Rubio to push economic policy in Chicago

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio is set to deliver an economic policy speech in Chicago on Tuesday in an effort to distinguish himself in the crowded field of Republican presidential candidates.

“Only through an innovative economy can we translate new technologies into new middle class jobs,” Rubio will say in prepared remarks at a technology entrepreneurship hub, according to multiple reports.

{mosads}“[A]nd only through a revolutionized higher education system can we equip all our people to fill those jobs,” he said, according to prepared remarks. He is also expected to push against tax increases and government expansion.

Rubio will call for “a new president for a new age — one with original ideas to unlock the two great doors to the future: the doors of innovation and education.”

Those are thinly veiled shots at Hillary Clinton, the Democratic front-runner, and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Rubio’s one-time mentor and a fellow 2016 GOP contender, who are both many years older than Rubio, who is 44.

Following his speech, the Florida Republican will make a campaign swing through the early-voting state of Iowa and then Nevada, according to Reuters.

He has been among the top GOP candidates in polls for the past couple of months and currently stands fourth overall behind Bush, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and neurosurgeon Ben Carson in the RealClearPolitics average.