Story highlights
Rubio seized on Obama Cuba moves
Rubio ecome the first -- and most forceful -- of the potential 2016 presidential contenders to oppose the move
Marco Rubio needed to get back on the radar after his fellow Floridian, Jeb Bush, jolted the political world this week with an announcement that he was considering a presidential run.
The Republican senator got help from an unlikely source: President Barack Obama
Rubio seized on Obama’s decision to thaw relations with Cuba to become the first – and most forceful – of the potential 2016 presidential contenders to oppose the move.
He appeared on every major news network except for MSNBC on Wednesday, hammering Obama as “willfully ignorant” on U.S.-Cuba relations and promising to do everything within his power as an incoming chairman of a subcommittee that handles Cuba policy to “unravel” the administration’s plans.
He spoke in both English and Spanish, and couched his opposition in his own family story, as the son of two immigrants who fled Cuba.
But more than an opportunity, seizing on the development is a necessity for the senator as he stares down the man — who has been a mentor of sorts to the young conservative star — that many Republicans are calling the “elephant in the room” crowding others out of the presidential race.
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Bush’s announcement on Tuesday that he’s “actively exploring” a run for president immediately shifted the dynamic of the GOP presidential primary fight. Many political observers believe that Rubio won’t run if Bush does — and, more than that, Rubio can’t run if Bush does.
Indeed, GOP donors say his announcement has already begun to lock up much of the establishment money. And with the political establishment already speaking out in favor of Bush, Rubio’s path to the nomination has narrowed.
Bush associates insist the two aren’t at odds on the Cuba issue, noting the former Governor also came out staunchly opposed in a statement later Wednesday.
“I don’t see how this is a ‘fight’ between them,” a spokeswoman said. “The President made a very ill-advised decision and two Florida leaders who have engaged on the issue for decades engaged.”
But the U.S. policy shift on Cuba offers Rubio a unique opportunity to regain control of the national spotlight, and draw a stark comparison with Bush in style, if not in substance.
Rick Wilson, a Florida-based GOP operative with ties to Rubio, noted that he came out early and aggressively on the issue, where Bush hesitated.
READ: Rand Paul backs Obama on Cuba
“All the way across the board he was the guy you could count on yesterday to correctly assess the situation. He became the counterweight against the the president,” he said. “Bush handled it, but it was later in the news cycle.”
The issue of U.S.-Cuba relations also gives him an opportunity to show his ability to get things done on Capitol Hill. Incoming Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said he’s on board with whatever Rubio says on the issue.
And if the senator keeps his promise to block the administration’s moves at every opportunity, he’ll keep his name and message in the media even as other Republican contenders ramp up their own campaigns and draw much of the party’s attention.
But more than that, the administration’s announcement was an opening for Rubio to highlight what his supporters say is his best rationale for running — and why his choice, aides insist, will have nothing to do with what Bush decides: His compelling personal story.
The party acknowledged after the 2012 elections that it can’t compete nationally if it doesn’t mitigate its deep deficit with Latinos. Both Rubio and Bush are seen as credible messengers to that demographic group — they both speak fluent Spanish, and Bush’s wife was born in Mexico.
But Rubio is the son of immigrants, and his supporters say that gives his message a particular resonance. And they note that he’s one of the youngest potential contenders in the field.
“The Cuba situation ties into everything that makes Marco Marco, which is he understands, from the position of a son of two immigrants, what it means to come from a country like that to this one,” said Matt Keelen, a GOP fundraiser and Rubio supporter. “It fits into what I believe, if he runs, his theme is going to be — which is the lack of belief in the American Dream,” he added.