Florida Senator and GOP presidential candidate Marco Rubio hasn't appeared on CNN for two months – and CNN has noticed.
Rubio's last appearance on the news channel was on August 7 when he was interviewed by Chris Cuomo,
CNN.com reports. It was the morning after the first Republican debate and the two tangled over abortion.
Cuomo challenged Rubio over his record of supporting legislation that included a carve-out for rape and incest.
"So it seems that you had your own record wrong. Is that something you want to correct this morning?" Cuomo asked Rubio.
"No, I, that's, that's. That's not true," Rubio replied.
Later, the two clashed over when life begins.
"Science has not decided it's at conception," Cuomo said.
"No, let me correct you. Science has. Absolutely it has," Rubio replied.
Rubio has not appeared on CNN since, despite multiple requests, the network said.
But he has appeared in other places, including Fox News Channel and NBC's "Today" show.
"He might go to a place like the 'Today' show that has a huge audience or Fox News where he's catering to the voters he's trying to court. But is it strange he hasn't been on CNN for two months," CNN media reporter Dylan Byers said Monday on
CNN's "Newsroom."
"If you look across the Republican field, almost every other candidate has come to CNN. So that's a little strange, and that might reflect the tense interaction that he had with Chris Cuomo," Byers said. "And the longer he goes without going on CNN, the more of an issue it will be."
GOP front-runner Donald Trump has made a big deal of his on-again, off-again feud with Fox News Channel. Trump has said he boycotted the channel twice, but was interviewed by Greta Van Susteren as recently as Monday night.
Rubio has been more subtle in his apparent boycott.
Rubio campaign spokesperson Alex Conant told CNN simply, "We don't comment on our media strategy."
Rubio's lack of appearance on CNN doesn't seem to have hurt him. He has risen in the polls over the past two months, running just behind the outsiders Trump, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina.
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