Florida GOP Senator Marco Rubio was until very recently considered a top contender to be chosen as Donald Trump’s running mate, but on Monday, Trump announced that the choice was Ohio Sen. JD Vance. It is now officially the Trump-Vance Republican ticket.
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Rubio seems to have accepted the decision with grace, and on Tuesday night in a primetime slot, he spoke eloquently at the Republican National Convention about the beloved father who was gunned down by deranged wannabe assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks. While the news reverberated around the world that a former and perhaps future president had avoided death by mere millimeters, it’s important to remember that an innocent and frankly wonderful-sounding man was not so lucky.
His name was Corey Comperatore, and he was a father, a husband, and a solid American citizen, and Rubio was clearly moved as he honored him. The Florida senator had audience members weeping as he spoke about faith, and about how Trump cared about regular Americans, while the Democrat elite seem to have no interest in their fate. Regular Americans like:
Corey Comperatore. He was a former fire chief. And a loving husband. He was described as the best dad a girl could ever ask for. A man of God, who loved Jesus fiercely and looked after members of his church.
Corey was one of the millions of everyday Americans who make our country great.
He wasn’t rich, he wasn’t famous. And the only reason why we know his name and story now is because last Saturday, he shielded his wife and daughter from an assassin’s bullet. And lost his life the way he lived it.
A hero.
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At this point, the crowd broke into chants of “Corey, Corey.” I’m a “girl dad”—I have three daughters in addition to a wonderful son—and as much as I don’t want to be murdered, it pains me even more to think about one of my girls having to see such an atrocity. My heart goes out to the Comperatore family.
Rubio continued:
For those still wondering who are in the press and many watching at home. These are the Americans who wear the red hats and wait for hours under a blazing sun to hear Trump speak.
And what they want, what they ask for—it is not hateful or extreme. What they want is good jobs and lower prices. They want borders that are secure and for those who come here to do so legally. They want to be safe from criminals and from terrorists. And they want for our leaders to care more about our problems here at home, and about the problems of other countries far away.
We lost a good man on Saturday:
Corey Comperatore, Hero: As a Man Does
Rubio also pointed out that while politics are important—it’s not everything.
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This was a moving, powerful speech, and brought home to us all the stakes we’re facing. While President Biden in a Monday NBC interview deflected from his incendiary rhetoric, ludicrously claiming his use of the phrase “it’s time to put Trump in a bullseye” was somehow less egregious than if he’d used the word “crosshairs,” the truth is the left has been angling for violence for a long time now.
Rubio reminded us that despite all the news coverage, the bright lights, the big moments, what it comes down to in the end is people. Regular Americans like Corey Comperatore. May he rest in peace.
I’ll end on a slightly more positive note: an online fundraiser for the Comperatore family has already raised over $1 million. It won’t bring him back, but it shows the heart of the American people.