Marco Rubio is Sort of Mormon
Marco Rubio would be problematic for Mitt Romney for many reasons. There's the small matter of his embellishments around the story of his parents' immigration from Cuba. There is the question of his free-wheeling ways with money that wasn't his. He pals around with wife beaters, and sometimes even hires them. But all of that would probably not stop Willard from considering Rubio for the ticket, because after the shameless pandering he has done on immigration, he needs to boost his image in the Latino community with someone they might relate to.
However, I wonder how Hispanics would react if they knew Marco Rubio was a Mormon. Now he may not be Mormon in good standing at this time, but he was baptized into the Mormon Church and was active there until he returned to the Catholic Church at age 13. Via Buzzfeed:
Rubio was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with his family at around the age of eight, and remained active in the faith for a number of years during his early youth, family members told BuzzFeed.
Rubio spokesman Alex Conant confirmed the story to BuzzFeed. Conant said Rubio returned to the Catholic church a few years later with his family, receiving his first communion on Christmas day in 1984 at the age of 13.
The revelation adds a new dimension to Rubio's already-nuanced religious history—and could complicate his political future at a time when many Republicans see him as the odds-on favorite for the 2012 vice presidential nod. Vice presidential candidates are traditionally chosen to provide ethnic and religious balance to a ticket. Mitt Romney's Mormonism and Rubio's Catholic faith would already mean the first two members of minority traditions on a Republican ticket in American history. Rubio's Mormon roots could further complicate that calculation.
