Rubio Tells the ICC to Stop Quoting Laws to Men With Swords
Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered a clear message to the International Criminal Court during his address at the 2026 Federalist Society National Lawyers Convention. The United States has never joined the ICC, has never consented to its authority, and has repeatedly rejected the idea that unelected judges in The Hague can claim jurisdiction over American citizens, soldiers, or officials.
Rubio described the court as an institution that believes it can rule over sovereign nations while answering to no one. “They think they have the right to rule over everyone, but they are accountable to no one. Armed with the power to investigate, to prosecute, to persecute, and to jail our citizens according to laws we neither consent nor control.”
He noted that the ICC and its supporters in the global bureaucracy have appointed themselves judge, jury, and executioner of the international order. The Trump administration has already imposed sanctions on the court, and Rubio made plain that paper decrees from The Hague carry no weight on American soil.
“They can certainly try, I would say, but if they’re foolish enough to try to enforce their paper decrees on Americans, our answer will probably be the same as the Roman General Pompey when he said to those who were trying to invoke their city’s charters against his legions. He said, ‘Stop quoting laws to men with swords.'”
Rubio added that the line was not politically correct, but that was exactly what Pompey said. The point stood. The ICC has no police force and no independent means of enforcement. It depends entirely on member states to carry out arrests and other actions. America is not among those states, and Rubio made clear the country will not become one.