Marco Rubio zipped into Pinellas County tonight - his third Tampa Bay stop in a week - and enthralled 400 or so hard core activists in Charlie Crist's home county. Interesting that he pretty much compared Barack Obama to Fidel Castro - but made a point of stressing that he was not comparing Fidel to Barack. Either way, the crowd loved him.

C.W. Bill Young, Charlie Crist's congressman and not-so-short lister for a U.S. Senate appointment, said he steers clear of primary endorsements (though he endorsd Bill McCollum for governor) even in cases like this where a hometown guy is running. But Beverly Young, his wife, offered her own thoughts after Rubio’s rousing speech.

"I love Marco,’’ she gushed.

"She’s not endorsing either," said the congressman, ushering her away.

"I love Marco,’’ she repeated before disappearing out the door.