At Manatee town hall, Sen. Marco Rubio paints himself as best Republican to face Hillary Clinton
MANATEE -- Sen. Marco Rubio pitted himself against Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama at a town hall on economic policy Monday, but the presidential rival at the forefront of his mind still seemed to be Donald Trump.
"Every time an election rolls around, the media becomes obsessed with polls. But oftentimes they obsess over the wrong ones," Rubio said as he started his speech at Marine Concepts. "Today I want to tell you about a poll the media is ignoring, but that should be the talk of this entire election.
"It's a recent poll that asked, 'Is the American Dream alive or dead?' Almost half of millennials, meaning young Americans, replied that the American Dream was dead."
The junior Florida senator sits at 9 percent in national polls for the Republican presidential nomination, behind Trump at 34 percent and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, at 20 percent, according to a poll by IBD/TIPP released Monday. Rubio's numbers have stayed relatively constant, while Trump's lead has grown, and Cruz started breaking ahead of Rubio in November.
"I was at 3 percent when I ran for my Senate seat, and I won that one," Rubio said in a short press conference after his speech. Unlike other candidates, Rubio contended, he has specific plans to deal with the frustration that many Americans feel.
And that wasn't Rubio's only allusion to Trump. Throughout his speech he talked about ways he believed would make America great -- Trump's campaign slogan being "Make America Great Again" -- and mentioned that Obama's attempts to form good relationships with Muslim countries was a worthy cause, just not at the expense of the country's relationship with Israel. Trump has called for not allowing Muslims to enter the country, citing terrorism concerns, and said he would require U.S. Muslims to register in a national database.
"We cannot afford to elect Hillary Clinton, because America cannot afford another four years like the eight before it," Rubio said. "And we cannot settle for just any Republican, because this election is not just a choice between two parties, it is a generational choice about our identity as a nation."
Before the town hall, Rubio attended a campaign fundraiser at the Sarasota Yacht Club in Sarasota.
About 450 people gathered at Marine Concepts, a boating design and development business, to hear Rubio speak on his economic policies. About 125 of them were employees at Marine Concepts. Many said they were decided on supporting Rubio for president, while others said they had it narrowed down to a few candidates and Rubio was one of their top choices.
"I like his values and his tone, and I think you know what I'm talking about," said Donna Anderson, who said she was still trying to decide between Rubio and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. "He's very presidential in his speaking and his actions."
Marcia Kaiser said she was definitely voting for Rubio, and that she and her husband had supported him for a long time.
"We think he'd be the one who would make the best president in our time," Kaiser said. "We need someone young and vibrant, with a good grasp of this country's problems and a real plan on how to fix it."
A couple Manatee politicians came to the town hall as well, including Robin DiSabatino, county commissioner, and former Bradenton Beach mayor Jack Clarke.
"I think he's a great Floridian," DiSabatino said. "I met him when he came to Manatee campaigning in 2010, and I think he's got a great story and a great message."
Rubio presented several parts to his economic plan, including pushing an amendment to the U.S. Constitution requiring a balanced budget, ending higher taxes on married couples, raising the per-child tax credit, reforming Social Security and Medicare and repealing and replacing Obamacare.
A woman in the crowd asked Rubio how he would accomplish these things as president, given that Congress has the Constitutional power in most of those areas and he was a part of Congress now and not changing it.
"I can tell you this, no matter how much I believe in something, I'm not going to govern by executive order," Rubio answered, prompting cheers from the crowd. "A senator can help shape the agenda, but a president can change the agenda ... and that's why I chose to run for president."
Mostly, Rubio marketed himself as the cure to Obama's presidency, saying Clinton would be a continuation of what he called America's "dive" over the past eight years.
"I can't wait to run against Hillary," Rubio said.
Already facing criticism for missing Senate votes while campaigning for president, Rubio's Florida swing nearly caused him to miss a closed-door, classified Foreign Relations hearing on North Korea's weapons test. But after news outlets reported Rubio's plans to miss the Monday evening hearing, he rushed back to Washington, missing a scheduled Key Largo fundraising reception.
Kate Irby, Herald online/political reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7055.
This story was originally published January 11, 2016 at 6:01 PM with the headline "At Manatee town hall, Sen. Marco Rubio paints himself as best Republican to face Hillary Clinton ."