Rubio aides pointed to earlier statements — made before Rubio got in trouble with the GOP base over immigration — in which the senator expressed similar opinions about Syria. For example, in one, an appearance at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy in February of this year, Rubio expressed concern that Syria could become “a sort of Libya on steroids.” Discussing the issue of whether the U.S. should arm the rebels, Rubio proposed a halfway measure. “We don’t have to give them weapons,” he said. “I think they have plenty of weapons, quite frankly. What the opposition really needs is access to ammunition. They run low on that very quickly … That’s a step that I’m prepared to advocate for, the provision of ammunition to resistance groups within Syria that we believe we can build a long-term dialogue with.”

Nevertheless, Rubio made clear that he did not support any U.S. military action in Syria. “We’re not talking about American troops on the ground,” he said. “We’re not talking about U.S. air power, we’re not talking about sending American soldiers or even American trainers into Syria. We’re talking about providing ammunition. That’s all we’re talking about doing.”

Rubio’s office also pointed to a long list of statements going back to 2011 in which Rubio advocated a variety of measures against Syria — mostly sanctions against the Assad regime — but not any sort of U.S. military action. “I describe Rubio’s foreign policy as being somewhere in between Rand Paul and John McCain,” said one aide Wednesday. “He’s not an isolationist, but he’s very cautious about engaging militarily overseas.” Rubio’s committee vote on Wednesday against the Obama intervention resolution, the aide said, is entirely consistent with Rubio’s long-held positions.