Jeb Bush: Too Liberal To Be The GOP Nominee?
Could Jeb Bush, former Florida governor and brother of President George W. Bush, be too liberal to win the GOP nomination in 2016? This is the question raised by Nate Silver of FiveThirtyEight. Bush has been perceived by some to be moving in the “liberal” direction by making statements in favor of comprehensive immigration reform and “Common Core” education policies, among other issues on which Jeb Bush has made major states.
“But is Bush in the mold of Jon Huntsman and Rudy Giuliani — candidates who generated lots of buzz among the East Coast media elite but proved too moderate for the Republican base? Or is he more like the past two Republican nominees, Mitt Romney and John McCain, who also were accused of being too moderate but won their party’s nomination?” Nate Silver asked about Jeb Bush.
Fox News is reporting that Jeb Bush is drawing praise from liberals and flak from GOP conservatives. While Bush is praised for his immigration views, appeal to Hispanics, and support for education reform, Fox News notes, “Unfortunately for Bush, it’s mostly liberals who are saying these things.”
Ironically, MSNBC raises the question of whether Republicans will care about Jeb Bush having been, as it refers to him, a “severely conservative governor” while currently being perceived as less conservative a presidential candidate.
“For us who live in Florida, who experienced the eight-year Jeb Bush governorship, it’s almost laughable and maybe even hysterical for people who live outside of Florida to claim that he’s a moderate,” MSNBC reported former state House Speaker Will Weatherford telling Tampa Bay Times reporter Adam Smith.
Nate Silver conducted an ideological analysis of recent GOP candidates for president, including Jeb Bush, and it shows Bush among the least conservative candidates compared to many others, including Rand Paul and Ted Cruz. Chris Christie is the most prominent likely 2016 GOP candidate that is less conservative than Jeb Bush. Silver concludes that Jeb Bush is ideologically similar to Mitt Romney or John McCain, but more conservative than Jon Huntsman or Rudy Giuliani.
Jeb Bush is already taking fire from the right, as Inquisitr reported a few days ago, in the form of criticism and an advertisement from Rand Paul regarding Bush’s views on “Common Core” and immigration reform. Jeb Bush can be expected to face opposition from the conservative and Tea Party factions of the Republican Party, and it will again raise the question of whether Jeb Bush is insufficiently conservative enough to win the GOP nomination.
[Image from RedState.com]
