Rubio stokes 2024 chatter with planned book release

There’s a possible new entrant in the 2024 GOP book primary: Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.).

Rubio, who finished third in the 2016 GOP primary race, is set to release a new book, titled “Decades of Decadence,” on June 13 with jockeying underway for the 2024 presidential primary. The 272-page book is set to be released by Broadside Books, an imprint of HarperCollins. 

HarperCollins did not list any further details about the upcoming release by the Florida Republican. A Rubio spokesman declined to comment or provide additional details. A request for comment from Broadside Books was not returned. 

The book is Rubio’s third since he took office. His last, “American Dreams,” was released in January 2015 — only months before he launched his bid for the GOP nomination in 2016. 

Unlike 2016 though, the presidential buzz surrounding Rubio has been relatively muted, with much of the attention centered on former President Trump’s third bid in as many cycles and a possible run by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R).

Whether Rubio is interested in another presidential bid is a question in itself. Two GOP operatives indicated to The Hill that while he has not been full steam ahead on a 2024 bid, he would likely aim to be prepared in case a lane presented itself.

“It’s not just that if you try really hard and you’re the best candidate, you win,” Rubio told author David M. Drucker for his 2021 book, “In Trump’s Shadow,” about a possible 2024 campaign.

“I’m not a surfer, but I equate it a little bit to surfing: You can have the best surfboard in the world; you could be the best surfer in the world. If there’s not waves, or if you don’t time the waves, you’re not going to surf. You don’t control that part of it.”

However, a third GOP operative noted that Rubio has not made the kind of structural moves one would make in advance of a possible presidential bid. 

“His problem is he doesn’t have a base. That was the problem in ’16, but it’s worse now. The base he had then was young suburban voters,” the Republican operative said, noting that other possible candidates, including Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R), now occupy part of that real estate.

“A lot of his supporters from 2016 are with other people now, and he hasn’t done anything over the last four years to build the type of organization you’d need to show you’re running for president,” the operative continued, adding that two of his main surrogates in 2016 — former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley and Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) — are floating presidential bids of their own. 

The GOP’s 2016 bronze medal winner is fresh off securing a third term in office, defeating Rep. Val Demings (D-Fla.) by more than 16 percentage points.

Rubio has made multiple noteworthy moves since his reelection win. He was among the first Senate Republicans to call for leadership elections to be delayed, and he was the first GOP senator to say that he wouldn’t vote for a deal to end the potential rail strike that lacked support from railroad workers. 

“Here’s the reason why he could be viable. He’s just a great communicator and a very skilled candidate. He’s never lost a race, other than to Donald Trump, and he still gives the best speech in Republican politics,” the third operative continued. “The challenges are obvious, but the skill is undeniable.”

The Florida senator is by no means the only potential 2024 candidate to test the waters via the best-seller lists. Former Vice President Mike Pence, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Haley, Scott and DeSantis all have released books or are releasing books in the coming months.

News of DeSantis’s book emerged on Wednesday.