The nation's eyes shifted from Isaac to Tampa Thursday for the most anticipated night of the Republican National Convention: nomination night.
But the words resonating in so many minds this morning weren't spoken by Gov. Romney but by Florida's Sen. Marco Rubio.
Just a few months ago, the junior senator was publicly vetted by Romney, even though Rubio said he didn't want to be vice-president.
On Thursday night, he settled into a role he was more comfortable accepting, the role of Rooney's introductory speaker.
"Mitt Romney believes that if we succeed in changing the direction of our country, our children and grandchildren will be the most prosperous generation ever, and their achievements will astonish the world."
Rubio clearly tried to capitalize on his Cuban roots, hoping to rally more supporters around the Republican candidate by building on their common American story.
"A few years ago, during a speech, I noticed a bartender behind a portable bar at the back of the ballroom. I remembered my father who had worked for many years as a banquet bartender. He was grateful for the work he had, but that's not the life he wanted for us. He stood behind a bar in the back of the room all those years, so one day I could stand behind a podium in the front of a room," Rubio said.
Rubio also intertwined Romney's life, and the struggle of his grandparents, to the lives of so many Cuban-Americans today.
"It's the story of a man who was born into an uncertain story in a foreign country. His family came to America to escape persecution. They struggled through poverty and the great depression. And yet he rose to be an admired businessman and public servant and in November, his son, Mitt Romney, will be elected President of these United States," Rubio said.
He also had some biting words for President Obama, accusing him of turning the American dream into a nightmare.
"He tells Americans they're worse off because others are better off -- that rich people got rich by making other people poor. Hope and change has become divide and conquer," Rubio told the crowd.
In one sentence, he managed to summarize the purpose of the republican convention, as well as the GOP's battle cry this election year.
"Our problem is not that he's not a good person. Our problem is that he's a bad president."