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Here comes Rubio: Rising star, Crist challenger rallies the right
The star of CPAC continued his rise in the Republican Party on Thursday with a story about his American Dream.
Marco Rubio, who has surged to near-even with Gov. Charlie Crist in the Florida GOP Senate primary, used his speech in front of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) to bash President Barack Obama, Republican defector Sen. Arlen Specter and, by connection, the centrist Crist.
“We already have one Arlen Specter,” Rubio said, adding: “We already have one Democratic Party.”
Rubio also ribbed Obama for his use of a teleprompter, saying of the snow that blankets Washington: “The president couldn't find anywhere to set up a teleprompter to announce new taxes.”
Much of Rubio’s speech was devoted to his family’s story. Rubio is the son of immigrants from Cuba, and he played up his own meager beginnings as well.
"I was not born to a wealthy or connected family,” he said. “And yet I have never felt or been limited by the circumstances of my birth. I have never once felt like there was something that was not possible for me because of who my parents were, or where they came from.”
Rubio offered plenty of red meat for the conservative crowd, including promoting tax cuts and tort reform. He also said the United States needs to have an open-ended commitment to defeating terrorism, and he promised to stand with Israel.
He said Democrats and their policies are costing the United States its status as a world power with a unique set of values.
“They are asking us to abandon the things that separate us from the rest of the world,” he said.
Even as his battle with Crist has taken on all the billings of a conservative crusade, though, Rubio said the 2010 election isn’t simply about party or ideology.
"2010 will not be just a choice between Republicans or Democrats; it will not just be a simple choice between liberals and conservatives,” he said. “It will be a referendum on our nation’s very identity."
Rubio has become a hero for conservatives, who were upset that the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) endorsed Crist.
Rubio has been endorsed by Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), who is backing a series of candidates battling establishment favorites like Crist.
DeMint spoke after Rubio and repeated his admonition that it’s better to have a minority of real conservatives than a majority of wishy-washy Republicans.
“I’ve been criticized by some Republicans for saying I’d rather have 30 Republicans who believe in our principles than 60 who don’t believe in anything,” DeMint said. “Let me make myself clearer: I would rather have 30 Marco Rubios in the Senate than 60 Arlen Specters.”
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