There is lots to appreciate about Rubio. His Cuban background offers him an enviable connection with the Latino population. There are over 25 million Latin voters eligible to vote. And Latin voters pick out the unsophisticated American candidates trying to brave their way into the Hispanic community with their 2nd grade spanish. Rubio has the charisma and the rhetoric to shine in this coming election season.
Political ideologies and differences aside, he is a fine candidate.
In fact he is such a fine candidate that the New York Times has pointed out the most damaging discovery about Rubio; one that can severely damage his reputation. And here it is as National Review summarizes:
Marco Rubio, according to that last surviving bastion of pure Yankee bigotry, the New York Times, has financial problems. What are those problems? He managed a $300,000-plus annual income and an $800,000 book advance in a way that was — get this! — different from the way a New York Times reporter might have. Thus we were treated to the spectacle of Michael Barbaro of the Times writing, no doubt from the study of his $1.1 million New York City apartment, about the fact that Rubio “spent heavily” by buying a house in Miami that cost half of what Barbaro’s apartment did. Rubio also leased an Audi and kept his four children in parochial schools. Because you know how those flashy Latin arrivistes are: always trying to impress their historical betters with their “meticulously manicured shrubs and oversize windows,” as Barbaro and co-reporter Steve Eder put it.
I kid, of course. Rubio should lead with his success story.
And so begins the petty and distasteful analysis of GOP candidates by the New York Times. There are legitimate concerns with Rubio’s policies from a conservative standpoint, but this type of cheap shot is a testament to the grotesque fear of the left for plain ol’ fashion success. The reason they despise this is because such examples only confirm Rubio’s “American dream” narrative.
Kevin Williamson summarizes what is behind these attacks:
The Rubio story is not about where Marco Rubio is, socially and financially. It’s about where he is from and where he is going. That’s the source of resentment.
Whatever happened to cheering for the little guy–the guy who came from nothing and succeeded? It’s about policy. Rubio is broadly conservative. His policies would reflect in some way the vision the New York Times has spent years trying to shatter. Rubio lived the American dream. We can’t let that story make the headlines. We need to use it and twist it in a way that makes Marco Rubio the Hispanic Mr. Grinch. Viva the Democratic Revolucion!
