Marco Rubio, the Florida Republican senator, has been thought of as a likely VP candidate in 2012, but his financial history could keep him out of any serious consideration to be a running mate for any of the remaining Republican presidential candidates.
Mr. Rubio has a reputation for a being a fiscal conservative and a federal spending hawk, but he currently owes more on his mortgage than his home is worth and was also the subject of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service regarding his personal use of Republican party issued credit cards, Reuters reports.
The Federal Election Commission requires candidates to file financial disclosure forms in order to qualify to run in a congressional or presidential race.
Mr. Rubio’s financial disclosure statements showed that he frequently missed payments on his $384,000 Miami home as well as a student loan from the University of Miami of over $100,000.
After Reuters ran an article profiling the popular Florida Republican’s numerous financial problems, Mr. Rubio became the subject of a trending topic on Twitter, as users placed the hash tag #Reutersfacts along with tweets either supporting or criticizing senator Rubio.
The Tea Party favorite has been mentioned by Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich to be on his “short list” of likely vice presidential running mates in 2012.
However, the negative focus on his financial situation would likely be a problem for Mr. Gingrich’s campaign which already deals with voters negative perception of his past relationship with mortgage giant Freddie Mac.
“I do not think or believe that I will be vice president of this country,” said Mr. Rubio responding to the former House speaker’s comments. “I appreciate (Gingrich’s) comments because they make one feel good.”
The Florida Democratic Party is already taking shots at Mr. Rubio’s possible future vice presidential status.
“Rubio campaigned on reining in government spending, but his own personal spending is out control,” said Brannon Jordan, communications director for the Florida Democratic Party. “He says one thing but is doing another.”
Regardless of his “personal spending” problem, the Florida senator is still being perceived as a possible vice presidential candidate. Earlier this week he released a statement criticizing Mr. Gingrich for a Spanish language ad running in Florida that was calling Mr. Romney an anti-immigrant candidate.
Shortly after Mr. Rubio’s comments, the former House speaker withdrew the ad from Florida’s airwaves.
During an appearance on CBS News Thursday, Mr. Rubio declined to state which candidate he feels appeals more to Hispanic voters in Florida. He also reiterated his feeling that he will not be selected as a vice presidential candidate by the eventual Republican nominee.
