National Review: Marco Rubio's 2016 Odds are Improving

Eliana Johnson over at National Review has an article on Thursday noting how U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., is starting to turn some heads as he gears up for a 2016 presidential campaign.

Johnson writes:

Jeb Bushs announcement in December launched both a fundraising juggernaut and an aggressive hiring spree, and Scott Walkers speech in Iowa the following month lifted Walker to the top of national polls. But a little more than a month later, says the operative, The Jeb boom is over and people are having second thoughts about Walker.

The beneficiary in terms of buzz is Marco Rubio, who now has many of the partys top donors looking at him in a way they werent even a month ago. Though Rubio hasnt made as much noise as his competitors as the 2016 campaign has gotten underway in earnest, his knowledgeable presentations and obvious political talent are nonetheless turning heads or, at least, enough of them. Rubio hasnt made a big splash, neither building a shock and awe campaign like Bush nor delivering a marquee speech like Walker (who afterward seemed almost to be caught off guard by his rapid ascent). Instead, Rubio appears to be gambling on the idea that, in what is sure to be a long primary with a crowded field, a slow-and-steady approach will prevail.

The buzz about Rubio comes on the heels of a successful but nonetheless low-profile book tour that took him through the early-primary states of Iowa, South Carolina, Nevada, and New Hampshire, and as the frenetic motion around Bush and Walker has begun to subside.

Bushs announcement left many conservatives searching for an alternative to the establishment candidate, and Walker has at times looked like he could fill that space. But he has stumbled a couple of times before the press and displayed some shakiness on policy issues.

The article can be read here.