Marco Rubio is in an odd position in the Republican presidential pack. Polls show Rubio is well-regarded in key states but he’s behind Donald Trump and other candidates.
Rubio’s tried to make progress on a few issues -- foreign policy, the 21st century economy -- and he has some clear advantages. He did well in the first debate and, of course, hails from the most important swing state on the map. As a Cuban-American, Rubio at least offers a case that he can help lure more of the growing number of Hispanic voters into the Republican fold.
But Rubio’s youth, only 44, hasn’t helped him with the party that nominated Eisenhower, Reagan, the first Bush, Bob Dole, John McCain and Mitt Romney. Republicans across the nation certainly seem to like Rubio but they often peg him as a good vice-presidential candidate, especially if Jeb Bush stumbles and a Great Lakes governor like John Kasich or Scott Walker ends up with the presidential nomination.
Rubio needs to gain a little momentum, even as Trump dominates the Republican contest. The Florida Republican latched onto an issue on Tuesday that could help advance his cause.
Republicans across the nation are up in arms against Common Core. Those education standards have hurt Bush considerably. Other candidates have tried to make an issue with Common Core but have made little progress with it. Mike Huckabee came out swinging at Common Core earlier this week but he was urging Oklahoma to adopt those standards only two years ago. Bobby Jindal has made his opposition to Common Core one of the cornerstones of his campaign but he remains stuck in the bottom tier.
Rubio made his case against Common Core on Tuesday. Hitting the Democrats for simply wanting “to throw more money at our outdated, inefficient system, trying to fix the problem by legislating from Washington and paying off their political backers who want to protect the broken status quo at all costs,” Rubio pushed an alternative which includes a call to “restore local control and stop Common Core" while reforming higher education and adding more school choice options.
“High standards and great curricula are key parts of a great education, but federal bureaucrats pushing Common Core should not be meddling in decisions that can and should be made locally,” Rubio insisted. “As president, I would sweep away the federal incentives to stick with Common Core and leave all decisions about curriculum and standards to state and local authorities.”
Rubio’s wise to stress his opposition to Common Core. Bush and, to a lesser extent, Huckabee and Kasich are hurt by it. Walker has drawn fire for shifting his position on Common Core. Jindal, Rick Perry and Rick Santorum, all staunch opponents of Common Core, are going nowhere.
If Republicans are looking for an elected official who pushes back against Common Core, Rubio might not be a bad bet, though Ted Cruz and other candidates will also fight for the spot. At the very least, Rubio is shrewd enough to restate his opposition to Common Core as he hopes for outsiders like Trump, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina to fade in the most unpredictable Republican presidential contest since 1940 when Wendell Wilkie came out of nowhere to shock the political world.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
Comments
Nooooo..., IF Rubio WERE wise
Marco slid in the backdoor to
Kevin,
Rubio hasn't had an internal
Rubio could not find Cuba on