The hundreds who turned out Monday afternoon for a rally for Marco Rubio, have high hopes for the energetic White House candidate.
New Duval Villagers Lynette Rauscher and her husband, Steve Juntunen, were very impressed with Rubio, and liked having the chance to see him in person. “Everything he said makes sense,” Rauscher said. “He cuts through the political crap and says what we all are thinking, but maybe don’t know how to put it into words.”
Villagers Ed and Helene Ziegler came very early and got front row seats.
“I knew we were going to like what he said,” Helene said.
“He’s a breath of fresh air,” her husband, Ed, added.
The junior senator from Florida bounded to the stage at Eisenhower Recreation Center, running about an hour late.
Rubio’s goal: To restore a real American Dream — where people can be proud of their government again, and can leave opportunities for their children and grandchildren to build a life that is better than they have today — resonated with the crowd. “That just isn’t possible today,” Rubio stated. “Our government has never been more out of date — and out of touch with the people — and I don’t mean just the Democrats — I mean both the Democrats and the Republicans. There is a real disconnect. Our politicians forget what it was like to live paycheck to paycheck, and pray they don’t fall behind.”
The youthful looking 44, Rubio has an impressive record of public service spanning over 15 years. He is a University of Florida graduate with a J.D. from the Miami School of Law awarded in the late 1990s. He is married to the former Jeanette Dousdebes, and has four children. His parents came to the United States seeking economic freedom from a Cuba ruled by dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1956, three years before Fidel Castro rose to power.
“When is the last time you saw boatloads of American refugees washing up on the shores of a foreign country?” Rubio began. “That doesn’t happen because we are still the greatest nation of all time. But we are not as strong as we were nearly eight years ago, and if we keep doing what this administration is doing, it will get much worse than it is now.”
Thomas and Cindy Young, from Lady Lake, liked what they heard.
“He brings adult conversation back into the room. We have had 8 years of not having grown ups in government,” Thomas Young said.
Village of Mira Mesa resident Helen Moll said she wanted to take Rubio home.
Her husband, Bill Moll, was equally impressed.
“He is just what this country needs,” he said.
George Mientras from Summerfield thinks Rubio will be a great uniter — “not a divider like we have in the White House now. I think younger voters and minorities can get behind him, and he can explain so they understand that socialism doesn’t work for the good of the people. I think he can rally both sides of Congress.”
