Romney Campaign Press Release - Sen. Marco Rubio: Mitt Romney Has Had Success in Both the Public and Private Sectors

"I'm a big admirer of his. I've known him since 2007. As I said last night, I think he did a very good job as governor of a very important and diverse state. He's also been very successful in the private sector, private enterprise, and that's a rare combination in American politics. The most important job of a president is to be a good decision-maker, and someone who has been successful in both politics and business is clearly a good decision-maker." — Sen. Marco Rubio

"Rubio On The Race"

National Review Online

By Jim Geraghty

March 30, 2012

http://www.nationalreview.com

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NRO: "So, why Romney?"

SENATOR RUBIO: "First of all, I have not gotten involved in the primaries. I think it has been a good thing to have a primary; I have talked about primaries as a good thing for our party. I would never ask someone to not be in a primary or to drop out. God knows plenty of people asked me to drop out, and we all saw how that turned out. We've had a primary, but now the two principal opponents to Governor Romney have both admitted that they can't win the primary, that their only potential path to victory is a floor fight at the convention in Tampa in August.

"Our number-one goal has to be to replace Barack Obama. My overriding goal here is a new occupant in the White House. Without a new president, we can't get a repeal and replace of Obamacare passed, we can't get tax reform, we can't save Medicare, we can't undo the catastrophic cuts to national defense. If Obama is reelected president, none of those things is going to happen. So we have to replace him.

"No one can convince me that a floor fight in August in Tampa makes it likelier that we beat Barack Obama. On the contrary, a floor fight in Tampa diminishes the chances of beating Obama nine weeks later in November. Certainly in Florida it does. I can just talk about Florida, that if we have a floor fight at the convention, there is no way, given the way the media covers politics today, that it will put us in a better position to win in November. And if we don't win Florida, it's hard to think we can win the presidency.

"Given all that, and given the fact that by their own admission his opponents can't win the primary, it's time for us to say Romney is winning the primary fair and square, and to line up behind our nominee to defeat Barack Obama."

NRO: "I notice in that answer you didn't say a lot about Romney himself."

RUBIO: "I'm a big admirer of his. I've known him since 2007. As I said last night, I think he did a very good job as governor of a very important and diverse state. He's also been very successful in the private sector, private enterprise, and that's a rare combination in American politics. The most important job of a president is to be a good decision-maker, and someone who has been successful in both politics and business is clearly a good decision-maker.

"I'm an admirer of his, and I think he'll be a fine president. He'll be a significant upgrade over the person who is president now."

NRO: "Did you vote in the Florida primary?"

RUBIO: "I did."

NRO: "Did you vote for Romney?"

RUBIO: "I always keep my primary votes a secret, unless I'm openly endorsing, because then it's a cute way of saying I endorsed or I didn't. Unless I'm endorsing in a primary, I never announce who I voted for."

NRO: "Were you tempted, at any point, to formally endorse earlier?"

RUBIO: "No, I thought primaries were good, and I think the primary has been exactly what I thought it would be, a way to make our party stronger in the long run. Like all primaries, it has forced our candidates to address the issues and take specific positions on the campaign trail. Voters have something to hold you accountable to [once you're in office]. I think Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich have a lot to be proud of, and they have made contributions to the Republican party and our chances of winning in November. To some, all the back-and-forth may seem painful in March and February, but I think in October it's going to make us a stronger party. Both of these candidates have contributed greatly; they have nothing to be ashamed of, and a lot to be proud of. This is not anything personal about either of them. But I think once they both admitted that the only path to victory was a floor fight in August, I felt that it was time to get behind the winner of our primary, and that's Mitt Romney."

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