Republican U.S. Senator Marco Rubio is expected to face friendly questioning at his Secretary of State nomination hearing on Wednesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, where he has served for 14 years, and go on to comfortably win confirmation by the full Senate. A China hawk and staunch backer of Israel, the 53-year-old won Democratic support as soon as President-elect Donald Trump announced his nomination to become the top U.S. diplomat, a sharp contrast with some more controversial nominees who drew skepticism even from Trump's own party.