Lemons into lemonade. Or cold hard cash.

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This article was published 20/02/2013 (4642 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s a rare politician who can turn a gaffe into a positive.

Likely because it’s a rarity that a politician – or anyone else for that matter – will agree to have a laugh at their own expense.

But Republican Sen. Marco Rubio from Florida is doing just that and he’s cashing it in.

During a televised response to President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address, Rubio awkwardly paused to grab a water bottle sitting just out of his reach, and out of camera ranger, and took a sip.

It was one of the moments people might raise an eyebrow at only because it was kind of awkward. Surely Rubio’s handlers were covering their eyes in horror although truly, it wasn’t really that much of a gaffe. The man needed water. Wouldn’t it have been worse for him to suddenly stop being able to talk because his throat was like a desert?

Rubio however proved laughing at oneself can pay off. He has made fun of himself on various other televised appearances, made light of it during a visit with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a visit to Israel, and perhaps most importantly, he’s laughing all the way to the political fundraising bank machine because of it.

His team quickly launched the Marco Rubio Water Bottle as a fundraiser, with his picture and the slogan: “Send the liberal detractors a message that not only does Marco Rubio inspire you…he hydrates you too.”

More than 4,000 bottles were already snapped up at $25 a pop, and raised nearly $120,000 for his political action committee in a single week.