Marco Rubio may have billionaire mega-donor Sheldon Adelson in his corner
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) is emerging as casino magnate Sheldon Adelson's preferred candidate in the 2016 GOP primary, according to Politico's Alex Isenstadt.
The 81-year-old Adelson — the world's 18th-richest person and aspiring GOP kingmaker — considers Rubio the "future of the Republican Party" and admires his hawkish stance on Israel. The two have a fairly chummy relationship, too.
Rubio has reached out to Adelson more often than any other 2016 candidate, sources close to Adelson say, and has provided him with the most detailed plan for how he’d manage America’s foreign policy.Since entering the Senate in 2011, Rubio has met privately with the mogul on a half-dozen occasions. In recent months, he‘s been calling Adelson about once every two weeks, providing him with meticulous updates on his nascent campaign. During a recent trip to New York City, Rubio took time out of his busy schedule to speak by phone with the megadonor. [Politico]
Adelson spent roughly $100 million on the 2012 election, much of that to prop up the floundering candidacy of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. That's not quite the $300 million the Koch brothers are prepared to drop on the 2016 elections, but it's a pretty healthy start. A handful of Republican White House hopefuls plan to meet with Adelson this weekend in Las Vegas.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Elon Musk’s pivot from Mars to the moonIn the Spotlight SpaceX shifts focus with IPO approaching
-
‘Hong Kong is stable because it has been muzzled’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Magazine solutions - February 20, 2026Puzzle and Quizzes Magazine solutions - February 20, 2026
-
Judge rejects California’s ICE mask ban, OKs ID lawSpeed Read Federal law enforcement agents can wear masks but must display clear identification
-
Lawmakers say Epstein files implicate 6 more menSpeed Read The Trump department apparently blacked out the names of several people who should have been identified
-
Japan’s Takaichi cements power with snap election winSpeed Read President Donald Trump congratulated the conservative prime minister
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
