If you stripped the proper nouns from all profiles about 2016 presidential candidates, the ones about Marco Rubio would be the easiest to identify. While most candidates have one adjective that is always appended to their name, the Florida senator who just announced his campaign today has three.
He is young.
He is ambitious.
He is charismatic.
The fact that Rubio is only a few months younger than Senator Ted Cruz, or that his most memorable performance on the national stage was less than charismatic, or that all presidential candidates are by definition ambitious has not lessened the frequency at which he is described by these terms. These three less-than-insightful descriptions are probably unconsciously inserted into every appraisal of the candidate at this point, as much a part of his identity as if his name were Marco “Young Ambitious Charismatic” Rubio.
That doesn’t mean the world needs to keep doing this forever. It’s time to take a stand and find new ways of describing Rubio now that he’s an official presidential candidate. America deserves better.
Below, explore the findings of Daily Intel’s third investigation into the words people unfailingly use to describe 2016 candidates, in an effort to retire the adjectives from campaign coverage forever.
NPR
“Marco Rubio, the charismatic, Hispanic, young (and even younger looking) freshman senator from Florida is launching his campaign for the White House Monday in Miami.”
The Los Angeles Times
“After the GOP’s stinging 2012 presidential loss, strategists prescribed the charismatic, young tea party favorite as the antidote to a fractured party — someone who could even expand the base by attracting Latino voters.”
AFP
”Youthful, charismatic, and articulate on several issues, Rubio hopes to transcend the Republican Party’s reputation for difficulty in connecting with young, Hispanic or African-American voters.”
Fox News Latino
“Professor Marco Rubio: The other side of the ambitious senator”
The Week
“On paper, Rubio is a great candidate: young, charismatic, Latino, with an inspiring life story. ”
The Miami Herald
“The central challenge for Rubio is will voters again trust a young, charismatic politician whose world experience has been centered in government.”
The Tampa Bay Times
“The ambitious Floridian is now spared the intense scrutiny and pressures of a national campaign.”
National Journal
“Most significantly, Rubio is one of the field’s strongest retail politicians. He’s youthful, charismatic, and can deliver an engaging speech.”
The Washington Post
“Next week, it’s Marco Rubio’s turn. The 43-year-old senator from Florida and charismatic son of immigrants plans to declare himself a GOP candidate for president on April 13 at Miami’s iconic Freedom Tower, which served as the first stop for Cuban exiles, before an enthusiastic crowd that embodies America’s ethnic melange.”
The Daily Beast
“Rubio is a young, charismatic Cuban-American from a crucial swing state where he is beloved by conservatives.”
The Atlantic
“He’d provide the Romney ticket with youth and charisma, Tea Party credentials, and sway in the critical swing state of Florida – not to mention being the first Hispanic to sit on a major party ticket.”
Christian Science Monitor
“Young and charismatic, Marco Rubio burst onto the national scene in 2010 when he defeated then-Republican Gov. Charlie Crist to become the junior senator from Florida.”
Sun Sentinel
“He doesn’t register much in polls, but supporters insist that Rubio’s attributes – he’s a Hispanic with youth, charisma and a can-do conservatism - - are the perfect prescription for what ails the Republican Party.”
Slate
“On the final night of the Republican Convention, the young and charismatic Florida Sen. Marco Rubio got the honor of introducing Mitt Romney. ”
ABC News
”Not only is he young, charismatic and wildly popular with conservatives, but he could also help Republicans win a key state (Florida) and make inroads with Hispanics.”
National Review
“To no one’s surprise, the push to put Rubio on the 2012 ticket only increased, even though the charismatic freshman continues to swat away the chatter.”
Yahoo News
“Young, Hispanic and ambitious, Rubio had just forced former Gov. Charlie Crist, a moderate Republican, from Florida’s GOP Senate primary, seizing the party’s nomination.”
The Times
“Another Clinton presidency would be ‘a death blow to the American dream,’ one of the most ambitious Republican presidential hopefuls has claimed.”
Marco Rubio
“I have been ambitious for worldly success. I hope I have been for the right reasons.”
