Marathon Pundit: Marco Rubio talks card check on Fox News

Marco Rubio, a Republican candidate for US Senate in Florida, was Brian Sullivan's guest on Fox News' "Your World" on Thursday. Among other things, the former state house speaker discussed the aggressive political spending by Big Labor this year.

And he paints an accurate but depressing picture of today's economy.

Here's an excerpt of their conversation:

MARCO RUBIO: It doesn’t surprise us. There’s an agenda here in this country among some on the left to expand the role of government, to convert America into a European-style economy.

I think the administration and this Congress is leading the way in that effort. And their allies politically are some of these labor unions, who are going to be funding these efforts to try to influence the elections in 2010 and beyond. So, it’s not surprising. For them, this is what — I mean, this is the cornerstone of what they believe in and what their agenda is, and it’s what this election is about.

There’s a crossroads choice for America.

SULLIVAN: I was going to say, what is wrong with that? Corporate America has been doing that for years.

RUBIO: There’s nothing wrong with it. They’re perfectly within their rights to do it.

And what’s important is that those of us who believe in the free enterprise system step up and run for office, and those who are not running for office help those candidates who are running for office to lay out a very clear argument. And that is that America can choose. We can either become like Western Europe and go down the road that they’re on right now, or we can cling and hold onto the things that have made us exceptional and unique, such as the free enterprise system, which has made Americans the most prosperous people in all of human history.

SULLIVAN: We have seen some victories. Health care obviously comes to mind. What do you think the unions want now? What is their big agenda? Is it maybe reinvigorating card check?

RUBIO: Oh, absolutely. I think that’s the Holy Grail of the labor unions, is card check, which would be devastating to America’s economy.

There’s already so much uncertainty surrounding America’s economic future. The job creators lack confidence in our future. They see all the rhetoric and the policies coming out of Washington are anti- entrepreneurial, anti free-enterprise. And so they’re not creating jobs.

I mean, private sector job growth in America has come to a virtual standstill. And so card check would be devastating, not just because of its practical implications, but because of the psychological impact it would have on those that are trying to decide whether — where to invest their money in the years to come.

Rubio's principal opponent is Governor Charlie Crist, who left the Republican Party a few months ago and is running as an independent. Lately Crist has been hinting that he could support the so-called Employee Free Choice Act, which contains labor's "Holy Grail," card check.

Related posts:

FLSen: Rubio has two point lead over Crist

Charlie Crist's flip flops and waffles tallied

Ex-Republican Crist "open" to anti-jobs EFCA

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