Sen. Marco Rubio is leaning toward running for president over seeking re-election to the Senate, telling senior aides to plan as though he’ll seek the White House in 2016.
The Washington Examiner has confirmed that the Florida Republican has hired a finance director to helm fundraising for a possible presidential campaign, bringing on Anna Rogers, who has served in the same position for American Crossroads, the premier GOP super PAC that has raised hundreds of millions of dollars since launching during the 2010 election cycle. Rogers will join Rubio’s political action committee, Reclaim America, next month.
Perhaps more revealing about his 2016 plans, Rubio intends to skip votes in the Senate next week so that he can make multiple fundraising stops in California, Texas and Chicago, part of a stepped-up political travel schedule that will take him to key early presidential primary states in February. Rubio’s planning and latest moves were first reported by ABC News on Friday.
This weekend, Rubio’s slate of political activity is full. On Friday and Saturday, he is in Miami for a fourth annual retreat for supporters and donors to his joint fundraising committee, comprising his PAC and Senate re-election committee. Republicans headed to the event expect Rubio could drop further hints about his 2016 intentions.
Then on Sunday, Rubio will be in Palm Springs, Calif., to mingle with major conservative donors and participate in a forum of possible presidential candidates at an event organized by billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch.
