by Eric Dondero

It is difficult to imagine a more perfect candidate for Libertarian Republicans than Marco Rubio. The Florida Republican Liberty Caucus has had friendly relations with him since his days as a newly elected State Rep. representing a Miami-area district in 2000. Then in 2006 he took over as State House Speaker and Libertarian Republicans worked with him on property rights and tax limitation legislation. Rubio has spoken to local RLC meetings, and sent one of his top aides to address the 2009 RLC National Convention held in Jacksonville.

He's solid free enterprise/low tax on economic issues. On social matters, he's a pro-life Catholic, but he's also a big tent Republican who recognizes that fiscal matters take precedence and are the issues that unite all GOPers.

But it's in the area of foreign policy where he most shines. A son of Cuban immigrants, Rubio is a passionate anti-Communist. From his speech at C-PAC:

"It's easy to forget how special America is... I was raised by exiles, people who lost their country to socialism. They came to America with virtually nothing -- no English, no money, no friends. They know how different America is from the rest of the world."

Most assuredly he recognizes that there's little difference between the totalitarianism of the likes of Casto, and Chavez, and the ruling Mullahs in Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, and Al Qaeda.

From Larry Thornberry of the American Spectator:

Obama may have difficulty understanding that America is in a fight with radical Islam. Not so Rubio.

"We will do whatever it takes, for however long it takes, to defeat Islamic terrorism," Rubio said to cheers. "We will punish their allies like Iran. We will stand with our allies like Israel. We will target and we will destroy terrorist cells and the leaders of those cells. The ones that survive, we will capture. We will get useful information from them."

Rubio paused here for more applause before adding, "And then we will bring them to justice in front of a military tribunal in Guantanamo, not a civilian courtroom in Manhattan."

There was a time, early on in his term, when Charlie Crist had some libertarian potential. But he got too chummy with Obama, gladly soliciting stimulus funds for Florida. He then made matters worse for many in the freedom movement by allowing 17-year old escapee from a radical islamist household, Rifqa Bary to be extradited to Ohio.

Now Rubio's the darling of the Libertarian Right. Our friends at Right Pundits put it best:

Marco Rubio is the second coming of Scott Brown, politically speaking. He’s in a lot of ways better than Brown. He’s younger, he’s good looking, he’s more conservative and he’s not afraid to take on the “establishment republicans” as he’s shown in taking on Crist. While Brown facilitated a miracle in Massachusetts, what Rubio is doing is no less miraculous.

Bottom line though, it's Florida that counts. And on that score he seems to be winning over just as many adoring fans as he now has nationally.

A new Rasmussen poll finds:

Former state House Speaker Marco Rubio continues to lengthen his lead over Governor Charlie Crist in the contest for Florida’s Republican Senate nomination.

A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely Republican Primary voters finds Rubio leading Crist by 18 points, 54% to 36%.

The August primary is still quite a ways away. But who would have ever thought a year ago, when Rubio was first making noises of running, that he'd be this far ahead, let alone in the lead at all?