Leaked Bush Document Says Rubio Is 'Risky Bet'

It also cryptically refers to some skeletons in Rubio's closet
By Michael Harthorne,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 30, 2015 1:42 PM CDT
Leaked Bush Document Says Rubio Is 'Risky Bet'
A leaked Jeb Bush campaign document throws major shade at fellow GOP candidate Marco Rubio.   (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

The Jeb Bush campaign threw some major shade at opponent Marco Rubio in a PowerPoint presentation for donors obtained by US News & World Report. The campaign met with donors Monday in Houston hoping to reassure them that Bush isn't as doomed as he may appear. (That perception got worse with Wednesday's debate.) Afterward, the campaign released a 45-page copy of the PowerPoint presentation it gave to donors to a handful of reporters. But US News managed to obtain the full 112-page version. "The document provides a rare behind-the-curtain look at the gritty details of a campaign at a crucial inflection point," US News states.

The presentation released to reporters already called Rubio "the GOP's Barack Obama," but US News reports the full version includes some even more pointed and specific jabs at the senator's character and ethics. In fact, there's an entire slide devoted to Rubio with the title "Marco is a Risky Bet." Bullet points on the slide refer to Rubio's "misuse of state party credit cards, taxpayer funds," and links to "scandal-scarred former Congressman David Rivera" and a billionaire auto dealer Norman Braman, who is a major benefactor. The latter relationship "raises major ethical questions." The juiciest bullet point reads: "Those who have looked into Marco's background in the past have been concerned with what they have found." A Bush aide tells US News that refers to worries cited by Mitt Romney's team while vetting Rubio for vice president in 2012. Read the full leaked document here. (More Jeb Bush stories.)

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