Marco Rubio Speaks to Enthusiastic Cape Coral, Florida, Crowd

Cape Coral, Florida -- Marco Rubio, Florida's 2010 Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, held a lively meet-and-greet in Cape Coral, Florida on Thursday, May 13. The crowd at Rumrunner's Restaurant in the waterfront Gulf Harbor community gradually swelled to 200, as supporters milled around in a pleasant buzz of excitement. Rubio arrived shortly after 11 a.m. and spent about an hour greeting his supporters and explaining his views, including his stance on the Arizona immigration law.

Rubio was originally against the immigration bill, but says that after it was tweaked to ban racial profiling and define exactly when an officer could question someone about their immigration status, he feels comfortable approving it. Rubio added that although he believes Arizona does have the right to pass such a bill, immigration is ultimately a federal issue. However, he also stressed his belief that there should be a smaller Federal government, which the crowd enthusiastically supported.

Gov. Charlie Crist would have been Mr. Rubio's competition for the GOP nomination. But Gov. Crist's decision to switch to Independent affiliation, after swearing he was a dyed-in-the-wool Republican, served to highlight the flip-flopping Crist is known for. Another example is the president's economic stimulus package. It seemed that every time Crist opened his mouth, he said something different about whether or not he supported it. Rubio has gotten serious mileage out of this, constantly pointing out and deriding Crist for the infamous hug with President Obama when he came to Fort Myers last year to rally for the stimulus program.

Although Crist got a small bump upon switching affiliations, it has not lasted. As Brad Coker, director of a poll by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research Inc. points out, roughly 55 percent of Crist's support comes from Democrats. They are just as likely to switch to Democrat Kendrick Meek, and Republicans are certainly not reassured by Crist becoming an Independent.

The conservative Rubio, who has been the darling of the Tea Party movement, was endorsed by the popular previous Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, reports Bill Cotterell of The Florida Bureau (Florida Capital News). Rubio has served as the Speaker of the House of Representatives in 2007 and 2008.

The 38-year-old Rubio was born in Miami, graduated from Universities in Florida, and is married to a former Miami Dolphins cheerleader. He lives in Miami and is raising his four children in Florida. In other words, he is familiar with Florida and its unique strengths and needs.

Getting a crowd of 200, instead of the originally estimated 75, to come to a political rally is a testament to Marco Rubio's popularity. When you consider that he did it in the middle of the week on a beautiful spring day in Florida, after tourist season is over, you get an idea of just how much people want to hear what he stands for. Judging from the enthusiasm of just this one rally, it appears Rubio has a good chance of being a Representative of Florida in the U. S. Senate in 2010.

Resources:

Don Ruane, "Rubio Campaigning in Cape Coral," Fort Myers News Press
http://www.news-press.com/article/20100513/NEWS0107/100513010/1075/Rubio-campaigning-in-Cape-Coral

Encyclopedia Entry, "Marco Rubio," Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marco_Rubio

Bill Cotterell of the Florida Bureau, "Jeb Bush Endorses Marco Rubio for U. S. Senate," Fort Myers News Press
http://www.news-press.com/article/20100505/NEWS0107/100505014

Amanda Terkel, "Crist flip flops - and flips again - on his support for the federal stimulus," Think Progress
http://thinkprogress.org/2009/11/12/crist-stimulus-flip/

Bill Cotterell, "Poll Shows Crist Out in Front"
http://www.news-press.com/article/20100507/NEWS0107/5070399

William March, "Rubio squeezes every drop from stimulus bash of Crist," March on Politics
http://www.tboblogs.com/index.php/news/story/rubio-squeezes-every-drop-from-stimulus-bash-of-crist/