Why young Christians are falling hard for Marco Rubio

Christian youth are forging a powerful connection to the Florida senator

Marco Rubio
(Image credit: REUTERS/Carlo Allegri)

Election seasons are long, especially when the news cycle is measured in tweets. In a week, Marco Rubio went from a third-place finish in Iowa to looking like a likely nominee to many in the Republican Party. But after his bad debate performance in New Hampshire on Saturday, he started to look like an amateur prematurely promoted beyond his rank.

These cycles can be larger than a week, of course. A little over a year ago, I argued that Marco Rubio's chances were underestimated. And a few weeks ago I argued that Rubio was consistently overestimated. Perhaps, during another low point in the Rubio cycle, it's worth explaining why Rubio is esteemed.

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Michael Brendan Dougherty

Michael Brendan Dougherty is senior correspondent at TheWeek.com. He is the founder and editor of The Slurve, a newsletter about baseball. His work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, ESPN Magazine, Slate and The American Conservative.