Poll: Marco Rubio Tops Jeb Bush, Rob Portman in VP Ratings

Exclusive: Dems Dump Opposition Research on Top VP Contenders

Jul 132012

Brendan Hoffman/Scott Olson/Getty Images/US Senate(WASHINGTON) — Mitt Romney and his team in Boston aren’t the only ones feverishly vetting potential running mates.

In a non-descript Washington, D.C., office building within sight of the United States Capitol, a team of more than a dozen Democratic researchers have spent the last few months examining every nook and cranny of the records of several GOP vice presidential contenders.

The researchers work for the super PAC, American Bridge 21st Century, which is unveiling a new website on Friday called VeepMistakes.com. The site features more than 1,300 pages of opposition research and scores of video clips.

Political prognosticators can only speculate who is on Romney’s short-list, but now we know who the Democrats are preparing to target. The super PAC is shining their spotlight on three of the mostly likely contenders: former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, Ohio Sen. Rob Portman and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio.

Their research files, which the group is making public for the first time, also offers a sneak peek at the attacks the Democrats are poised to use against whichever potential V.P. ultimately gets the nod from Romney.

The American Bridge file on Portman, who has been the subject of more speculation than just about anyone else, runs nearly 350 pages. It includes sections on the Ohio senator’s legal career, his stints in prior presidential administrations and a rundown of his public statements on a raft of issues — from education to gun control to gay and lesbian rights.

The image of Portman that emerges from the briefing book, which the super PAC has posted online in full, is of a Bush-loving, deficit-increasing, subsidy-hating lobbyist.

The Portman file, like the 492-page document for Pawlenty and the 555-page one for Rubio, includes an executive summary of “Top Hits” — the information that American Bridge considers most troublesome for each of the potential running mates. Among Portman’s “Top Hits,” the group details where the Ohio senator “diverges with Romney on key budget and tax issues.”

American Bridge decided to release the information before Romney picks his running mate in order to give fellow Democrats, as well as the press, a head-start on examining the major vulnerabilities of each of the contenders.

“In 2008 nobody was prepared for the disaster that was vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. And while even Mitt Romney couldn’t top that pick, the front runners he’s considering are all deeply flawed in their own right,” said Rodell Mollineau, president of American Bridge. “This year we are going to make sure that the public has as much information as possible, as early as possible, on the extreme and out of touch positions of the candidates Mitt Romney would put a heartbeat away from the presidency.”

In addition to the written material, the super PAC, which was formed primarily as a tracking and research organization, is making public large amounts of video footage of the three vice presidential hopefuls. American Bridge trackers have been following Pawlenty since May 2011, Rubio since this February and Portman since May.

Report: Is Condoleezza Rice Romney’s Top VP Candidate?

Jul 132012

ABC News(NEW YORK) — The Drudge Report, the conservative website, reports Thursday night that there is a new front-runner to be Mitt Romney’s running mate: Condoleezza Rice.

The Romney campaign has not commented on the report. Drudge has long appeared supportive of the Romney campaign and there are ties between the site’s founder, Matt Drudge, and Romney staffers.

Rice, who was secretary of state under President George W. Bush and is now a professor at Stanford University, is on vacation this weekend, according to her spokesperson. But there has been more and more buzz about this on the blogosphere and at some news outlets.

The Washington Post published an op-ed this weekend about how some conservatives view Rice favorably because she’s the “anti-Palin,” and then Bill Kristol predicted that she is a front-runner, because Ann Romney told CBS that they are considering a woman vice presidential candidate.

Rice has repeatedly, steadfastly maintained that she not only doesn’t want to be VP, she doesn’t want to run for any elected office. But maybe she is changing her mind, or maybe she is being “drafted” into considering it?

A sample of her denials came in an interview with CBS News on June 26.

“There is no way I would do this,” Rice said. “I didn’t run for student council president. I don’t see myself in any way in elected office. I love policy. I’m not particularly fond of politics.”

Also, there’s the question of her policies. While she has the foreign policy experience to complement Romney, some of her domestic positions could be an issue.

On immigration, Rice has given speeches over the last year, publicly lamenting that the Bush administration couldn’t get immigration reform passed. Her favorite talking point? “When did immigrants become the enemy?”

On abortion, she is well to the left of Romney, who in mid-life turned against abortion rights. In a 2008 interview with CBS News’ 60 Minutes, Rice described herself as “mildly pro-choice.”

While she has previously endorsed Romney, Rice has not, like other potential vice presidential picks, campaigned with him. She has been the featured speaker at a few fundraisers and has given rousing speeches at closed events, but she’s hardly been an attack dog against the Obama administration.

Rice has focused more on why she likes Romney in interviews. And her statements of public criticism of the president have been intellectual and thoughtful, rather than emotionally-charged like other potential VP picks.

Marco Rubio Not Being Vetted to Be Mitt Romney’s Running Mate

Jun 192012

Joe Raedle/Getty Images(MIAMI) — Even before the Republicans chose a presidential nominee it was widely assumed that Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., would be at the top of anybody’s list of vice presidential candidates. The reasons are obvious: Not only is he young, charismatic and wildly popular with conservatives, but he could also help Republicans win a key state (Florida) and make inroads with Hispanics.

But knowledgeable Republican sources tell ABC News that Rubio is not being vetted by Mitt Romney’s vice presidential search team. He has not been asked to complete any questionnaires or been asked to turn over any financial documents typically required of potential vice presidential candidates.

Although it is possible that Rubio may yet be asked to go through the vetting process, it has been nearly two months since Romney named his long-time aide Beth Myers to run his vice presidential search. The fact that Rubio has not been asked to turn over any documents by now is a strong indication that he is not on Romney’s short list of potential running mates.

Officially, the Romney campaign has no comment. And Rubio has refused to make any comment when it comes to vice presidential questions.

As Rubio spokesman Alex Conant told ABC News, “We have no comment on the vice presidential search process.”

The news will be disappointing to prominent conservatives — including Sen. Jim DeMint and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush — who have been openly encouraging Romney to pick Rubio.

“Marco would bring incredible energy,” Bush told ABC News on June 1. “He’s the most articulate spokesman for conservative principles in American today, and he is my friend, so I am a little biased. I think he would be extraordinary.”

Whether or not he is on Romney’s short list, Rubio has already been an asset to the Romney campaign. In virtually every interview he has done recently, Rubio has praised Romney and defended him on issues ranging from taxes to immigration. And on Tuesday night, Rubio plans to take part in a fundraiser for Restore Our Future, the Super PAC supporting Romney.

Potential VP Pick Sen. Portman Still Unknown to Many in His Own State

Jun 182012

Alex Wong/Getty Images for Meet the Press(NEWARK, Ohio) — Among Washington, D.C. political insiders, Ohio Sen. Rob Portman is considered one of the most likely to be picked as Mitt Romney’s running mate.

But, in northeastern and central Ohio, even among the GOP faithful, his name draws more question marks than exclamation points.

Theresa, Tami and Tim Clark, siblings from Lancaster, Ohio, stood in a sunny town square in Newark on Sunday waiting for Romney to arrive and address the assembled crowd. All three were supportive of Romney, though Tim said he drove the 26 miles to see what Romney has to say “straight on” instead of relying on what he gets from TV ads and news reports.

When asked what they thought about Portman as a potential VP pick, Theresa admitted she didn’t know much about him.

“What state is he from?” she asked.

Her brother Tim, replied that “he’s a senator or a representative” from Ohio.

But, while she knew nothing of Portman, Theresa had heard of one potential VP candidate that intrigued her.

“I like [Florida Sen. Marco] Rubio,” she said.

Cathy Ford and Cynthia Johnson were also on hand for Romney’s Newark speech. Both are strong Romney supporters. Neither knew much about Portman either.

If Romney picked Portman, Cathy said, “it wouldn’t influence their vote.” Even so, they said that they “trust Romney will make the right choice,” in his running mate.

Portman represented Cincinnati from 1993 until 2005 when he was picked as U.S. Trade Representative. He was elected to the Senate in 2010. A poll taken by Quinnipiac University in May found that 59 percent of Ohio voters hadn’t heard enough about the freshman senator to give an opinion on him.

Perhaps the most telling example of Portman’s anonymity came from an event earlier Sunday morning in Brunswick, Ohio. Romney, his wife Ann, and two of their sons were doling out hotcakes for rain-soaked supporters. Portman stood close by cooking up some of the pancakes.

Standing with a crowd of Romney supporters, ABC News’ political director Amy Walter overheard a man asked if the “gray haired” guy flipping the pancakes was Romney’s son Tagg.

No, replied another person in the crowd, “that’s Senator Portman.”

Poll: Marco Rubio Tops Jeb Bush, Rob Portman in VP Ratings

Jun 082012

Joe Raedle/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — Jeb Bush and the far less well-known Rob Portman draw more negative than positive reviews as potential Republican vice presidential nominees. Moderates and swing-voting independents give Bush trouble and conservatives and Republicans make it tough for Portman, according to the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll.

Another potential candidate, Marco Rubio, fares better — albeit with just a split decision — as Mitt Romney’s 2012 running mate. Rubio receives more positive than negative responses among his fellow Hispanics, though with a third undecided.

Americans by 45-36 percent express an unfavorable rather than favorable opinion of Bush, the former Florida governor, for the slot, and by 30-19 percent say the same about Portman, the junior U.S. senator from Ohio. It’s a closer 32-29 percent on Rubio, Florida’s junior senator.

This poll, produced for ABC by Langer Research Associates, finds room to move, especially for Portman and Rubio: Large numbers, 51 percent and 39 percent, respectively, have no opinion of them. That declines to 19 percent for Bush, better known through his governorship from 1999-2007 and his father’s and brother’s presidencies.

Notably, independents respond more unfavorably than favorably to the prospect of a Bush nomination for the vice presidency by a 10-point margin — 46-36 percent. Independents divide essentially evenly, by contrast, on Rubio and Portman alike. (Democrats and liberals are broadly negative on all three, but particularly so on Bush.)

Bush is also weak among moderates, who see his participation on the GOP ticket unfavorably rather than favorably by a broad 56-29 percent. Moderates divide more closely on Rubio (negative by a non-significant 6-point margin), and essentially evenly on Portman.

Portman, though, has his own difficulties: Republicans only split evenly on the prospect of his selection, 21-22 percent, favorable-unfavorable. That compares with a 44-point margin among Republicans in positive versus negative responses to a Bush candidacy, and 32 percentage points for Rubio.

That in turn reflects a comparative weakness for Portman, who’s generally known as a moderate, among conservatives. They respond more unfavorably than favorably to Portman for vice president by a 9-point margin — 26-17 percent. By contrast, conservatives respond more positively than negatively to Bush by 18 points and to Rubio by 15.

True to their partisan predispositions, Democrats and liberals see Bush negatively rather than positively for the nomination by 69-16 percent and 61-26 percent, respectively. Democrats side against Rubio by 50-16 percent and Portman by 46-14 percent; liberals against Rubio by 49-20 percent and against Portman by 44-21 percent.

As noted, Hispanics look favorably on a Rubio candidacy by 41-26 percent (with a third undecided), while dividing about evenly on Bush and Portman alike.

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