Rubio Swearing In Set For Wednesday
WASHINGTON (CBS4) - Florida's newest U.S. Senator is set to take office Wednesday when Vice President Joe Biden officially swears in Republican Marco Rubio.
The one-time long-shot candidate had a rapid rise to fame in the Republican Party during his run for the Senate. Rubio, a former Florida House Speaker, upended then Florida Governor Charlie Crist's run for the Senate twice, once in the primary and once in the general election.
Rubio was powered in no small part by the rise of the "tea party" furor over taxation which was a response to the economic recession gripping the country for the last 3 years.
During his acceptance speech, Rubio signaled a certain degree of bi-partisanship he hoped to see in Washington. But, his staff is almost solely Republican insiders, which clashes with bi-partisanship and the "tea party" desire to strip Washington insiders of power.
Senator Rubio will be walking into a firestorm of partisanship when he starts his job Wednesday.
The GOP-led House of Representatives has scheduled a vote to repeal health care reform, despite it having no chance of passing either the Senate or being able to overcome a Presidential veto.
The House is also expected to adopt rules including "deem and pass," which the GOP used to criticize heavily when the tactic was threatened against them.
In the Senate, Rubio will face a fight very quickly when it comes to the budget and the national debt. Some very conservative wings of the Republican caucus are pledging to halt the country from raising the national debt ceiling.
Rubio hasn't said one way or the other he would vote, but a vote to not raise the debt ceiling could lead to world markets considering the U.S. economy in default on debts. That could lead to massive problems for the still-struggling U.S. economy.
Rubio is considered a rising star in the Republican Party, but for him to enjoy widespread approval; he may have to eschew some of the very tea party principles and voters who got him elected to begin with.
