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Hispanic cable news network Univision refused to issue an apology or fire its president of news in response to calls by a trio of Florida state legislators after the network published an embarrassing story of Sen. Marco Rubio's (R-Fla.) brother-in-law.

The letter is one of the latest developments in a dispute between Univision and the state legislators who accuse the network of publishing a story of a  a drug bust of Rubio's brother-in-law in response to Rubio's refusal to sit down for an interview with the channel's "Al Punto" program. Three Republican presidential candidates â€"Texas Gov. Rick Perry, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr, and former Massachusetts Gov. Rick Perryâ€" are threatening to boycott an upcoming Republican presidential debate hosted by the channel.

"We respectfully decline your request to issue a public apology or to request the the resignation of our President of News, Mr. Isaac Lee," Arya Towfighi, Univision's vice president! and senior legal counsel, writes in the letter. "More importantly, Univision takes exception to the false assertion that it attempted to "extort" Senator Runio in any way, shape, or form. At no point in time did anyone from Univision offer to kill or soften the story regarding Senator Rubio's brother-in-law in exchange for appearing on any Univision news program."

The Univision letter is in response to a letter sent by Rep. David Rivera (R-Fla.), Florida state Rep. Erik Fresen (R) and Florida state House Majority Leader Carlos Lopez-Cantera (R) to Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus and the nine Republican presidential candidates urging them to boycott the Jan. 29, 2012 debate and calling on Univision to issue an apology to Rubio's family.

Rubio is considered the top pick for whoever wins the 2012 Republican nomination. The junior senator from Florida has repeatedly said he would not be asked to join the ticket but nevertheless spec! ulation has endured that the Republican nominee would pick Rub! io. 

Read Univision's letter below:

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