A well-funded super-PAC backing former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-Fla.) for president in 2016 is preparing attack ads targeting Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), according to a new report.
Right to Rise is readying video footage criticizing Rubio’s position on abortion and his Senate voting record, The New York Times reported.
{mosads}“Part of running for president is you have to put your big boy pants on and get vetted on the issues, so we know we can’t have a dud candidate running against [Democratic presidential front-runner] Hillary Clinton,” Mike Murphy, the super-PAC’s top strategist, told the newspaper.
“We all supported him for the Senate,” Murphy said of Rubio, Bush’s former protégé in Florida. “We all support him staying there, because he is far from proving he is ready and experienced enough to be president of the United States in a dangerous time.”
The Times said Tuesday that Right to Rise has prepared two videos for potentially attacking Rubio.
The first clip, it reported, shows voters in New Hampshire weighing in on Rubio’s missed Senate votes over federal funding for Planned Parenthood and President Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran.
The second video, it added, depicts Rubio as too extreme on abortion for victory in 2016.
The New York Times said sources claim Murphy is willing to spend up to $20 million on attacks against the Florida senator.
Bush publicly launched his criticism of Rubio during the third GOP presidential debate late last month. He has since repeatedly hit his former mentee on his Senate work and political experience.