Second look among conservatives at Marco Rubio? Or second look among conservatives, and not in a good way, at Mia Love, who has been a Tea Party favorite over the past few years? Team Rubio clearly hopes for the former, but Love had better prepare for at least a little of the latter:

Well, when he came to Utah, I saw him inspire people. He had a roundtable with some of our business leaders but he had a rally and he talked about his family. He talked about his love for this country. And I realized that my story is so similar to his. He has a positive agenda, moving forward. And for the first time in a long time, I felt someone who really loves this country and doesn’t take advantage of, take for granted the benefits that this country has and also willing to put himself and take on responsibilities of being a citizen in this country. …

I first and foremost am a representative of Utah, proud representative of Utah and I saw him inspire people but this just solidifies this is for me. He has been talking about these threats from the very beginning. He talked about the threat with ISIS. He is very strong when it comes to foreign policy, national defense and, this is a time where we need a President in our country that is going to make sure that we are, we are strong. Ronald Reagan used to always talk about peace through strength. And right now we are seeing our enemies are getting stronger while our allies worldwide are getting weaker. So we have to do everything we can to make sure we strengthen our national defense, and do everything we can to make sure that this country and the people that are living in this country are safe, and Marco is right person to do that.

From Rubio’s perspective, this is all upside. Love, despite the Boehner controversy, remains a well-liked figure for most Republicans, and he gains both goodwill and a dynamic campaign surrogate. Regardless of whether it improves his standing with skeptics in the base, it’s a solid get.

But will it improve matters for Rubio with those voters? NBC News reminds readers that Love lost a little of her luster among activists when she supported John Boehner for Speaker, but that she — like Rubio himself — owed her rise to her Tea Party connections. She might add to another argument for Rubio too, albeit not an exclusive one:

Love, who’s 39, represents yet another pickup for Rubio from a younger member of Congress, and may help bolster his argument that he can bring “generational change” to the Republican party.

On the campaign trail, many of Rubio’s supporters talk up his ability to bring a more diverse group of people into the GOP tent, and Love’s support could help in that regard. She became the first African-American Republican woman in Congress when she was elected by Utah voters in 2014. …

Still, her connections could help as Rubio looks to shore up support in the Tea Party lane and beat back attacks from rivals that he’s become too “establishment,” particularly in a campaign season where it’s politically advantageous to be perceived as an outsider.

That’s the question. Does this make Rubio look more like an outsider, or Love more like an insider? She could have chosen to support Ted Cruz, who can make the same youth argument as Rubio, and perhaps distance herself from the criticism over Boehner. That Love didn’t pursue that strategy might reflect positively on her independence, but it may yet provoke the part of the base that still mistrusts Rubio after his partnering with Chuck Schumer on immigration reform. Love manages to avoid mentioning it in her endorsement, and that is probably not a coincidence.