Marco Rubio: Why Is the Establishment Attacking Me?

I’m not establishment, he is.

That’s the argument that presidential candidates are making on the campaign trail as they vow to take on the establishment in Washington D.C.

Sen. Marco Rubio asserted today that the establishment is actually not on his side, but rather spending money to stop him from becoming president.

“Every time I’ve ever run for office, whether it’s to the Senate or now as president, I’ve had to take on the Republican establishment and we’re doing it again now,” Rubio said in New Hampshire this morning according to Politico’s Eli Stokols. “For example, I’ve had over $20 million spent attacking me. That’s not grassroots money, that’s money from the establishment.”

Rubio was referring to money spent by Ted Cruz and Jeb Bush including their supportive Super PACS. According to the New York Times Jeb’s “Right To Rise” Super PAC has spent more than $50 million on negative ads particularly against Rubio.

But Rubio does have the support of many wealthy longtime Republican donors, including billionaire investor Paul Singer. He has also earned endorsements from several Congressional members.

The Florida Senator was questioned by reporters this morning, after Ted Cruz floated the theory that the establishment had abandoned Marco Rubio and instead was coalescing around Donald Trump.

“Right now, the Washington establishment is abandoning Marco Rubio,” Cruz said last night. “They’ve made the assessment that Marco can’t win this race, and the Washington establishment is rushing over to support Donald Trump.”