Their narratives are similar and they both frame themselves as a better option than Hillary Clinton, who they both have said that she should be indicted for her private email server. Rubio has a section on his website devoted to explaining why Clinton should be disqualified from running for president.
Both candidates have similar constituency because they both have worked in the state of Florida and are Republicans. During a Republican debate, there was a discussion about how Rubio missed a lot of votes in the United States Senate and Bush called him out on this. Bush, more recently called out Rubio for having the same position on amnesty, in regards to illegal immigration, as himself. This is a highly contentious issue in a Republican primary.
Rubio often cites the fact that Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders is a democratic socialist and Clinton is being investigated by the FBI as some of the reasons he will be able to defeat the Democrats during a general election.
The media narrative has been different for these candidates. Bush is often portrayed as someone who is a dull and boring candidate. He could not shake off the legacy of George W. Bush or the mistakes with the Iraq War. He is seen as a typical politician, who was thought to have had a better shot at winning the Republican nomination. However, with the results of the Iowa caucuses, this seems unlikely. Rubio came in third place and this puts him in a very good position. The media portrays him as a new start to the Republican Party. Although, it is less discussed that he would be the first Hispanic president in United States history. Rubio was also seen by the media, very early on, as someone who could beat Jeb Bush because of his youth and go on to win the Republican nomination.
Even though Rubio is just as establishment as Bush, he doesn't have the baggage of having Bush as his last name. Rubio and Bush also competed on super PAC contributions and other corporate donations from the Koch brothers, who spend millions of dollars donating to Republican politicians. At this time, it looks good for Rubio and he has taken advantage of the media narrative in his favor.
"If I am the nominee, we are going to beat Hillary Clinton and it won't be by the flip of a coin,"
"Bernie Sanders is a socialist," Rubio told the audience, who laughed. "I think Bernie Sanders is a good candidate for president of Sweden."
Good point about Rubio being the first Hispanic president. That narrative is often lost. I wonder why.
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