Senator Marco Rubio gave a great speech this morning that focused on ‘choices.’ Life is all about choices, and he shared the message that the future of our country is in our hands, the American people just have to de. America is at a crossroads and it’s time to make a choice between the option Obama is offering to the American people, that we are a nation of “haves and have-not’s” or the option of the American ideal that we are a nation of “haves and soon-to-haves”.

So, what is the conservative movement?

Senator Rubio defined it by saying, “we believe that the way prosperity is created is when people have the freedom and the opportunity to pursue their dreams.” Which he went on to compare to how small businesses get started in our country, and how they’ve been the engine of cities and towns throughout America. Rubio went on to discuss tax policy, the budget, and jobs, but where he seemed to really hit to the heart of the crowd was when he hit the topic of the American people.

“You have to be strong economically, you have to be strong militarily, but there’s one other area you have to be strong in—and that’s your people have to be strong. Because at the end of the day what makes our nation distinctive is our people. Our greatness does not derive from our government or from our laws, or from our president, or certainly not from our congress—the strength of our nation is from our people.”

This was the key message Florida Senator Marco Rubio shared with CPAC attendees this morning. Senator Rubio was one of the biggest speakers of the day, and one of the most powerful speeches so far—one that could have easily served as the closing keynote.

Senator Rubio brought up the recent attack on religious institutions, mainly the Catholic Church, that are being forced through a healthcare mandate to follow his ideas. The federal mandates are forcing our religious institutions to pay for things that their faith teaches them are wrong. Rubio stated,” you may not agree with what that religion believes, but that’s not the point. The point is that the first amendment still applies.” He went on to say that “the federal government does not have the power to make religious organizations pay for things they think is wrong.”

The senator went on to discuss how important it is that we stand up for our God given freedoms and rights. He used the example of the Nazis and other great evil’s in the world that would have won had it not been for the American people. He said the greatest example the world could have is “the American example.” What happens if that example no longer exists? “We should be grateful and thank god every night that he has placed us here in this nation at this time in history.”

Watch the full speech here.