GOP non-candidates are best bet for 2012, starting with Rubio

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). (Photo from US Senate page; screen snip)It pains me to say this but I really don’t see a fire in the belly candidate from the GOP for the 2012 presidential race. The most visible candidates receiving press at the moment didn’t win primaries in 2008—as a matter of fact, most Republicans were astonished to learn Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) would be the GOP contender against then Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.)

I’ve come to the conclusion our best bet for the White House may be an as yet unannounced candidate. I did have hopes for Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.), but he decided to stay in the US House.

Former China ambassador Jon Huntsman is rumored to be entertaining ideas about running. The Christian Science Monitor reported even Obama, who appointed Huntsman to the ambassadorship, made jokes about that.

But if I had to place my money on a candidate whose actions indicate he gets the big picture, my money would go on Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.)

It’s no secret I advocated for Rubio during the 2010 midterms—I disclosed that routinely when I wrote about his senate candidacy. Rubio is one of the few candidates I’ve endorsed publicly in many years of voting.

Thus far, Rubio has kept promises to conservatives on spending. He’s been vocal about the danger posed by US debt levels. On March 16, Rubio joined 23 other Republican senators in calling out Obama on the debt. Rubio’s office issued a statement: “Rubio today joined a group of 23 Republican senators in calling on President Obama to become engaged in the debate over the country’s debt crisis and finally demonstrate leadership on reforming and saving entitlement programs. During his campaign for the White House, President Obama said he would lead on the tough issues but so far has been absent from the debate.”

Earlier in the week Rubio offered amendments to address spending and regulations, issuing an official statement about both issues: “With the Democrat-led U.S. Senate taking up yet another piece of legislation that does not address the nation’s serious debt crisis, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio announced that he would offer two amendments to S.493 – the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act – aimed at reining in out-of-control Environmental Protection Agency regulations and reducing government spending.”

In his statement about the amendments, Rubio criticized Democrats for refusing to pass a budget. “Last year, when they were in charge, the Democrat leadership refused to pass a budget. Now our government is operating on temporary proposals and we face a serious debt crisis. Yet we still have no serious plan from the Senate Democrat leadership. And the president is completely missing in action,” said Rubio. “It is time to stop funding excessive regulations that will put Floridians out of work. And our government needs to stop spending money it does not have.”

Rubio also introduced, with McCain, the Debt Buydown Act to provide taxpayers the flexibility to voluntarily designate that up to 10 percent of their tax liability be put toward debt reduction – this bill does not ask taxpayers to sign away any part of their potential federal refund.

On March 14, Rubio announced his intention to oppose any additional short-term continuing budget resolutions. “I did not come to the US Senate,” he said, “to be part of some absurd political theatre.”

As Rubio demonstrated fiscal conservatism, Congress spent more and cut less. CNS News reported, “The national debt jumped by $72 billion on Tuesday even as the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives passed a continuing resolution to fund the government for just three weeks that will cut $6 billion from government spending.”

Rubio has garnered quite a bit of national press—Politico, CSM, National Review and numerous other media have taken note of the charismatic Floridian who thus far has kept his word to those who put him in office.

Aside from that, Rubio as a presidential candidate is the most viable strategy to do what is necessary to halt mindless spending at the executive level. Rubio is the antithesis of the elitists who have come close to tanking the country with textbook governance that bears no relation to reality and has little affinity with Main St.

Rubio may be a non-candidate for president at the moment, but in my opinion, he’s the ideal for taking on the Chicago machine that will likely run a ruthless campaign in 2012. If GOP leadership doesn’t understand that, we’re in bigger trouble than I thought.

And just so you know, I mentioned Rubio as a presidential contender long ago, before the idea crossed the minds of nationally known pundits.

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(Commentary by Kay B. Day)

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