Lunch at the Biltmore With Marco Rubio Republican Candidate for US Senate
Photo by Renee Burrell Candidate Marco Rubio, running against Governor Charlie Crist for US Senator in the upcoming Republican Primary, spoke at a well attended luncheon at the Belleview Biltmore on Friday, January 8th, sponsored by the Belleair Republican Women's Group. Rubio served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2000 to 2008, where he held the positions of Majority Whip, Majority Leader and Speaker of the House. In the upcoming US Senate Primary Rubio is staking his position as the true Conservative in the race. On the issue of abortion Rubio says that Governor Crist's long standing position has been that he believes in changing hearts, not laws but just recently Governor Crist has changed, saying now that that he will pursue changing the abortion laws. Rubio says that his own position on abortion remains consistent with the one he held throughout his political career. While he has the greatest sympathy for the women who make difficult choices, he maintains his pro-life position. Rubio said that he went into politics to make politics relevant to people's lives. He believes in a smaller, limited government, "If you want government to take care of you, you must give up being free." He went on to say that economic freedom is not possible where government is in control and that most Americans are "limited government constitutionalists" who want to be free and prosperous. While Rubio believes that our health care insurance system needs reform, he said that the current proposed legislation written in secret, gives government too much control of our lives, our personal health care and our economy. He also said that this current health care reform legislation will cost far more than we are being told, will greatly increase our huge deficit each year and will add more problems than it fixes, still leaving millions uninsured. Rubio stated that he is a strong proponent of securing our US Borders to know who is coming into our country and that he does not support the current proposed legislation that offers a form of amnesty to illegal aliens, encouraging others to enter our country illegally. "Why am I doing this?" Rubio answered his own question saying that there are far easier things to do than to run for the US Senate against a sitting governor but that he was running to stand up against a political agenda he did not agree with and to offer an alternative. Rubio went on to say; "it was not because I want to be somebody, it is because I want to do something, the things I passionately believe in, the things I believe to my core . . . that we can fix America without abandoning what is America." Rubio's parents came to the US from Cuba in the 1950s. "My parents were hard workers who took jobs so that I could have a career." While in college Rubio said he played football that could have led to a career in the NFL if it weren't for his lack of size, speed and talent - so - he went on to graduate from the University of Florida in 1993, continuing his studies at the University of Miami where he earned his Law Degree (juris doctor, cum laude) in 1996. He then worked in the private sector as an attorney until he began his political career in the Florida House of Representatives in 2000. Rubio is married, the father of four children and he is concerned about the condition of the country being passed on to his children and future generations. "My children will either grow up and inherit the most prosperous America ever, or my children will grow up and inherit a diminishing America and we will be the first generation to leave our children worse off than previous generations. We have a choice to make." Rubio said he believes that Republicans offer the only viable alternative to the direction the US Congress is currently taking.
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