U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio has thrown his name into the ring for a re-election bid.
Advertisement
But on Wednesday, Rubio did just that.
Speculation had run high in the past few days that Rubio might reverse his decision in regard to re-election.
“No matter who wins the White House, we need a strong group of principled, persuasive leaders in Congress who will not only advance limited government, free enterprise and a strong national defense, but also explain to Americans how it makes life better for them and their families”, Rubio said.
Rubio had harsh words for Hillary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, predicting her election would mean four more years of what he termed Obama’s “failed” policies. “I’ve proven a willingness to do both”.
Rubio announced his decision just ahead of Florida’s June 24 filing deadline.
Republican leaders welcomed the news. Nearly immediately, the National Republican Senatorial Committee made its support clear.
With DeSantis out of the Senate race and running for re-election, Patty revealed to FloridaPolitics.com today he would not be running for the Republican nomination in CD 6 after all. At that time, he was a tea party-backed upstart successfully challenging the establishment choice, then-GOP Gov. Charlie Crist. None of the other announced Republican candidates led either of the Democrats running.
Rep. Ron Desantis and Florida’s lieutenant governor immediately dropped out of the race. A third, Rep. David Jolly, had already done so.
Businessman Carlos Beruff has said he intends to continue to run against Rubio in the GOP primary in August. GOP developer Carlos Beruff lashed out at Rubio in a statement Wednesday saying: “This isn’t Marco Rubio’s seat; this is Florida’s seat”. “But the voters of Florida will not obey them”.
While Florida’s race could play a key role in determining control of the U.S. Senate, earlier polls repeatedly indicated that voters knew little about Murphy, Grayson and Republican candidates for the seat.
“Marco Rubio abandoned his constituents, and now he’s treating them like a consolation prize.
Advertisement
Neither candidate is a match for Marco Rubio, and I will be proud to have him as a member of our Republican majority for years to come”. Rumors circulated recently that the NRSC, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, had been aggressively needling Rubio to get back into the race. But liberal firebrand Alan Grayson, now under ethics investigation over involvement with an off-shore hedge fund, has a strong following as well, and his nomination would give Democrats a massive headache.
