Free Republic

Likable, authentic, and working to expand the Republican Party? Of course Rubio has been overtaken in the polls by Cruz, whose convictions match up perfectly with the GOP base. This summer, in an act of literary masochism, I read not one but two books about Marco Rubio. I came away from his memoir, An American Son, and Manuel Roig-Franzia’s excellent biography, The Rise of Marco Rubio, with the queasy feeling many Republicans must have had when they began reading Obama books in 2007 or 2008: this isn’t the guy you want to see on the other side of the line....

Senator Marco Rubio’s immigration reform effort is in danger. It might seem like his presidential ambitions are in trouble, too. His numbers are down; Chris Christie, Rand Paul, and Ted Cruz are starting to dominate the media’s discussion of 2016. In response, Rubio seems desperate to reestablish his conservative credentials, even by associating with a losing fight to defund Obamacare. That knee-jerk response calls Rubio’s political instincts into question, but his presidential chances are still alive, even if his immigration effort is on life support. Rubio’s immigration bid probably hurt him on the right, but Rubio was never a natural...

Iowa’s talk-radio hosts have been particularly brutal. Steve Deace, an influential Christian conservative, has warned Rubio not to even show up, and has often taunted him during broadcasts. “Zip, zilch, nada — he’s got no support, he would be dead on arrival,” Deace tells me. “He may end up running for president, but he can’t win here.” Rubio’s latest Iowa headache is Sam Clovis, a charismatic, suspenders-wearing Republican running for U.S. Senate. On the campaign trail, Clovis frequently uses Rubio as a target. Rather than hit President Obama, the usual rhetorical punching bag, he slams Rubio on immigration to score...

On Thursday, Public Policy Polling released its latest 2016 tracking poll of Iowa Republican voters. The results show a dramatic shift in Republican voter sentiment. Sen. Marco Rubio, who had led in previous surveys, has dropped to 5th place. Sen. Rand Paul now leads the pack in the critical first-caucus state.

Until recently, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida had occupied something of a sweet spot in Republican politics: a favorite of the Tea Party but also trusted by the establishment wing of the G.O.P. Mr. Rubio’s embrace of comprehensive immigration reform, however, appears to have upset that delicate balance, and his support has slipped among the Republican base. The mention of his name drew boos at an anti-immigration reform Tea Party rally on Capitol Hill in mid-June, and recent public opinion surveys, taken amid the debate on immigration legislation, found his favorability rating falling and his standing in 2016 Republican primary...

Marco Rubio’s push for immigration reform has yet to boost him much in the eyes of the nation’s Hispanic voters.

Outlets like Politico are overselling this, but for understandable reasons. The thought of a nationally known tea-party hero bloodying the nose of the great GOP hope in 2016 over amnesty is irresistible to political media. It’s momentarily irresistible to tea partiers too, I bet: Grassroots conservatives complain endlessly about Rubio these days due to his Gang of Eight fiasco but he’s gotten off with a wrist slap among prominent conservatives and most right-wing big media, apart from the occasional perfunctory expression of “disappointment.” How many border hawks out there wouldn’t want to see West, a guy respected by the grassroots...

Former Congressman Allen West left open the possibility of challenging U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fl, in a Republican primary come 2016 on Wednesday. "We'll see what happens down the pike," West said about taking on Rubio in 2016. "God will set my feet on the right path." Appearing a guest co-host on WMAL’s “Mornings on the Mall” in Washington, D.C., West acknowledged that defeating Rubio would be a tall order and could benefit Democrats. "That's a pretty heavy lift, because you're talking about running against a sitting senator, and then, of course, that creates that schism that the other side...

Passing major legislation is not a path to the presidency. So why is Sen. Marco Rubio, who is almost surely running for the 2016 Republican nomination, working so hard on comprehensive immigration reform? Look at the only lawmaker who has become president in the last half-century. Barack Obama did almost nothing in his brief time in the Senate. His career in the world's greatest deliberative body consisted mainly of showing up, becoming immediately dissatisfied and looking for something better. Obama never took a leading role crafting any piece of momentous legislation. And some of the things he did do, like...

<p>A parched Marco Rubio's awkward reach for a drink of Poland Spring water during his Republican rebuttal to the president's State of the Union address Tuesday night became an instant online sensation. Predictably, the video clips, jokes and Twitter hashtags that have become so familiar in such situations took the social Internet by storm.</p>

Freepers! Marco Rubio is just great and what a sense of humor. This is exactly how to respond to liberal hubris and their synthetic, hibrow, intellect. You need this water bottle if only to get Marco notice from now on. He is going to be Yuge and you need to support him.

Sen. Marco Rubio’s delivery of the GOP response to the State of the Union shows he’s a force the Democrats must reckon with, says former White House advisor Van Jones. The Florida Republican poses a “dangerous” political threat to Democrats because of his keen ability to emotionally connect with voters, Jones said.

"I'm going to get in trouble for saying this," said a prescient Joe Scarborough. Less than an hour after delivering a devastating take-down of the Obama economic record that surely pleased many conservatives, Scarborough made remarks about Marco Rubio that are bound to outrage many of the same folks. Commenting on Marco Rubio's response to the State of the Union, Scarborough declared that Rubio "is not ready to be President of the United States" and that "Republicans pushing him out there are making a big mistake." View the video here.

Although he fills an obvious gap for his party, the odds are stacked against him With Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) giving the Republican response to President Obama's State of the Union address, many are asking if he's the answer to his party's electoral woes. Time magazine even put him on the cover and asked if he's the Republican savior. But there are three big reasons why it's unlikely the Florida senator is on a fast track to the presidency in 2016. 1. Republicans almost always pick the next guy in line. Ever since the untested Sen. Barry Goldwater (R-Ariz.) lost...

He's already being treated like the 2016 GOP presidential front-runner, and now there is another reason Republicans are excitedly buzzing about Florida Sen. Marco Rubio: He alone would reverse the party's slide among Hispanic voters. A new nationwide poll from JZ Analytics found that Rubio would get 48 percent of the Hispanic vote, about twice what Mitt Romney won in 2012. Republican strategist told Secrets that a win among Latino voters that big would assure Rubio the presidency, since he would also likely keep the regular GOP base. "If he does that good, then he's the next president," said a...

Let the Blood Games continue. Only weeks after election 2012 and years before election 2016, in a routine interview, a glossy pop magazine popped Florida Senator Marco Rubio with an oddball question: How old do you think the earth is? Rubio responded a bit clumsily and noncommittally. Smelling blood and opportunity, the wolf pack bared fangs and chased. Their game is either to force Rubio to affirm a personal belief the earth is 4.5 billion years old—disturbing some of his religious supporters--or to mock and stigmatize him and others who could harbor any delusional uncertainty—damaging him with a different part...