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Marco Rubio
United States Senator
from Florida
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2011Serving with Bill Nelson
Preceded byGeorge LeMieux
Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives
In office
January 2, 2007 – January 2, 2009
Preceded byAllan Bense
Succeeded byRay Sansom
Member of the
Florida House of Representatives
from the 11th District
In office
January 25, 2000 – January 2, 2009
Preceded byCarlos Valdes
Succeeded byErik Fresen
Personal details
BornMarco Antonio Rubio
(1971-05-28) May 28, 1971 (age 53)
Miami, Florida, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseJeanette Dousdebes
Children4
Alma materUniversity of Florida (B.A.)
University of Miami (J.D.)
ProfessionLawyer
Websitewww.rubio.senate.gov

Marco Antonio Rubio (born May 28, 1971) is the junior United States Senator from Florida, serving since January 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives (2007–2009).

A Cuban American native of Miami, Florida, Rubio is a graduate of the University of Florida and the University of Miami Law School. In the late 1990s, he served as a City Commissioner for West Miami and was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2000, representing the 111th House district. He was elected Speaker in November 2006.

Rubio announced a run for U.S. Senate in May 2009 after incumbent Republican Mel Martinez resigned. Initially trailing by double-digits against the incumbent Republican Governor Charlie Crist, Rubio eventually surpassed him in polling for the Republican nomination. Rubio won the Republican nomination after Crist opted instead for an independent run. In a three-way split against Crist and Democratic candidate Kendrick Meek, Rubio won the general election in November 2010 with 48.9 percent of the vote.

The term "crown prince of the Tea Party movement" has been used both as praise and ridicule, although Rubio has no direct connection to that movement. He had been mentioned as a potential choice for the Republican vice presidential nomination in 2012 but said he was not interested. In June 2012, it was reported that Mitt Romney was vetting Rubio as a possible running mate; however, Romney ultimately selected Paul Ryan.

Early life, education, and early political career

Rubio was born in Miami, Florida, the second son and third child of Mario Rubio and Oria Garcia. His parents were Cubans who had immigrated to the United States in 1956 and were naturalized as U.S. citizens in 1975. Rubio's maternal grandfather immigrated to the U.S. in 1962 without a visa and was detained by immigration authorities. An immigration judge ordered Rubio's grandfather deported, but ultimately U.S. immigration authorities used their discretion to allow him to remain in the U.S. without a visa. The Associated Press reported that "no other immigration records exist for Garcia from 1962 until he applied for residency four years later" and concluded that he likely remained in the U.S. illegally during the intervening period.

Rubio's family was Roman Catholic, though from age 8 to age 11, he and his family attended The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while they lived in Las Vegas. He received his first communion as a Catholic in 1984, before moving back to Miami with his family a year later. He was confirmed and married in the Catholic Church.

Rubio attended South Miami Senior High School and graduated in 1989. He then attended Tarkio College for one year on a football scholarship from 1989 to 1990, before enrolling at Santa Fe Community College (now Santa Fe College). He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Florida in 1993, and his J.D. degree cum laude from the University of Miami School of Law in 1996.

While studying law, he interned for U.S. Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. He served as City Commissioner for West Miami.

Florida House of Representatives

Elections

Rubio was elected at the age of 28 to the Florida House of Representatives, representing Miami in Florida's 111th House District. He defeated Democrat Anastasia M. Garcia 72%-28% in a January 2000 special election. In November 2000, he won re-election unopposed. In 2002, he won re-election to a second full term unopposed. In 2004, he won re-election to a third full term with 66% of the vote. In 2006, he won re-election to a fourth full term unopposed.

Tenure

Rubio was named Freshman of the Year by the Florida Petroleum Marketers Association.

He is the author of the book 100 Innovative Ideas for Florida's Future, which includes information that Rubio compiled while traveling around the state and talking with citizens. This was done through what Rubio calls "Idearaisers". Many of the issues that he pushed for in his first year as speaker came from ideas in this book. In 2007, Marco Rubio championed a major overhaul of the Florida tax system, arguing it would reduce property taxes and decrease the size of government.

During his tenure serving as Speaker of the Florida House, Rubio shared his residence with another Florida State Representative, David Rivera. The two men co-owned a home together in Tallahassee, which later fell into foreclosure after deferring months of mortgage payments. This issue surfaced in June 2010, during Rubio's run for the US Senate but was considered resolved according to Rubio's spokesman.

In December 2002, Rubio was appointed House Majority Leader by Speaker Johnnie Byrd. In November 2003, Rubio clinched the Speakership after State Representatives Dennis Baxley, Jeff Kottkamp, and Dennis A. Ross dropped out. He became the first Cuban American to become Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives.

Committee assignments

2000
  • Community Colleges & Career Prep
  • Elder Affairs & Long-Term Care
  • Finance & Taxation
  • Joint Legislative Committee on Article V
  • Real Property & Probate
2001-2003
  • Banking
  • Claims
  • General Government Appropriations
  • Health Regulation
  • Procedural & Redistricting Council (Group A)
  • Procedural & Redistricting Council (Group D)
  • Select Committee of the Whole
  • Select Committee on Security
  • Transportation & Economic Development Appropriations
2004
  • Appropriations
  • Policy
  • Select Committee of the Whole
  • Select Committee on Affordable Housing
2005-2009
  • Select Committee to Protect Private Property Rights (Chair)
  • Fiscal Council
  • Rules & Calendar Council
  • Select Committee on Medicaid Reform
  • Spaceport & Technology Committee

U.S. Senate

2010 election

Rubio speaking at CPAC in February 2010.
Main article: United States Senate election in Florida, 2010

On May 5, 2009, Rubio announced on his website that he planned to run for the United States Senate seat being vacated by Mel Martinez, who had resigned and been replaced by George LeMieux. Prior to the announcement, he had been meeting with fundraisers and supporters throughout the state. Initially trailing by double-digits against the incumbent Governor of his own party, Charlie Crist, Rubio eventually surpassed Crist in polling for the Republican nomination.

On April 28, 2010, Crist announced he would be running as an independent, effectively ceding the Republican nomination to Rubio. Several of Crist's top fundraisers, as well as Republican leadership, refused to support Crist after Rubio won the Republican nomination for the Senate.

On November 2, 2010, Marco Rubio won the general election with 48.9 percent of the vote to Crist's 29.7 and Democrat Kendrick Meek's 20.1. On May 20, 2011, Marco Rubio visited Puerto Rico's governor, Luis Fortuño, and made a statement of wanting to "represent the Puerto Ricans" since he already felt he owed those who had voted for him in the Florida election.

Following his victory in the elections, Rubio soon became the subject of speculation as a potential Republican candidate for the 2012 presidential election. Rubio stated shortly after taking office that he has no interest in running for president or vice president in 2012.

Tenure

Upon taking office, Rubio hired Cesar Conda, former lobbyist and policy adviser to Vice President Dick Cheney as his chief of staff.

Rubio cosponsored a resolution, which was passed, to declare September as National Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month.

Rubio's amendment, co-sponsored by Joe Manchin, to allow employers to be exempted from newly mandated coverage for contraception, based on religious or moral grounds by such employers, did not pass the Senate.

Committee assignments

Univision controversy

On July 11, 2011 the widely popular Hispanic television station Univision aired a story about Rubio's brother-in-law's cocaine trafficking conviction. The Miami Herald ran an article saying that Rubio was blackmailed by Univision with this story. The article said that Univision told Rubio they would either air the story or have an interview with him on their political segment "Al Punto." Univision said that they would never have blackmailed Rubio on a conference call with multiple employees and two attorneys present.

Political Positions

Budget and economy

Rubio voted against the 2012 Fiscal Cliff Resolutions in the hopes of maintaining principles with the party. Although he has received criticism for this position and is said to be alienating members of the Republican party, he remains resolute in his goals to keep taxes lowered. He has been accused by some of being too extreme within the party and could potentially cause a divide. Whereas Paul Ryan is seen as more of a political pragmatist in his support for the resolution to gain popular support, Rubio prefers his principled stances. Rubio rose to prominence through his base due to his pledge for fiscal responsibility and determination on not raising taxes. However, despite his constant resilience on fiscal platforms, in 2012 he urged his party to compromise on the DREAM Act to keep from alienating Hispanic voters from the Republican party.

Rubio supports an initiative to limit federal spending growth to the per capita inflation rate. He fervently opposes raising the debt limit, as he already believes it is too high and seeks to promote fiscal responsibility. He supports initiatives to balance the federal budget.

Rubio supports Social Security reform to bring the program closer out of a deficit. He believes the program should have the age for benefits pushed back to account for Americans living longer.

He has stated his support of federal R&D funding and space exploration funding to promote technological innovation, which he sees as critical to the development to the economy.

Taxes

He has goals of eliminating property taxes, or at least limiting them, and replacing them with consumption taxes. He supports extending the Bush tax cuts and believes no taxes should be raised during a recession. He also opposes the Capital Gains tax, stating that it is double taxation. Rubio supports a flat rate federal tax.

Gun control

He was rated B+ by the NRA for his stance on gun control, indicating his pro-gun policies.

Homeland security

He has expressed sentiments that 'Radical Islamist Terrorists' pose as the greatest threat to the United States and that these radicals intend to impose their beliefs on the world. He voted 'yes' on extending the Patriot Act's roving wire taps.

Abortion

Rubio is pro-life but recognizes women's right is the law. He opposes federal funding for abortion clinics as well as increasing stem cell research.

Gay rights

Rubio opposes same-sex marriage.

Personal life

Rubio married Jeanette Dousdebes, a former bank teller and Miami Dolphins cheerleader, in 1997. She is of Colombian descent, and together they have four children named Amanda, Daniella, Anthony, and Dominic. Rubio and his family live in West Miami, Florida. Rubio attends Roman Catholic and Southern Baptist churches in West Kendall, Florida. Rubio in 2012 said, "I'm a Roman Catholic. I'm theologically in line with the Roman Catholic Church. I believe in the authority of the church, but I also have tremendous respect for my brothers and sisters in other Christian faiths. I recognize, as the Catholic Church does, that there are excellent teachings of the Word throughout other denominations. "

"Son of exiles"

In October 2011, the St. Petersburg Times and The Washington Post reported that Rubio's previous statements that his parents were forced to leave Cuba in 1959, after Fidel Castro came to power, were incorrect as they had in fact left Cuba in 1956 during the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista. According to The Washington Post, Rubio's "embellishments" resonate with many voters in Florida, who would not be as impressed by his family being economic migrants seeking a better life in the U.S. instead of political refugees from a communist regime.

Rubio responded, "The real essence of my family's story is not about the date my parents first entered the United States. Or whether they traveled back and forth between the two nations. Or even the date they left Fidel Castro's Cuba forever and permanently settled here. The essence of my family story is why they came to America in the first place; and why they had to stay."

Controversies

In June of 2012, Rubio was accused of spending $160,000 on a GOP party credit card for personal expenditures. He repaid the Florida GOP for his actual personal expenses in July.

Electoral history

Florida U.S. Senate Election 2010
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Marco Rubio 2,645,743 48.9%
Independent Charlie Crist 1,607,549 29.7%
Democratic Kendrick Meek 1,092,936 20.2%
Libertarian Alexander Snitker 24,850 0.5%

References

  1. "Midterms 2010: Tea Party 'Crown Prince' Marco Rubio wins". The Daily Telegraph. London. November 3, 2010. Retrieved August 18, 2011.
  2. Roig-Franzia, Manuel (June 15, 2012). "Five myths about Marco Rubio". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 6, 2012.
  3. "Insiders Swoon Over Rubio for VP Nomination". National Journal. October 13, 2011. Retrieved October 13, 2011.
  4. Gibson, Jake (October 5, 2011). "Senator Marco Rubio Says He Won't Be 2012 Vice Presidential Nominee". Fox News. Retrieved October 17, 2011.
  5. Lemire, Jonathan (June 19, 2012). "Mitt Romney: Marco Rubio is being 'thoroughly' vetted by campaign as possible VP pick". Daily News. New York. Retrieved June 24, 2012.
  6. Linkins, Jason (October 20, 2011). "Marco Rubio, Bobby Jindal Become Focus Of Bipartisan Birthers". The Huffington Post.
  7. ^ Roig-Franzia, Manuel (October 21, 2011). "Marco Rubio's compelling family story embellishes facts, documents show". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 21, 2011.
  8. ^ "Marco Rubio's grandfather ordered deported to Cuba in 1962". Tequesta, FL: WPBF. April 25, 2012. Retrieved June 29, 2012.
  9. Roig-Franzia, Manuel (June 17, 2012). "Marco Rubio's grandfather had difficult transition to U.S." The Washington Post. Retrieved June 29, 2012.
  10. Burr, Thomas (June 18, 2012). "Marco Rubio's book explains why he left Mormonism". Salt Lake Tribune.
  11. Marrapodi, Erin (February 23, 2012). "Sen. Marco Rubio's religious journey: Catholic to Mormon to Catholic to Baptist and Catholic". CNN. Retrieved February 24, 2012.
  12. ^ "Representative Marco Rubio". Florida House of Representatives.
  13. "Biography – About Marco". rubio.senate.gov.
  14. Clark, Lesley (January 5, 2011). "Miami's Marco Rubio becomes new Florida senator". Miami Herald. Retrieved August 24, 2011.
  15. "Marco Rubio—Biography" (PDF). Republican Business Council. 2010. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
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  22. "FL State House 111 Race - Nov 07, 2006". Our Campaigns. Retrieved September 2, 2012.
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  26. Bender, Michael C. (June 17, 2010). "Rubio faces foreclosure on Tally home; his campaign says it's resolved". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved May 5, 2011.
  27. "Dade Hispanics Set to Get Top Posts in House". Nl.newsbank.com. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  28. "Two S. Florida Democrats To Lead Senate Committees". Nl.newsbank.com. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  29. Fineout, Gary (November 15, 2003). "Baxley backs off House leader bid". Ocala.com. Retrieved September 2, 2012.
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  38. Schwandt, Kimberly (April 28, 2010). "Crist to Run as Independent in FL Sen Race". Fox News. Retrieved July 10, 2010.
  39. Romm, Tony (April 18, 2010). "McConnell: Crist would lose all GOP support if he ran as independent". The Hill. Retrieved July 10, 2010.
  40. Martin, Jonathan; Catanese, David (April 17, 2010). "Top Charlie Crist supporters torn over indy bid". Politico. Retrieved April 17, 2010.
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  42. Balz, Dan; Branigin, William (November 3, 2010). "2010 election results show Republicans winning the House, not the Senate". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 3, 2010.
  43. Martínez, Andrea (May 20, 2011). "Senador republicano visita a Fortuño". El Nuevo Dia (in Spanish). Guaynabo, PR. Retrieved May 20, 2011. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
  44. Knickerbocker, Brad (November 6, 2010). "President Obama, Marco Rubio face off on tax cuts". The Christian Science Monitor.
  45. Goodman, Lee-Anne (November 5, 2010). "Florida's new senator seen as 'Great Right Hope'". Toronto Star.
  46. Rahn, Will (January 10, 2011). "Marco Rubio: I want to be a senator, not president or vice president". The Daily Caller. Retrieved January 19, 2012.
  47. Hayes, Stephen (January 28, 2011). "Marco Rubio Picks a Chief of Staff: Cesar Conda". The Weekly Standard. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  48. Voss, Laura (September 12, 2011). "Congress Dedicates September as National Spinal Cord Injury Month". Paralyzed Veterans of America.
  49. "White House Attacks Marco Rubio's Contraception Bill". The Huffington Post. Associated Press. February 13, 2012.
  50. Wides-Munoz, Laura (October 5, 2011). "Univision Denies Trying To Entice Marco Rubio By Altering Coverage Of Family". Huffington Post. Retrieved February 21, 2012.
  51. Caputo, Mark. "The inside story: Univision's war with Rubio over immigration, drug report". Miami Herald. Retrieved February 21, 2012.
  52. Auletta, Ken. "War of Choice". New Yorker. Retrieved February 21, 2012.
  53. Reinhard, Beth (January 3, 2013). "Paul Ryan vs. Marco Rubio: The Politics of the Cliff Vote". National Journal. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  54. "Marco Rubio". New York Times. July 2, 2012. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  55. ^ "Florida Senator Marco Rubio (Republican Jr Senator)". On the Issues. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); line feed character in |title= at position 16 (help)
  56. Rettig, Jessica (May 4, 2010). "10 Things You Didn't Know About Marco Rubio". U.S. News and World Report.
  57. Join the discussion: Click to view comments, add yours. "The women behind the men who would be Florida's senator - Tampa Bay Times". Tampabay.com. Retrieved September 2, 2012.
  58. "Marco 101". Marco Rubio for US Senate.
  59. Thompson, Damian (November 12, 2010). "Marco Rubio Tries to Still Debate Over Religion". The Telegraph. London.
  60. O'Bryan, Jason (November 1, 2010). "What Is Marco Rubio's Religion?". Politics Daily. Retrieved January 19, 2012.
  61. "Rubio's income grew with his political clout, tax records show". Miami Herald. May 22, 2010.
  62. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2012/july-august/marco-rubio-faith-of-many-colors.html?start=1
  63. "Marco Rubio: My family's flight from Castro". Politico. October 21, 2011.
  64. "Marco Rubio's story". Los Angeles Times. October 30, 2011.

External links

U.S. Senate
Preceded byGeorge LeMieux United States Senator (Class 3) from Florida
January 3, 2011 – present
Served alongside: Bill Nelson 		Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded byJohn Hoeven
R-North Dakota 		United States Senators by seniority
80th 		Succeeded byRon Johnson
R-Wisconsin
Florida House of Representatives
Preceded byCarlos Valdes Member of the Florida House of Representatives from the 111th district
2000–2009 		Succeeded byErik Fresen
Preceded byAllan Bense Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives
2007–2009 		Succeeded byRay Sansom
Party political offices
Preceded byMel Martinez Republican Party nominee for United States Senator from Florida
(Class 3)
2010 		Current
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President: ▌ Kamala Harris (D) ‧ President pro tempore: ▌ Patty Murray (D)
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Representatives
(ordered by district)
United States senators from Florida
Class 1 United States Senate
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Statewide political officials of Florida
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