Adelson’s Las Vegas paper endorses GOP hopeful Rubio
The Review-Journal, purchased by the Jewish magnate last year, says Florida senator is ‘best-positioned to win the White House’
A major Nevada newspaper owned by Jewish American billionaire Sheldon Adelson has endorsed Florida Senator Marco Rubio in the state’s upcoming Republican caucus. The junior senator from Florida is considered a foreign policy hawk with views close to those of the casino magnate.
Rubio last year criticized President Barack Obama for not being sufficiently supportive of Israel, and vowed last month that his first trip abroad if elected would be to Israel
Rubio finished a strong third in this week’s Iowa caucus, behind Texas Senator Ted Cruz, who claimed first place, and runner-up Donald Trump. Nonetheless, the Las Vegas Review-Journal wrote in its editorial on Friday, “at this moment, Sen. Rubio is best-positioned to advance from the primary season and allow the GOP to win the White House on Nov. 8.”
The paper, the largest in Nevada, said it had met with “several candidates from the sizable Republican field, allowing them to distinguish their campaigns, and allowing us to try to help Nevadans determine who is best qualified to advance to the general election.”
While it praised Rubio, Ben Carson, Cruz, former Florida governor Jeb Bush and Carly Fiorina for their “outstanding ideas,” the Review noted, somewhat pithily, that it had also “made many attempts to meet with businessman and Republican front-runner Donald Trump, but he could not work an interview into his schedule.” Furthermore, the paper noted, “we made it clear to candidates that they had to meet with us to gain consideration for our endorsement.”
Adelson met with Trump in Las Vegas in December, saying afterwards that while the businessman was “charming,” he had not yet decided which candidate to endorse.
But the mogul’s Nevada newspaper made clear on Friday that a decision had been made.
“Our reasons for endorsing Sen. Rubio are many,” the paper said. “The driving force behind the 44-year-old’s compelling story is his family’s pursuit of better opportunities and a better life. The policies he champions in his campaign are intended to provide all Americans as much.”
The editorial goes on to laud Rubio’s “reasonable approach” on immigration, as well as his “electability”; furthermore, it claims, the Florida senator possesses “the ideas and the charisma to bring independents and moderates under the GOP tent.”
Adelson, who officially purchased the Las Vegas Review-Journal for $140 million on December 10 of last year, is a key mega-donor for Republican candidates in the US.
“One of the first thoughts I had was: Nevada is an early primary state. The Review-Journal is the largest newspaper in the state. Was it sold to a player in that event, or people who want to be players?” media critic and New York University professor Jay Rosen told the Review-Journal in December, as the newspaper visibly bristled at its new ownership.
A number of Republican candidates have been gunning for Adelson’s backing, which could amount to tens of millions of dollars, and be key in challenging current front-runner Trump, whose own pockets run almost as deep.
During the last presidential elections in 2012, Adelson was said to have spent as much as $100 million supporting Republican candidates.
JTA contributed to this report
