Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio, whose candidacy for presidency is picking up steam according to the latest polls, told Today's Matt Lauer that he did not think that increased gun control legislation would have prevented the Oregon shooting at a community college campus that left 9 people dead.
The Cuban-American senator, now tied in third place according to latest Republican candidate polls, said, "Many of the proposals that are out there on gun control would not have prevented that attack." He also said, "We need to start examining why people are taking violent action not what they're using to commit the violent act with," saying the focus should be on violence and mental illness. "Guns are what they're using to commit the violence," Rubio did not advocate for any gun control measures.
The Florida senator was also asked about criticism that he has a record of missing votes in the Senate. He said he has never missed crucial votes and said much of the work he does in advocating for constituents outside the Senate floor. He also said frustration at inaction in Congress is why he is running for president.
"I honestly believe that if I can become elected president we can begin to fix some of these issues I've been so frustrated we have not been able to address during my time in the Senate," said Rubio.
Rubio tried to laugh off rival Donald Trump's latest - he sent Rubio a package including water, alluding to Rubio's much-talked about incident where he gulped water from a bottle while giving the Republican response to Obama's State of the Union speech. Rubio said at least he was sent "quality water."