Republican Presidential Candidate Marco Rubio finished up a whirlwind tour of the state of Virginia with a final stop in the Roanoke Valley on Sunday where he worked up a crowd of roughly 2000 supporters into cheers and the occasional frenzy.
The rally was supposed to begin at 8:30 PM in Roanoke College’s Bast Center but Rubio’s flight and ensuing motorcade was running an hour behind after three other stops in the state.
The candidate began the day in northern Virginia at a rally in Loudoun County and then headed south to James River High School in Midlothian before going East to Virginia Beach in the early evening and then finally heading all the way across the state to Salem.
Many in the crowd had been waiting since 5 pm to hear Rubio’s latest stump speech – which included the usual “meat for the lions” one-liners that are normally reserved for such events.
Indeed, the more Rubio focused on calling out front runner Donald Trunp for having no real policies in support of his generalized rhetoric of being “great again” and “winning” the more the crowd roared their approval.
Rubio called Trump a “con-man” and said he was “running the biggest scam in American history” adding, “As last week’s debate showed us, it’s kind of hard to have a policy debate with someone who has no real policies . . . “
Rubio also threw a few personal comments back at Trump who has often criticized Rubio for his height. The crowd seemed to enjoy the offhanded comments about the New Yorker’s hair and “spray tan.”
As of Monday afternoon Rubio had closed Trump’s lead while also out-distancing Ted Kruz with combined (Huffpost Polster) poll numbers showing Trump with 39%, Rubio with 24% and Cruz with 17%.
