CAMPAIGN 2012

Jeb Bush Backs Rubio for VP Nominee

Updated: March 22, 2012 | 6:32 a.m.
March 21, 2012 | 9:48 p.m.

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., talks to guests during the Hispanic Leadership Network in Miami, Friday, Jan. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz) (AP Photo/Alan Diaz)

Mitt Romney isn't the only Republican former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush endorsed today.

Speaking to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Bush said that Marco Rubio would be his pick for vice presidential nominee this fall.

"He is the best orator of American politics today, a good family man. He is not only a consistent conservative, but he has managed to find a way to communicate a conservative message full of hope and optimism," Bush said.

He described the senator from Florida, who volunteered for Bush's gubernatorial campaign, as "dynamic, joyful, disciplined, and principled."

Bush's endorsement of Romney on Wednesday indicated that the GOP establishment is finally willing to get behind the former Massachusetts governor, and establishment donors and politicians are expected to start throwing their weight behind him in the coming weeks. If Romney does take the nomination, Rubio has long been touted as high on the list of his potential running mates.

Though the tea party-backed senator has repeatedly said he wouldn't be interested in running in 2012, recent moves--like the expedited publishing date of his memoirs--have caused some to wonder if he might be warming up to the idea.

Both Bush and Rubio have been named as possible GOP torchbearers in the 2016 presidential election. But if Bush gets his way on a Romney-Rubio ticket and Romney fails to take the White House this fall, that could put Rubio ahead of the rest of the pack come 2016.

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