Marco Rubio's winning by losing strategy back on track

Here we go again. Marco Rubio's moment is coming, Politico promises, as he “surges back to electrify South Carolina,” and is "at peace" with the bad debate performance that "turned Rubio’s own rhetorical brilliance into a withering caricature of a robotic, scripted young senator." His brilliance apparently is shining through once more, and his strategy for winning is back on track. Or not necessarily winning, but coming in third in South Carolina.

After a disappointing New Hampshire primary performance, the Florida U.S. senator is looking for a strong finish in the state’s Republican presidential primary.

That strong finish, according to Rubio ally U.S. Rep. Trey Gowdy of Spartanburg, could be as low as third place.

“Third is not bad here, particularly coming out of New Hampshire where his obituary was being written,” said Gowdy who, with U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of North Charleston, has endorsed Rubio and is campaigning for him around the state.

Gone is Rubio's 3-2-1 strategy, which was plotted out before people actually started voting. He was going to get third in Iowa, second in New Hampshire, and soar to a first place finish in South Carolina. Thanks to Chris Christie's debate intervention, that strategy has had to be rejiggered. Now it's 3-5-3, where he must cling by his fingertips to third place in order to live another day. 

Or until March 1, when a whole mess of states (that Rubio hasn't been campaigning in because he's bet everything on South Carolina) vote. Either way, kids, Rubio is on his way to a huge comeback—defined as third place.