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Political narrative watch: Were Marco Rubio’s parents immigrants or political exiles?

avatar by Published Oct. 25, 2011 1:49 pm

The Washington Post | Politico | The Miami Herald
Responding to a Washington Post story that reported he had embellished the facts of his family’s emigration from Cuba, U.S. Sen Marco Rubio said Monday on “The O’Reilly Factor” that “I don’t need to embellish my narrative. My narrative is very simple: I am the son of exiles and of immigrants, and that has framed my political thought.” The Post reported last week that Rubio’s family came to the U.S. in 1956 — when Fidel Castro was in Mexico, plotting a return to Cuba — rather than after Castro had come to power, as Rubio has said and as his Senate biography claimed. “The supposed flight of Rubio’s parents has been at the core of the young senator’s political identity,” wrote Manuel Roig-Franzia in the Post. “The real story of his parents’ migration appears to be a more conventional immigrant narrative, a couple who came to the United States seeking a better life.” The Miami Herald’s Marc Caputo criticized Roig-Franzia’s distinction. “Regardless of when his parents left Cuba, they were exiles because they stayed in the United States, specifically Miami, in a community where they soon felt they couldn’t go back to their homeland.” Don’t be surprised to see a war of words — exile vs. immigrant — should Rubio seek higher office.

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  • http://profiles.google.com/rp509855 Rod Paul

    Neither Poynter nor St. Pete Times exposed Rubio’s disinformation.

    If you don’t even understand the difference between aggregation and original reporting, how do you expect anyone to take serious your claims of bias?

  • http://profiles.google.com/rp509855 Rod Paul

    No, but neither were stories by pseudo-con writers… because no one knew about her health insurance details until the biography came out this year.

    And no one questioned Rubio’s version until someone actually dug up the facts.

    Never attribute to malicious conspiracy that which can be explained by simple ignorance.

  • Anonymous

    despite what is said here, biden is NOT “trying to get the press credentials of the editor of Human Events pulled.” repeat NOT.

  • F. Douglas

    I also couldn’t tell if the WaPo story on Obama was played as prominently as the one on Rubio. It certainly is a lot shorter — even though Obama is a more important figure in the overall scheme of things. One almost gets the feeling that WaPo is handling it like a hot potato, trying to keep it short and to the point. Was the story on page 1 or buried inside?

  • F. Douglas

    I also couldn’t tell if the WaPo story on Obama was played as prominently as the one on Rubio. It certainly is a lot shorter — even though Obama is a more important figure in the overall scheme of things. One almost gets the feeling that WaPo is handling it like a hot potato, trying to keep it short and to the point. Was the story on page 1 or buried inside?

  • http://twitter.com/HotCornerBlues Gary

    That’s not a difference that makes a difference.

  • http://twitter.com/HotCornerBlues Gary

    BS! You both show a liberal bias. You don’t have to call a meeting when you all already think alike.

    And do you deny that the Times endorsed Crist? Didn’t think so.

  • Anonymous

    why is it that everytime something negative is reported about a conservative, it is a conspiracy of the big, bad libral media? if the so-called “liberal media” were as all pervasive AND POWERFUL as the rightists claim, we wouldn’t have had two terms of the bushter. 

  • http://www.poynter.org Poynter

    Gary,
    While Poynter owns controlling stock in the St. Pete Times, the two institutions function independently. Both organizations are overseen by the same chairman (Paul Tash), but we have nothing to do with their endorsements. –Julie

  • http://twitter.com/HotCornerBlues Gary

    One more thing, Poynter via the St. Petersburg Times endorsed Charlie Crist in 2009. So, yeah, no bias here.

  • http://twitter.com/HotCornerBlues Gary

    So Obama’s been telling this story since 2007, and the liberal media finally gets round to fact checking it in 2011. Awesome. Just awesome.

  • http://twitter.com/HotCornerBlues Gary

    Was this story from 2008? Didn’t think so!

  • http://twitter.com/HotCornerBlues Gary

    Were these stories from 2008?

  • Anonymous

    Here’s another story on this from the “liberal media.”

    “Obama claims Dunham was denied coverage because of a preexisting condition, she was actually only denied disability coverage.
    The revelation is not being denied by the White House.”

    http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/07/obama-misstated-story-about-mothers-health-care-new-book-says/

  • Anonymous

    Here’s another story on this from the “liberal media.”

    “Obama claims Dunham was denied coverage because of a preexisting condition, she was actually only denied disability coverage.
    The revelation is not being denied by the White House.”

    http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/07/obama-misstated-story-about-mothers-health-care-new-book-says/

  • Anonymous

    Ah, yes…the “liberal media” ignored the story.

    Here’s a story in the “liberal” Washington Post headlined “Obama’s mother had health insurance, according to biography.”
    http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/obamas-mother-had-health-insurance-according-to-biography/2011/07/14/gIQAUFm7EI_story.html

    Any other “liberal media” conspiracies you’d like to expose?

    There’s this wonderful tool called Google. I suggest you use it.

  • Anonymous

    “Parents” is plural and should not have an apostrophe. I knew that!

  • Anonymous

    BTW — BIDEN is trying to get the press credentials of the editor of HUMAN EVENTS pulled for the confrontational interview in the Senate gallery. Why isn’t Romenesko+ all over this???

  • Anonymous

    Miami in the 1950′s – before Castro seized power – was full of Cubans who were called “exiles.”
    http://randompixels.blogspot.com/2011/10/is-marco-rubio-liar.html

    Who is to say Rubio’s parent’s weren’t exiles?

  • Anonymous

    “I think Rubio’s aspirations for higher office just went the way of Anthony Weiner’s.”

    You think THIS is comparable to WeinerGate? When Joe Biden plagariazed and Obama told a fib about food stamps?

    LOL!

  • http://twitter.com/HotCornerBlues Gary

    Funny how the liberal news media ignored how Obama embellished the story about his mother’s health insurance coverage.

  • http://twitter.com/HotCornerBlues Gary

    Funny how the liberal news media ignored how Obama embellished the story about his mother’s health insurance coverage.

  • http://twitter.com/RufferinAK Terry Del Bene

    Hmmmm…. my great uncle (who had married a Cuban woman) was imprisoned as a “guest” of Castro for years before the family could buy his freedom.  We couldn’t buy Cuban cigars but the government didn’t interfere with buying uncle Frank out of a Cuban prison.   I’m sure it was a great “hardship” on Rubio’s family to have been safely out of Cuba before the communist takeover.  Exile can be a voluntary absence from one’s country but the Rubios moved here to become citizens before the bad old days when my Uncle was imprisoned.  There are two definitions for exile, the first which involves involuntary removal and the second which is a voluntary removal.  Senator Rubio likes to play a game with that second definition for exile and pretend it’s the first.  I think it shows a character flaw in that he’ll pretend to be anything if it promotes his career.  If I were him I’d change the story to the more correct, expatriots   If my Uncle were still alive he’d probably have a few rather pointed things to say about Senator Rubio trying to hitch his wagon to that of the real exiles.  I think Rubio’s aspirations for higher office just went the way of Anthony Weiner’s.

  • http://twitter.com/FlaFan FlaFan

    During the 1950s, South Florida became home to people who fled Cuba during the regime of Fulgencio Batista, who often used brutal means to repress his opposition. Though the United States still had diplomatic relations with Cuba during the Batista regime, the Cubans who came to South Florida were considered refugees.
    But those who fled the Castro regime often make for a more compelling political narrative because of Castro’s actions and influence, and subsequent longevity – and local politicians know it.
    So it’s not a matter of simply saying the Rubio family came here as “immigrants” or “refugees.” Of course, if there are records available of the entry, Marco Rubio should release them. If his parents sought asylum, the records would say so.
    Reporters outside of South Florida need to learn to thread the needle when it comes to identifying how and when someone came here.

  • Anonymous

    A portion of the predominantly liberal media is attempting to politically nullify Rubio in anticipation of his likely pick to be the GOP nominee in 2012 for VP.

    He could bring with him Florida and a huge chunk of Catholic and Hispanic voters. This would end the reign of Obama.

    This makes him a threat to the machines of Obama and Clinton. The people attacking Rubio — subtlely, for now — are a bizarre combination of Democratic operatives, liberal mediaites and “birthers,” who believe no one with foreign-born parents is a natural-born citizen.

    –bm