Is there an actual “Little Marco” running amok in D.C. right now?
If you’ll recall, “Little Marco” was the derisive nickname a heated President Donald Trump bestowed upon his now-Secretary of State Marco Rubio during the contentious 2016 GOP primaries.
Trump’s disdain for Rubio has since seemingly melted away of late, with Rubio not only serving as the secretary of State but also being discussed as one of the front-runners to replace the president come 2028.
But while everything’s turning up Marco lately, it hasn’t been without hitches.
Those hitches have largely been your standard, garden-variety issues most Trump cabinet members have with the media and Democrats, but Rubio apparently has a more bizarre problem that’s exclusive to him.
Namely, he’s got an impostor running around trying to impersonate him while speaking with government officials and world dignitaries.
It would almost be funny if it weren’t so serious.
According to The Washington Post, an “impostor pretending to be Secretary of State Marco Rubio contacted foreign ministers, a U.S. governor and a member of Congress by sending them voice and text messages that mimic Rubio’s voice and writing style using artificial intelligence-powered software.”
Are you worried about the rise of AI?
Alarmingly, U.S. officials have no clue who this faux-Rubio is but have determined that the actor had “the goal of gaining access to information or accounts,” per documents, dated July 3, obtained by the Post.
The scam artist began plying their trade in mid-June, when the impersonator created an account on the highly controversial Signal messaging app that has caused the Trump administration headaches in the past.
The impostor’s account name? “Marco.Rubio@state.gov.”
“The actor left voicemails on Signal for at least two targeted individuals and in one instance, sent a text message inviting the individual to communicate on Signal,” the documents obtained by the Post contend.
Additionally, the fake Rubio “contacted at least five non-Department individuals, including three foreign ministers, a U.S. governor, and a U.S. member of Congress.”
The State Department told the Post that it will “carry out a thorough investigation and continue to implement safeguards to prevent this from happening in the future.”
This apparently is a blossoming issue for the Trump administration.
In late May, Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles, was the victim of a similar impersonation scam.
The FBI was apparently involved in the Wiles case and is also involved in the Rubio case.
Impersonating a government official to procure a service or good is a crime punishable by fine and/or prison time.
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