Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) enjoyed a warm reception at the New Hampshire Republican Leadership Summit. He built on the theme of optimism for America’s future that he spoke of in his presidential announcement speech, and he added some sharp criticism of President Barack Obama’s foreign policy.
Rubio started by noting that it had been a “fascinating week, probably the most historic of my life,” and then shifted into a bit of a stand up routine that seemed well-received. A reporter had asked whether Rubio thought that 43 was “old enough to be president.” Rubio’s reply: “I’m not sure but I’m pretty sure 44 is,” which is how old he will turn on his birthday this May. The Constitution only requires that the President be at least 35 years old, and our youngest President, John F. Kennedy, was 43 when he was sworn into office in 1961.
Rubio also joked that he had “worn more wires than an FBI informant” this week, due to all the media interviews. Regarding Hillary Clinton’s rumored plan to raise $2.5 billion for her campaign, Rubio quipped, “that’s a lot of Chipotle, my friends.”
Taking a more serious tone, Rubio said that running for President was “a decision one makes after a lot of thought and prayer.”
“I believe with all my heart that we are on the verge of another American century,” he continued, echoing the “New American Century” theme of his campaign. “Throughout all of human history, you could only go as far as your parents went before you,” said Rubio, but in America, we did not have such limits.
Rubio then spoke about his family, about how both of his parents had been born poor in Cuba, where “they found themselves in a society that told them…there are things you just cannot do because of who you are and where you come from.”
After coming to America, the Rubios found jobs, were able to raise their four children, own their own home, save for retirement, and leave their children better off. “They were never rich, never famous, but they were successful,” said Rubio, meaning that his parents had achieved the American dream.
However, said Rubio, today that American dream is in doubt for millions of Americans. “Why is this happening to the greatest country in human history?” he asked. The answer, according to Rubio: too many leaders stuck in the past. All was not lost, though, and “our future has the opportunity to be better than our history,” if America finds away to adapt to the twenty-first century.
America is “engaged in a global competition” for investment and talent, said Rubio, and is being held back by regulations that are crushing innovation, an excessive corporate tax rate, businesses that are not growing because of Obamacare, and energy policies that are blocking us from using our natural resources.
