Sen. Marco Rubio’s ‘Marcomentum’ propels him to second place fin

To him, the trio of endorsements for Rubio carried some weight. Except when they do.

What gave Rubio a late boost was Haley’s endorsement this week, which Rubio, Bush and Texas Sen.

Mrs Haley, one of the state’s most popular Republicans, endorsed Mitt Romney for president in 2012.

Cruz aide: Rubio must win S.C. In fact, there was known to be bad blood between Team Haley and some of Rubio’s people dating back to their time as local operatives in SC, which might have explained the “amnesty” attack.

He told the crowd that he is proud of the field of GOP candidates.

There’s irony in that diverse image.

“Thank you, South Carolina”. “We have everybody – social conservatives, retirees, military families, entrepreneurs”. The poll found Trump at 36 percent, with Rubio leading Cruz in the second position by 19 to 18.

The photo op at the end of Marco Rubio’s Greenville rally Thursday morning was the stuff GOP dreams are made of.

“Endorsements are overrated at this point, but there’s no question that the picture of the Indian-American governor and the African-American senator and the Latin-American senator is something that seems to have some appeal”, said Felkel, who is unaligned in the race.

And if Cruz is the avatar of tea-party conservatism in the 2016 race, a damaged Cruz means damaged hopes that his outsider brand of no-holds-barred conservatism can reach the Oval Office.

“This endorsement is a big get”.

Rubio also thanked former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush after the two-term governor suspended his campaign for the presidency.

The Haley endorsement, Harris argued, was proof that Rubio could still turn things around.

Marco Rubio finished a distant second to part-time Palm Beacher Donald Trump in Saturday’s South Carolina Republican primary.

After a mistake-free debate, where he drew praise from the media and took a veiled swipe at Trump by defending George W. Bush, Rubio sought to capitalize on that performance by holding a major rally the next day. As the Florida senator often says on the stump, the national party wanted then-Republican Gov. Charlie Crist instead. “Not old white men”.

“But now, practically speaking, it’s down to three”, Rubio said Saturday night. “He’s level-headed, not a hot-head”, she adds, calling Trump “a large hot-head”.

They have communicated while Rubio has been on the trail.

“Rubio just comes across as a little young, maybe that’s a negative”, says Mr. Webster, a retired surgeon. “It was all about what was going to make her look good”.

“I don’t know what the word ‘establishment’ means”, Gowdy said.

Another voter at the Pawleys Island event, Corey Turner of Rock Hill, S.C., has already settled on Rubio.

“I wanted somebody with fight”. That should happen sometime soon – possibly before SC votes on Saturday. Voters may have been swayed not to vote for Mr. Carson because of the rumors, other candidates have charged. A distant fourth- or fifth-place finish would dry up contributions and could well force one or both from the race.

Rubio also suggested it was only a matter of time before John Kasich and Ben Carson folded as well.

Allegations of dirty tricks are flying thick and fast here as well, in a state famous for them.

Haley is scheduled to appear with Rubio tonight at 6 p.m.in Chapin for a previously scheduled town hall gathering set up by the Rubio campaign.