Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) on Tuesday morning said that voters who pushed him to a third place finish in the Republican Iowa caucus decided that he would be able to unify and grow the Republican party.
According to a NBC News entrance poll, Rubio earned votes from 29 percent of Iowa voters who made up their mind in the last few days, while Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) received support from 24 percent of those who recently decided and Donald Trump received 14 percent.
On ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Rubio was asked what message from his campaign encouraged voters to choose him in the last few days.
“I think people realize on the Republican side that we cannot afford — this country cannot afford — to lose this election, and that I give the party the best chance, not just to unify the conservative movement, but to grow it,” Rubio replied. “To take our message to people that don’t vote Republican now, grow our party, grow our movement, and to beat Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders.”
Rubio also criticized Cruz, the winner of the Iowa caucus, arguing that the Texas senator is not the only conservative in the race.
“Ted’s whole campaign is built on this notion that he’s the only one that’s a pure conservative, that everyone else is a RINO or a sellout. It’s just not accurate. His record is one of calculation,” Rubio said.
The Florida senator also worked in a “New York values” diss.
“He criticizes New York values, but he’s raised millions of dollars from New York City,” Rubio said of Cruz.
Rubio finished third in the Iowa Republican caucus with approximately 23 percent of the vote.