Marco Rubio needs to come out of this next month's primaries having secured a spot in the top three—and preferably in the top two—in order to keep establishment Republicans' hopes alive of having a candidate who can keep the nomination from Donald Trump or Ted Cruz. So Rubio, or his "uncoordinated" (cough, cough) Super PAC, is taking to New Hampshire's airwaves and "sets the standard for negative ads" attacking everyone. Everyone, that is, except Donald Trump.
New Hampshire TV viewers are now watching Cruz's face squeezed into a Canadian maple leaf.
That ad complements (without coordination) an attack from Rubio's presidential campaign. Young Rubio volunteers have been appearing at Cruz events, asking reporters not to use their names, and dropping off literature that accuses Cruz of a plan to implement "European-style taxes." […]
But Conservative Solutions is not limiting its targets. Radio listeners and TV watchers are also frequently subjected to a spot—60 seconds and 30 seconds, respectively—that portrays the gubernatorial record of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) in apocalyptic tones. The radio version also differs in its closing tag: "High taxes, a weak economy and scandals. That's the last thing we need in the White House — again." There's no "again" on TV. […]
Rubio is only the latest in a long, proud history of candidates going negative to bolster their positions. What's notable about his multi-pronged attacks in New Hampshire is just how many directions they're going in—and how they ignore the state's front-runner, Trump.
Nasty pretty much is the watchword for the entire Republican slate, and pipsqueak Rubio isn't going to be left out of the mix. But there's also the fact that he doesn't have a whole lot on the positive side to draw from in order to build himself up. He's the junior senator from Florida, and to say he hasn't distinguished himself in his Senate career is an understatement. He hasn't shown up at work enough to do so.
Attacking the rest of the candidates really is all he (or his "uncoordinated" Super PAC) have in this fight. That and the hopes and dreams of the establishment, who need an alternative—any alternative—to Trump and Cruz.