Trump calls Marco Rubio ‘puppet’ of Silicon Valley

US presidential candidate Donald Trump has denounced his Republican rival and Floridian Senator Marco Rubio as “puppet” of forces who want to bring cheaper, foreign labor into the United States.

Trump made the remarks in an interview with Breitbart News on Friday after Rubio showed strong performance at the GOP presidential primary debate this week.

“Lobbyists write the rules to benefit the rich and powerful. They buy off senators like Marco Rubio to help them get rich at the expense of working Americans by using H-1B visas — so called 'high-tech' visas — to replace American workers in all sorts of solid middle-class jobs,” the New York businessman tycoon said.

“Sen. Rubio works for the lobbyists, not for Americans. That is why he is receiving more money from Silicon Valley than any other candidate in this race. He is their puppet,” he added.

Silicon Valley is another name for the southern portion of the San Francisco Bay Area, which is home to the United States’ largest high-tech corporations, as well as thousands of tech startup companies.

“I am further calling on Rubio to return the money he has received from Silicon Valley CEOs and to donate the money to a charity helping unemployed Americans whose jobs Rubio has helped destroy,” he said.

Trump also accused Rubio of lying at the Republican debate on Wednesday when he said that he plans to protect US workers.

“Yes, Sen. Rubio is incapable of telling the truth. He should be disqualified for dishonesty alone,” he said.

Earlier this month, Trump referred to a report which said that casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson was considering to fund Rubio's 2016 presidential bid.

"Sheldon Adelson is looking to give big dollars to Rubio because he feels he can mold him into his perfect little puppet. I agree!" Trump tweeted.

According to reports, following the third GOP debate, Republican donors started turning to Rubio, and mainstream American media began describing the Cuban-American politician as the serious candidate to challenge Hillary Clinton for the White House in 2016.

Rubio has recently emerged as a strong supporter of Israel, and an outspoken opponent of the Iran nuclear agreement. He has even vowed to cancel the historic accord if elected president in 2016.

Commenting to Press TV, American political pundit Dennis Etler said, ““Rubio is considered a good candidate since he can be putty in the hands of the moneyed interests he represents.”

“With [Jeb] Bush's support waning Rubio has become, at this point, one of the only games in town for the Republican establishment which will make the final decision as to who will run,” Etler said.

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