Marco Rubio, Rand Paul, and Ted Cruz each ascended to the U.S. Senate by riding a grassroots wave of enthusiasm to defeat the Republican Party establishment’s preferred candidate in a contested primary.
Now, still in the first half of their first terms, all three young conservatives are already taking steps toward 2016 presidential runs.
The surprising thing, when viewed through a historical lens, is that none of them is being told to “wait your turn.”
For a political party that had long placed a premium on candidates with deep experience at the highest levels of government, this new crop of potential White House hopefuls is banking on the premise that the rules have changed following freshman senator Barack Obama’s 2008 victory and, perhaps more importantly, the 2010 Tea Party revolution that upended GOP politics.
In the context of a new media environment and a Republican primary process dominated (in the initial stages) by deeply ideological voters, they apparently have reason to believe it’s now or never for them.
The Citizens United Political Victory Fund was among the early supporters for each of these ambitious young senators. Looking forward to 2016, Citizens United President David Bossie told RealClearPolitics he applauds their “willingness to buck those in the old guard” and he has no concerns that they might be aiming too high too quickly.
“Senators Paul, Cruz, and Rubio are all agents of change who have real world experience and have not been corrupted by the Washington establishment,” Bossie said. “This exciting crop of new conservative leaders will no doubt bring a rebirth of the conservative movement to the 2016 presidential contest, if they chose to run.”
While presidential aspirants with Senate backgrounds have long been viewed as disadvantaged vis a vis their gubernatorial counterparts -- who are equipped with valuable executive experience -- GOP strategists told RCP that the dynamic appears to have reversed on the Republican side.
“Being in the Senate generally has never been a good springboard for the White House, but under the current environment, being a governor means you have to compromise to get stuff done, and that can be tough politically,” said one top strategist for a prospective White House hopeful. “Being a senator, especially being in the Republican minority, allows you to oppose a lot of stuff.”
This characterization of the three senators as knee-jerk obstructionists is an overgeneralization. Rubio, for instance, has already risked significant political capital in taking the lead on an immigration reform plan with uncertain prospects of success.
But what appears assured is that being a relatively new kid in town at a time when Washington is as unpopular as ever won’t be a handicap come 2016. And one high-level strategist for another prospective Republican hopeful agreed that the three freshmen will each have a leg up on the competition, an unthinkable dynamic in past presidential cycles.
“The longer you’re in Washington, the more you end up sounding like a legislator and less like a leader, so at this point, it’s probably a benefit for them that they haven’t been there too long,” the strategist said. “They can stay pure, if you will, on the conservative front. They never have to compromise. The flip side of that is that they never have to accomplish anything.”
Read more: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2013/05/06/in_gop_presidential_politics_does_experience_matter_118256.html#ixzz2SX0EctaO
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