Last night, Marco Rubio tried to dodge important questions about his record of poor management—from his worst-in-class Senate attendance to his personal finances. He was particularly brazen in his attempts to shrug off hundreds of thousands of dollars in personal debt, home foreclosure, the liquidation of a personal retirement account and the regular misuse of Republican Party funds for personal expenses. Whatever Rubio may try to say to laugh off the charges, the facts tell a cautionary tale about Rubio’s poor management instincts.
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QUICK: Senator Rubio, you yourself have said that you’ve had issues. You have a lack of bookkeeping skills. You accidentally inter-mingled campaign money with your personal money. You faced foreclosure on a second home that you bought. And just last year, you liquidated a $68,000 retirement fund. That’s something that cost you thousands of dollars in taxes and penalties. In terms of all of that, it raises the question whether you have the maturity and wisdom to lead this $17 trillion economy. What do you say?
RUBIO: Well, you just — you just listed a litany of discredited attacks from Democrats and my political opponents, and I’m not gonna waste 60 seconds detailing them all. But I’m going to tell you the truth. […] QUICK: Senator, I understand all of that. I had a lot of student loans when I got out, too. But you’ve had a windfall that a lot of Americans haven’t. You made over a million dollars on a book deal, and some of these problems came after that. RUBIO: And I used it to pay off my loans. And it’s available on paperback, if you’re interested in buying my book. [CNBC Republican presidential debate, 10/28/15] |
CHASER:
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SCARBOROUGH: “I think it was [CNBC host] Becky Quick who went down the list of proven things about Marco’s foreclosures and all of Marco’s economic problems.
Talking about lying; Marco said ‘I’m not going to answer those lies they’ve all been discredited.’ […] Marco just flat-out lied to the American people, there. And I was stunned that the moderators didn’t stop there and go, ‘Wait a second, these are court records. What are you talking about?’ […] And yet everybody’s going, ‘Oh, Marco was great.’ No, Marco lied about his financials.” [Morning Joe, MSNBC, 10/29/2015] |
“You have a lack of bookkeeping skills.”
Marco Rubio: “My lack of bookkeeping skills would come back to haunt me.” “I asked Jeanette to serve as the committee’s treasurer, putting her in an impossibly difficult situation. She didn’t accompany me on most of my trips or attend many of the events I attended in South Florida. She had to jog my memory to determine which credit card purchases were campaign expenditures, sometimes weeks after I had made them. It was an imperfect accounting system, to say the least. Years later, my lack of bookkeeping skills would come back to haunt me.” [An American Son: A Memoir, 6/19/2012]
Marco Rubio “abruptly amended his financial disclosure” after the Miami Herald noted that he failed to disclose “a $135,000 home equity loan he obtained from a bank controlled by his political supporters.” “State House Speaker Marco Rubio abruptly amended his financial disclosure forms Friday after The Miami Herald asked why they lacked a $135,000 home equity loan he obtained from a bank controlled by his political supporters.” [Miami Herald, 3/29/08]
Marco Rubio “double billed the Republican Party of Florida and state taxpayers for eight flights while he was House Speaker.” “One day after the Herald/Times received travel records from the state, U.S. Senate candidate Marco Rubio’s campaign is admitting that he double billed the Republican Party of Florida and state taxpayers for eight flights while he was House Speaker. ‘Earlier this week in response to a question from the media I stated that all my legislative travel during my tenure as Speaker was paid for by the Republican Party of Florida. However after reviewing hundreds of flights we identified 8 official state business flights which the state properly paid for. These flights total approximately $3,000. Further, it appears several of these flights were also billed to the RPOF.’” [St. Petersburg Times, 2/26/10]
“You accidentally inter-mingled campaign money with your personal money.”
Campaign for Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives
Marco Rubio: “When I received my statement, I would spend hours trying to figure out which [credit card expenditures] were political, and which were personal.” “I often used my or Jeanette’s personal credit cards to pay for many of the campaign’s expenditures. When I received my statement, I would spend hours trying to figure out which were political, and which were personal.” [An American Son: A Memoir, 6/19/2012]
State GOP credit card
Marco Rubio charged personal expenses including car repairs, grocery bills, plane tickets, wine, Apple products, and meals to his Florida Republican Party credit card. “Rubio billed the party for more than $100,000 during the two years he served as the state’s House speaker, according to credit card statements obtained by the Miami Herald and St. Petersburg Times. The charges included repairs to his family’s minivan, grocery bills, plane tickets for his wife, and purchases from retailers including a wine store near his home and Apple’s online store. Rubio also charged the party for dozens of meals during the annual lawmaking session in Tallahassee, even though he received taxpayer subsidies for his meals. Rubio said that the billings all related to party business — the minivan, for example, was damaged by a valet at a political function and that he repaid the party about $16,000 in personal expenses.” [Miami Herald, 4/22/10]
Marco Rubio “booked six plane tickets for his wife using his GOP credit card,” and “in some instances, she did not fly and Rubio was credited by the airline.” “Rubio also booked six plane tickets for his wife using his GOP credit card. It was unclear how many, if any, of those trips his wife actually took; in some instances, she did not fly and Rubio was credited by the airline. ‘My wife was the First Lady of the Florida House of Representatives and it is absolutely appropriate for her to accompany me to official events and party functions,’ Rubio said.” [Miami Herald, 2/24/10]
Marco Rubio charged $1,348 for flowers to his Florida Republican Party credit card. “Rubio’s charges are smaller than Sansom’s, from $181 at the Natural History Museum in New York to $1,348 spent on flowers to $1,000 spent at Braman Honda to repair van damage incurred at what he said was a party function. News of the spending has dampened the spirits of some donors, says Hoffman. Still, the party Thursday reported a strong fundraising quarter in which it earned $7 million in contributions.” [Miami Herald, 4/11/10]
Marco Rubio charged $133.75 on his Florida Republican Party credit card at Churchill’s, “an upscale barbershop in downtown Miami.” “Among the charges former House Speaker Marco Rubio put on his Republican Party of Florida credit card: a $133.75 trip to an upscale barber shop in downtown Miami, Churchills, on Nov. 18, 2006. Churchill’s Deluxe Shave $25 Just Relax and Enjoy! Applying Pre Shave Oil and Steaming Hot Towels will soften any tough beard. Hot Shaving Lather follows from our classic Campbells Lather King. Our Master Barbers’ talented hands will ‘carefully’ guide a Straight Razor Blade across your whiskers. Ahhh! To keep your skin nice and soft, moisturizers and Cold Towels will be applied. Just like the good ‘ol days… It’s unclear what services Rubio received.” [St. Petersburg Times, 2/24/10]
Marco Rubio spent $412 at a music store and $68 at a wine store. “Rubio’s credit card bill includes $412 spent at a Miami music equipment store; $765 spent on Apple’s online store; and $68.63 from a store called Happy Wine in Miami. Such expenses could anger Republican donors who expected that their contributions were being used for campaign expenses. They also offer ammunition for Crist’s beleaguered campaign, which for months has been taking blows from Rubio in the GOP campaign for U.S. Senate.” [Sarasota Herald Tribune, 2/26/10]
Marco Rubio “has never denied” telling a supporter he used his party credit card to temporarily finance “$4,000 to $5,000 in new flooring for his home.” “Rubio has declined to release two years of earlier party credit card statements, so we don’t know the scope of his spending. But he has never denied telling a disenchanted former supporter, political analyst Chris Ingram of Tampa, that during that period he charged to the party card – and later paid off, he told Ingram – $4,000 to $5,000 in new flooring for his home.” [Tampa Bay Times, 2/12/13]
Marco Rubio used his Florida Republican Party credit card to bill $10,000 for a family reunion. “The first Cuban-American speaker of the Florida House celebrated his 2006 swearing-in amid the white columns and wide verandas of Melhana Plantation, a historic resort that conjures the Deep South in the antebellum years. The cost for Marco Rubio’s four-day family reunion just north of the Florida-Georgia line: more than $10,000, billed to the Republican Party of Florida. When The Miami Herald and The St. Petersburg Times asked about the charges last month, Rubio blamed his travel agent for mistakenly using his party credit card to reserve the 20 hotel rooms, and said he collected checks from relatives to cover the charges.” [Tampa Bay Times, 3/23/10]
“You faced foreclosure on a second home that you bought.”
Marco Rubio faced “foreclosure on a Tallahassee house after missing five months of mortgage payments.” “Republican U.S. Senate candidate Marco Rubio is facing foreclosure on a Tallahassee house after missing five months of mortgage payments, according to a lawsuit filed in Leon County Circuit Court. But Rubio’s campaign spokesman said Rubio and David Rivera, a U.S. House candidate from Miami who co-owns the home with Rubio, have paid $9,200 owed to Deutsche Bank and the foreclosure has been withdrawn.” [Palm Beach Post, 6/17/10]
- Marco Rubio’s spokesperson attributed the five months of missed mortgage payments to “confusion.” “‘This is a jointly-owned property in Tallahassee that has been in the process of being sold. A clarification was needed on the amount owed, which has been resolved. This loan is current and the action is being withdrawn,’ said Rubio spokesman Alex Burgos. Burgos chalked up the missed payments to ‘confusion and disagreement’ that began in February about the final amount owed. ‘Because the house is under contract, it has not been able to move towards closing until this matter was resolved. Marco and the co-owner resolved this, so this process won’t go any further,’ Burgos said.” [Politico, 6/18/10]
- Marco Rubio owed $9,524 in back mortgage payments on the house. “Alex Burgos, a spokesman for Mr. Rubio’s campaign, said Mr. Rubio and Mr. Rivera were selling the home and stopped paying the mortgage during a dispute with the bank. He said they made a final payment of $9,524 on Thursday. ‘Marco and David resolved this, so this process won’t go any further,’ Mr. Burgos said.” [New York Times, 6/18/10]
Marco Rubio sold the home at an $18,000 loss. “In the past week, he sustained a new loss when he sold his second home in Florida’s capital, Tallahassee, for $18,000 less than he and a friend paid for it a decade ago. The house had previously faced foreclosure after Mr. Rubio and his friend failed to make mortgage payments for five months.” [New York Times, 6/9/15]
“And just last year, you liquidated a $68,000 retirement fund. That’s something that cost you thousands of dollars in taxes and penalties.”
Marco Rubio claimed he cashed out his retirement fund “to have access to cash” for home appliance upgrades, school expenses, and other expenditures on the campaign trail. “He said this weekend that he cashed out a $68,000 IRA last year to finance an upgrade of some household appliances and to help with school expenses for his four children. Oh, and also to just give him a little mad money on the presidential campaign trail. ‘We wanted to have access to cash in the coming year both because I’m running for president but also my refrigerator broke down. That was $3,000. And I had to replace the air conditioning unit in our home,’ the Florida Republican said on ‘Fox News Sunday.’ What’s more, he added, ‘My kids … are getting closer to college and school is getting more expensive.’” [CNN Money, 5/19/15]
CNN Money: Marco Rubio cashing out his IRA was “one of the most expensive ways to finance day-to-day needs” “The thing is, though, cashing out your IRA is one of the most expensive ways to finance day-to-day needs. If it’s a traditional IRA and you’re under 59-1/2, you’d owe both income taxes and a 10% early withdrawal penalty on the money. In Rubio’s case, that could mean he’d lose more than 40% of his money in the account. More on that later. If it was a Roth IRA he cashed out, that might have been a slightly better deal. Rubio would still owe taxes and a 10% penalty on any investment growth in the account, although not on his contributions since those were already taxed. Either way, his IRA probably wasn’t the best place to come up with some fast cash.” [CNN Money, 5/19/15]
- CNN Money: Marco Rubio could potentially have forfeited “more than a third” of his retirement account by cashing out early. “If it was traditional, he would have essentially forfeited more than a third of his withdrawal. […] Rubio’s taxable income probably put him in either the 28% or 33% federal income tax bracket. Let’s assume he’s in the 33% bracket. That means he probably had to pony up roughly $30,000 in taxes and penalties on his IRA cash-out. That means he would have netted only $38,000 from the original $68,000.” [CNN Money, 5/19/15]
“You made over a million dollars on a book deal.”
Marco Rubio received an $800,000 advance and earned $345,000 in royalties to write An American Son: A Memoir. “Marco Rubio earned $100,000 to $1 million as of Friday from his latest book, American Dreams: Restoring Economic Opportunity for Everyone, according to a financial disclosure form that the Florida senator and GOP presidential candidate’s campaign released Friday. Candidates are required to report income only in broad ranges. Rubio earned $345,000 in 2013 in royalties from his first book, the 2012 best-selling autobiography, An American Son. Rubio also received an $800,000 advance in 2012 to write the book. He has mentioned more than once that the advance helped him, the son of Cuban immigrants, erase more than $100,000 in student loan debt he carried as recently as 2011.” [USA Today, 5/15/15]
Marco Rubio spent $80,000 to purchase a new boat after receiving his $800,000 book deal. “A publisher paid him $800,000 to write a book about growing up as the son of Cuban immigrants. In speeches, Mr. Rubio, a Florida Republican, spoke of his prudent plan for using the cash to finally pay off his law school loans, expressing relief that he no longer owed ‘a lady named Sallie Mae,’ as he once called the lender. But at the same time, he splurged on an extravagant purchase: $80,000 for a luxury speedboat, state records show. At the time, Mr. Rubio confided to a friend that it was a potentially inadvisable outlay that he could not resist. The 24-foot boat, he said, fulfilled a dream.” [New York Times, 6/9/15]