Sen. Marco Rubio is actually making his State of the Union rebuttal disaster worse by offering up a series of excuses that demonstrate he is not ready to be president.
Sen. Rubio ran to Fox and Friends to get love, and unleash his attempt at damage control. However, his spin may end being more damaging than the gaffe.
Here is the video from Fox News:
To get more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily.
When asked about “Watergate” by Steve Doocy, Rubio said, “Well, ah, you know, listen, my mouth got dry and I had to get some water. You know, when you give a speech you have a podium, and the water’s right there, but when you don’t you start looking around where am I going to get the water from. I figured I would be better off taking the water and taking the hit for it than being unable to pronounce my words. It’s been a long day at work. We already done an 18 minute interview in Spanish, and my mouth got dry. What can I say? But I was happy with the overall what we were able to deliver in the speech.”
In case you missed it, here is Rubio falling apart while delivering the Republican State of the Union rebuttal:
Sen. Rubio’s explanation on Fox News actually made things worse, because his excuses demonstrated that he is not ready to be the national stage. Rubio stopped in the middle of his speech so awkwardly because he didn’t have a podium? Apparently, this lack of a podium made it impossible for him to finish his thought before he reached for the water. Rubio’s excuse that it had been a long day at work doesn’t wash either.
Do you know who else has a long day at work?
For the President of the United States, everyday is a long day at work.
The biggest shocker in Rubio’s spin is that he thinks the rebuttal went well. Behind his shaky flop sweat filled performance was a speech that could have been delivered by Mitt Romney on the campaign trail last fall. Part of that speech, the free enterprise stuff, was delivered regularly by John McCain in 2008.
Sen. Rubio was a total disaster because the party he was representing is a total disaster. Until Republicans get some new ideas that go beyond saying the words middle class and immigration in their speeches, nothing is going to change.
Politicians are often defined by the image created by their first impression, and the national impression of Rubio will now be that of a terrified third grader standing up in front of the class and delivering a book report.
A little tour of the morning shows won’t make this go away, and the fact that the Republicans threw Rubio on to the national stage before he was anywhere close to ready displays their utter and total desperation.
Sen. Rubio’s excuses are even worse than the “Gulp Heard Round the World.” If Rubio can’t handle a long day of work in the Senate, he definitely won’t be able to handle the long days of work required of a president.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
