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Another post-debate victory lap for Marco Rubio on TV

@PatriciaMazzei

For Marco Rubio, the best part of debate night is the morning after.

Sure, he has to get up when it's still dark. But it's for good reason: to be a guest on morning news shows that give candidates who do well the night before a chance to recap their performance. It's to sort of so-called "earned" media -- free exposure, without having to pay for advertising -- that presidential contenders crave.

Wednesday morning, Rubio appeared on NBC's Today Show, CBS This Morning, ABC's Good Morning AmericaFox & Friends and NPR's Morning Edition. All asked him about immigration, the question some of his rivals had to tackle Tuesday night that didn't come to him.

Highlights:

 

On immigration: "This belief that the Hispanic community is in favor of illegal immigration is false. It's just not true.... I think all Americans want to see our immigration system work better. We want to be realistic but responsible about the people that are here illegally."

On Jeb Bush allies planning to go after him: "Obviously if we're attacked we're going to respond."

 

On immigration: "I don't oppose deporting people that are criminals, and I don't oppose deporting people that have not been in this country a very long time.... I have the most well-defined plan when it comes to immigration."

On Bush: "I am close [with him]. I admire him greatly.... Unfortunately, over the past few weeks he's chosen to attack me, but I'm not going to change my strategy."

On the Herald/Times story about the small bills he charged to his Florida GOP American Express: "It's a bureau down in Florida -- one newspaper -- that's obsessed with the story. We have revealed all the documents.... It really is a silly story.... The Republican Party never paid any of my personal expenses.... We've addressed it, and we've moved on."

 

On sugar subsidies: "I'm prepared to get rid of the sugar program. The problem is that every country in the world that grows sugar has a program.... I want us to be able to compete with other countries, but it has to be fair.

On an alleged Bush snub of Rubio in debate commercial break: "That's not what happened. We were fine.... I know it makes for an interesting Vine video, but it doesn't make for anything of meaning."

 

On doing well in the debates: "It's not an athletic competition or a cage match."

On allowing immigrants in the country illegally to obtain a work permit and apply for permanent residency after 10 years, which Rubio supports: "That is not a majority position in my party, and it's not going to be easy to do.... If you add up the years, that is a lot of years."

On his troubled personal finances in the past: "It makes me passionate about what people are facing now."

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