Boulder, Colo.
It was a banner night for Marco Rubio at the third Republican presidential primary debate. But the Rubio campaign is being cautious.
“I thought he had a strong performance, but he had strong performances in the first couple debates, too,” said Rubio aide Todd Harris, speaking with reporters in the post-debate spin room at the University of Colorado.
Strong enough to produce a boost in his poll numbers?
“We’re not predicting one,” said Harris.
Campaigns that come out into the spin room often try to hype how well their candidates do. And at least in what their spokesmen were saying in the spin room, the Rubio camp are trying to keep expectations low. The campaign sent out an email touting Rubio as “the clear winner,” but the media clips they promote show analysts not affiliated with Rubio making the claim. The members of Team Rubio themselves are trying to keep expectations low.
“Every single one of these debates is introducing Marco and all the rest of the candidates to the likely voter field,” said Harris.
That’s one way to put what happened Wednesday night. Another is that Rubio swatted down what felt like a last-ditch attack from his one-time mentor, former Florida governor Jeb Bush. Bush called on Rubio to resign his seat in the Senate after a moderator brought up Rubio’s absence from a large number of votes. “Just resign and let somebody else take the job,” Bush said.
Rubio was ready. “Jeb, let me tell you, I don’t remember you ever complaining about John McCain’s vote record,” he said, noting that Bush had been a supporter of McCain during the 2008 election. “The only reason you’re doing it now is because we’re running for the same position. Someone convinced you attacking me is going to help you. I can’t campaign about the future of America or attacking anyone else on this stage. I will continue to have tremendous admiration for Governor Bush, I’m not running against anyone on the stage. I’m running for president.” It was, as Jonathan Last noted, a “tactical and strategic failure” on Bush’s part.
Representing the Bush campaign in the spin room was campaign manager Danny Diaz. The almost singular message from Diaz and the campaign was that “Jeb Bush is the best candidate in the field, the best record, and the best vision.”
“Our focus tonight is Jeb Bush having an opportunity to focus on his record,” Diaz said. “I think Jeb Bush did what he had to do tonight.” Talk about trumping up your candidate’s performance!
I asked Diaz why Bush thought it worthy to criticize Rubio’s Senate voting record but not McCain’s. “I thought it was interesting he compared himself to Senator McCain,” Diaz replied, not answering the question. Again, what’s the difference between Rubio missing votes and McCain missing them? Diaz pivoted to the campaign’s talking point of the evening. “When you talk about Governor Bush’s record of accomplishment and you juxtaposition that versus one that’s largely devoid of accomplishment like Senator Rubio’s, I think there’s a difference,” he said.
As Diaz spoke, Harris and Rubio campaign manager Terry Sullivan stood behind me, watching and listening as Diaz answered question after question about Bush’s struggles in the debate and in the race. The action spoke louder than any words could: despite the Bush campaign’s money and establishment advantages, it’s Team Rubio feeling confident.
