A.G. Gancarski
Though the soft opening for the Jacksonville Marco Rubio HQ happened days ago, the official grand opening happened on Thursday night.
The keynote speakers in the packed storefront on Beach Boulevard: Marco’s older brother Mario, and Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry.
Mario Rubio told the crowd how 45 years ago when he drove his mother to the hospital to give birth, he had no inkling that baby would one day be running for President.
Mario Rubio, recognizing the uniqueness of his experience relative to Marco, reminded the crowd that his baby brother’s “policies are something this country needs.”
Mario, who worked for Curry’s predecessor in Jacksonville’s City Hall, said Marco could “unite the party” and that the country “can’t afford another eight years of a Democrat running the country.”
Mario introduced Curry, extolling him as a “man of faith,” a “man of vision” who has done “tremendous work to boost this city up,” citing the pension tax push as an example of that.
For Curry, the storefront was familiar: “this was my campaign headquarters,” the mayor said.
He then reminded the crowd that he and Marco go way back.
“In 2009, I was there” and “some of you here were in similar meetings.”
Rubio was “told by the establishment that it wasn’t his turn.” However, “Marco bucked the status quo” and “it wasn’t that long ago.”
Extolling Marco as a “family man” and a “person of faith” who is “serious about policy,” Curry then worked toward the call to action.
“Here’s how I won,” the Jacksonville mayor said. “TV and mail are important, but the ground game made the difference.”
Curry pushed the hundred or so in attendance, true believers in the Duval County brand of Republicanism one and all, to walk for Marco, to work the phones.
“Don’t let anybody tell you we’re not in this … let’s go bring this home in Florida for Marco Rubio,” Curry said, before beginning a loud Marco chant that lasted approximately 45 seconds.
That enthusiasm is similar to that of the party regulars in states that have seen the primaries come and go, but in Florida, and in Jacksonville, there is a last stand quality that can’t be denied.
The rally on Saturday was moved, as FloridaPolitics.com reported Wednesday, to a more budget-friendly facility: from an $11,000 rental space at University of North Florida to a $5,000 space at the Morocco Temple.
The campaign is running short on resources, and increasingly reliant on PACs for messaging.
All of this is to say that Rubio will need the ground game that Curry extolled, in Jacksonville, throughout Florida, and for as long as he stays in the race.
