After another setback, Rubio sees salvation in Florida

Rubio and his GOP opponents know a loss next Tuesday in Florida would force him out of the 2016 contest — and scar his future political ambitions, should he have any.

[...] his allies are pelting Trump with an avalanche of negative ads on Florida TV that reinforce the same message Rubio and his army of volunteers offer to anyone who will listen:

Spokesman Alex Conant says the Rubio campaign has seven fully staffed offices in the state backed by 40 full-time staffers and "countless" volunteers.

While he is a distant third in most polls, Cruz's campaign opened 10 Florida offices last week and boasts more than 10,000 volunteers in the state, although just a handful of people were inside Cruz's Tampa office Tuesday afternoon.

[...] with at least a three-person field for the foreseeable future, they are convinced that no one will reach the 1,237 delegate threshold to secure the nomination outright before the party's national convention in July.

Three other anti-Trump groups plan to spend a combined $4.2 million attacking the billionaire front-runner before the March 15 primary, according to data from Kantar Media's Campaign Media Analysis Group.