Marco Rubio is inching closer to announcing a 2016 White House bid and admits keen observers will not find it difficult to note he is considering a campaign, the Associated Press reported.

"I think that's reflected in both our travel and some of the staffing decisions that we've made," Rubio said about his presidential ambitions. "We -- if in fact I make that final decision on a run -- want those elements to be in place."

Wayne Berman, a longtime Republican fundraiser who led Sen. John McCain's presidential fundraising in 2008, said he "assumed" the 43-year-old would throw his hat into the ring.

"He will help the party turn the page, politically, to the next generation," Berman said.

Rubio, Florida's junior senator, is the son of Cuban parents who immigrated to the United States in 1956. The University of Miami law graduate rose to political prominence after winning Mel Martinez's Senate seat in 2010.

A staunch conservative on most issues, his relatively moderate stance on immigration, which he revealed when he helped draft comprehensive immigration reform legislation in 2013, seemed to have dampened his presidential ambitions in recent months, however.

But Scott Weaver, a former Capitol Hill staffer who put together a recent dinner for potential Rubio donors, said the father of four knows how to bring people around to his point of view.

"Marco's best asset is Marco," Weaver said. "If you can get (Rubio) in front of people, he sells himself. It's been an easier sales process than we thought at this point."

The Floridian "has made clear to key supporters" that he will be a part of the 2016 White House race, Politico noted. At a Club for Growth donor meeting last Saturday, he lauded another Republican presidential hopeful -- and likely challenger.

"Governor (Jeb) Bush is a person I admire tremendously," Rubio said about his fellow Floridian, who governed the Sunshine State from 1999 to 2007. "He's a good friend (and) he's going to be a very strong and formidable candidate. ... We should be very happy that we have six or seven very qualified people that are thinking about serving our country as president."

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