn't make any news until he was on the way out and a bunch of reporters from other news organizations were out of earshot.

I asked Rubio if he thought it was a good idea for Mitt Romney to declare China a currency manipulator on day one of his presidency, as the former governor of Massachusetts has repeatedly promised to do.

"No, not really," Rubio said. "It could kick off a trade war that would be bad for the economy." As he walked away from the table, he added, "I agree with Obama on that one."