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And it's ABC with the scoop: Marco Rubio is not being vetted for Mitt Romney's Vice Presidential slot.
It's been two months since Romney named Beth Myers to head his Veep search team, and Rubio has not been asked to fill out any paperwork or turn over any financial documents, the first step in the vetting process (hopefully there's now a foreign policy test, too).
Rubio was on every political observer's shortlist, and got endorsements from statemates like Jeb Bush. Rubio is a young and energetic lawmaker who would have made a strong conservative foil to Romney, of whom the GOP is still rightfully suspicious. Rubio is expected to be the GOP's best bet for making inroads to the Latino vote, which they're in danger of losing permanently (or not), and could have helped Romney mitigate the damage of his primary positions on immigration, especially as Rubio has claimed to be drafting a conservative alternate to the DREAM Act (though he has yet to offer any specifics on it because it probably doesn't exist). Rubio also would have all but guaranteed Florida, a state Romney has to win.
On the other hand, Rubio is young enough that he could fall into the untested territory, and the GOP is a mite bit nervous about that turf for some reason. Romney also probably doesn't need Rubio to win Florida: he's already ahead, Governor Deveined Shrimp is doing everything possible to prevent non-Cuban brown-skinned people from voting, and the GOP convention will be held in the state. Obama doesn't need the state, especially not if he fires up the Latino vote in other swing states like Ohio.
Now, serious question: do we care about any of this? We might. The VP selection is the first specific decision Romney will make that he can't go back on. Romney's eventual pivot from his various primary positions was so ensured that nobody's even acting like the fact that he has two sets of positions for different voters is weird; it was always assumed that he would soften on immigration, and sure enough, here we are. Hell, Romney can't even maintain a position on whether he went to law school (#lowhangingfruit).
| Related: Mitt Romney Searches For The Anti-Palin Running Mate |
But Romney can't pivot on a VP selection. There's no choosing Marco Rubio to fire up Latinos and Floridians in June, and then switiching to Tim Pawlenty when it's pale-people Rust Belt time in October. Romney knows this, and the fact that he's not even considering Rubio means he's being extra, extra cautious about this selection. Romney's promised bold action on the economy; what's it say that his first major decision reeks of hesitancy?
PoliticOlogy, by the way, remains stallwart in its endorsement of Roger Clemens as VP.
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Follow on Twitter: @evanmcmurry | @OlogyPolitics
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