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Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., speaks during the Reagan Forum at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif., Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2011. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

During a POLITICO breakfast event this morning, Marco Rubio said there is nothing that Mitt Romney or Paul Ryan could have done to appeal to the Hispanic vote.

“Look the Hispanic vote, number one, is not monolithic. Number two, there are large numbers of Hispanics in this country who also happen to be liberal Democrats. And there’s nothing Romney or Ryan could have done to change that. There is a significant number of Hispanic voters who vote for the candidate, not the party. And I think there is lot of things that have happened even before this ticket came together, that hurt our opportunity to do it.”

According to the Republican senator from Florida, the fault lies in the portrayal of the GOP and its stance on immigration. The party is not wrong in its stance against illegal immigration, but instead of voicing that position, it should be touting its pro-legal immigration stance, he said.

“Unfortunately, I think, the Republican Party for many years allowed itself to be positioned as the anti-illegal immigration party and we certainly are against illegal immigration as most Americans are. But what we really need to be is the pro-legal immigration party.”

How do you shape that image? asked POLITICO’s Mike Allen.

“By being it,” said Rubio. Simple as that. Rubio noted that it’s a matter of putting out concrete proposals to show that Republicans are “proud of the fact that every year one million of people immigrate to the United States legally and permanently.”

“We understand that legal immigration is not just an important part of our heritage, it’s an important part of our future,” he said. “We’re not talking about plagues of locusts, we’re talking about people.”

Rubio stressed that the need to understand why people migrate to the U.S., echoing George W. Bush’s plea from yesterday for politicians to approach immigration with a “benevolent spirit.”

“These are real human beings. And that’s why it’s such a huge issue in the Hispanic community because it’s not just a statistical issue. You know somebody who is living under this circumstance and your heart breaks for them even if you know that what they have done is legally wrong, morally you feel for them. Because you recognize that, for the Grace of God, that could be you.”

Immigration can be addressed “comprehensively, but not in a comprehensive bill,” said Rubio, who suggested that it be addressed through a “comprehensive package of bills” instead.

“Portions of immigration reform can be dealt with quicker than others,” he said, listing issues such as guest worker programs, border security, e-Verify and an alternative to DREAM Act. By addressing these issues, Congress could restore the public’s faith in its intentions to stop illegal immigration, enabling the U.S. to celebrate legal immigration once again.

“It’s going to be a lot easier, not easy, but a lot easier both politically and from a policy perspective, to deal with those folks who are here undocumented if you deal with those other issues. Number one, there will be less of them because they will be able to avail themselves of the guest worker program, the alternative to the dream act or the reform legal immigration system. Second, the American people will say, ‘You did e-Verify, you did border security so we know this problem isn’t going to happen again. Now we can be what we have always been: the most compassionate people in the world and view this situation for what it is.’”

Rubio is optimistic that this can happen within the next two years, but he warned of expecting overnight miracles.

“This will take a while. There is not a magic solution to this. I believe we have to do it and I believe we can do it,” he said.