Posted on 02/06/2016 1:08:14 PM PST by Michael van der Galien
Now that Marco Rubio appears to be rising in the polls, more members of the establishment are trying to convince voters that although they are supporting him, he really is profoundly conservative.
Looking at Rubio's Liberty Score rating of 79% it's clear that he is indeed more conservative than most other members of the establishment, but that doesn't make him the most principled and electable conservative in the race.
Additionally, the very fact alone that the establishment is rallying around Rubio should give conservatives reason to pause.
When is the last time you saw the GOP's establishment and their friends in the media endorse a real, principled conservative? These folks didn't even support Ronald Reagan initially. The only reason the establishment at long last tolerated Reagan somewhat was that they hoped that his establishmentarian vice-president, George H.W. Bush, would eventually succeed him in 1988.
In the decades since, the establishment has continued to attack conservatives, calling them crazies, extremists and worse.
Shouldn't we, then, take it with a huge grain of salt when these people now tell us they're suddenly supporting a "real conservative?"
They've never done so. Why would they suddenly change?
Well, they haven't. You see, Rubio might be more conservative than most establishmentarians, but on the issues that matter most, he's truly one of them:
1. He's pro-amnesty:
When Rubio ran for the Senate he promised Florida voters that he would always stand against amnesty, arguing that it would be horrendous for the country and that it would send the wrong message to immigrants, legal or illegal: it would teach them that breaking the law pays. He just couldn't stand for that...
(Excerpt) Read more at pjmedia.com ...
What has he EVER done?
He was a member of the Gang of Eight and he ...
Rubio’s Liberty Score rating of 79%
He only have a high score because he missed so many votes. He also first term senator. If he voted, the score would’ve been much lower
Never give more knives to backstabbers
Trump will crush the boy in the bubble in NH.
(Excerpt) Read more at
Pimping your own blog again, huh?
not 2003, 2013
Considering all the money he’s taking from big sugar, in addition to complementing Marco for being charming and well liked in Washington, the candidate who broke big corn, in Iowa, should complement him on being sweet! And point out to voters how much more their tasty treats cost because of Marco and his friends.
He has no relevant experience to deal with the economy. He is not a leader, not an achiever, and above all he is not determined to do what is best for this country.
I’m not sure how Liberty Score grade their score, but maybe they should count a non-vote as a negative. Someone who cares about Liberty should always show up to vote against anti-Liberty laws and not give excuses
I’m all for fully vetting all candidates including Rubio. And Trump.
While there is not one single reason to vote for Rubio, he has a long list of negatives. Comments listed by posters include but not limited to the following ten concerns about him:
1. Amnesty, Gang of Eight, which alone should disqualify him.
2. Controlled by donors and special interests.
3. No experience and no accomplishments. Performed terribly as a Senator - not bothering to show up for votes, ripping off Florida voters who sent him to represent him.
4. He has found himself in financial difficulties, unable to handle his own simple finances. One of his donors bailed him out by hiring his wife as his a so-called consultant.
5. His relationship with Orlando Cicilia, former frontman to cocain kingpin Mario Tabraue who now lives with his mother. There is quite a bit to it, including Rubio's refusal to say of Cicilia helps him financially.
6. His manner of speaking, licking his lips, and other unique physical traits could be signs of health condition or something else.
7. Rubio's parents were non-citizens at time of his birth. This could lead to major legal issues.
8. His memorized answers to questions and slickness should raise red flags.
9. Too many rumors circling him such as about the GOP credit card use. Some might be true.
10. His Boy in the Bubble image. He appears too immature, more like a conman - not a leader we can trust to lead this nation and solve problems such as jobs and the economy. He lacks credibility - something phony, puppet-like about him.
She will use a false equivalence s any time he talks about her failings. But he won't even do that, he will say "not acceptable" (yes he used that phrase), and "disqualified" (he used that too) to describe her. She will counter that she already apologized for her server use and that she is more qualified than he is.
Then she will "move on" to "issues" after winning that battle. Except that it will be a bait and switch. When he starts talking about issues she will counter with a personal attack about him not showing up for votes or something like that. He has about as much of a chance of winning as Romney.
His people don’t care.
I agree that's a considerably bad mark against him. But if that alone disqualifies him, then Trump and Cruz are also disqualified, and a number of the other candidates are either worse than any of them on the issue or aren't in the conversation to be a factor in the race. So who do we turn to?
Controlled by donors and special interests.
If you say so...all candidates have donors and special interests - or are donors and special interests themselves...I don't know what we could do about that unless we really want to restrict freedom of speech - we have the take the ugly along with the bad in many cases with freedom - I think it is worth it. We have the freedom to counter what we don't like and we can actually win and have against the "donors" if political pressure is high enough...though lately it hasn't seemed like it.
He has found himself in financial difficulties, unable to handle his own simple finances. One of his donors bailed him out by hiring his wife as his a so-called consultant.
No, he is not a wealthy person...is that really disqualifying or are you concerned mainly about how the media and the Democrats could spin it to use it against him and the difficulty it could be in defending?
No experience and no accomplishments. Performed terribly as a Senator - not bothering to show up for votes, ripping off Florida voters who sent him to represent him.
Let's not be silly with this kind of spin. The attendance record of Senators always falls considerably when they are running for President. He was also formerly the Speaker of the House of the Florida House of Representatives. That's a fairly hefty political resume for someone his age (he's the same age as Cruz - 44) - how much more time in political office is ideal for you? Too much time in political office is not necessarily a resume enhancement in my view. As far as accomplishments in the Senate, one thing I am aware of is his successful effort to gut a key component of Obamacare. He also pushed through property rights legislation as chairman of a committee in the Florida House following the Kelo v. New London CT SCOTUS decision to prevent the eminent domain abuse this ruling permitted from occurring in Florida. He's also been a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee - so he has a lot more experience and knowledge of national security issues than most of the other candidates.
His relationship with Orlando Cicilia, former frontman to cocain kingpin Mario Tabraue who now lives with his mother. There is quite a bit to it, including Rubio's refusal to say of Cicilia helps him financially.
That could indeed be a problem - but that's actually his brother in law - so his connection isn't exactly as under the table as you portray.
His manner of speaking, licking his lips, and other unique physical traits could be signs of health condition or something else.
What is your diagnosis doctor? I personally think it is a defensive mechanism - everyone has a tick to masking nervous energy. I'll have to say sometimes I halfway expect him to say "Remember, if it doesn't say Micro Machines - It's not the real thing!" after he finishes a sentence.
Rubio's parents were non-citizens at time of his birth. This could lead to major legal issues.
He was born on U.S. soil to parents legally within the United States. That meets Natural Born Citizen by the very definition of the term and this has been adjudicated in multiple SCOTUS rulings as well...no legal issue at all.
His memorized answers to questions and slickness should raise red flags.
He seems to be able to both give his planned answers and also get off script just fine...actually he has sounded better with the latter in my opinion.
Too many rumors circling him such as about the GOP credit card use. Some might be true.
They're not rumors and I think it was pretty much established it was all true...varying opinion on how serious it was. It's never wise to have a single card that intermingles personal and business expenses regardless of whether some of the actions were deliberate. In either case, it can be politically just as damaging and your point is well taken.
His Boy in the Bubble image. He appears too immature, more like a conman - not a leader we can trust to lead this nation and solve problems such as jobs and the economy. He lacks credibility - something phony, puppet-like about him.
That's what Chris Christie says should be his image, yes.
Prior to the gang of 8, Rubio was very high on my list - if not at the top, for possible future Presidential material. Hence, I was following and looking into his career past and present with great interest after we supported his successful effort to get rid of Charlie Crist (who he clashed with as Speaker). After that terrible bill my enthusiasm was like a deflated balloon, but on that issue, it appears Trump and Cruz don't have anything on him so they are tied for terrible on that issue in my mind (see the above links which demonstrate their own issues)...so we have to see if we believe all or any of them now they claim they've changed their approach to the issue...although there is plenty more about Trump not to like - his liberalism on issues across the board. These are the top three candidates...Trump is definitely not on my list so it is either Cruz or Rubio. Of course, we seem to be doing a good job of talking ourselves out of all of the candidates...
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