Keying on Bush’s time in Tallahassee, they argue, is not only backward-looking, but a reminder that he is an experienced politician – the very type of candidate many Republican primary voters have indicated they have little appetite for.
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After the New Hampshire event today, at a crowded news conference, Bush continued to answer questions. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., have missed only 10 Senate votes during their campaigns, while Rubio has missed 59. The next few polls before the next debate coming up the week before Thanksgiving is expected to critical as Bush is trailing Rubio in the majority of the surveys. “I’m fine going all the way to Super Tuesday”.
It was enough for The Washington Post to boldly declare, back in January, that “Jeb Bush has become the GOP front-runner”. It was an acknowledgment that former Florida governor can no longer can afford a front-runner’s budget.
The contrast between expectations and reality was particularly striking on the debate stage in Colorado.
IT WAS the moment a protégé took over from his mentor: Jeb Bush, former Florida governor and scion of a political dynasty, faltered as Marco Rubio, 18 years his junior, found the perfect reply to an attack on his voting record.
Rubio was quick and smart all night.
Their campaigns had left each other alone until recently.
“This is a campaign that realizes they are in serious danger right now of being an afterthought”, Murray said. “It’s not the kind of ideas campaign that he has promised”. “It’s vital that he be there for votes and intelligence committee meetings”, Florida Bush campaign consultant Helen Ferre Aguilar said. He has also criticized Bush’s brother, former President George W. Bush, for allowing the 9/11 terrorist attacks to happen on his watch and for leading the country into a war in Iraq that ultimately led to the rise of ISIS. The shift ramps up pressure for him in the first-in-the-nation primary, making it essentially a make-or-break state for his campaign.
Jeb Bush, get ready to have lots and lots of time to read 20-page policy briefs.
Bush’s next stop was the college town of New London.
Rubio, 44, the quintessential young man in a hurry, leaped into the presidential contest with less than one full term in the Senate under his belt. “But Jeb’s on a plane to New Hampshire”.
Joe B. Cox, a Naples attorney and longtime Bush supporter, said it’s too early in the campaign to be concerned. There are fears Bush is failing to distinguish himself from his rivals, despite a month of aggressive television advertising. The New York Times first reported Singer was supporting Rubio.
Trump tends to cite polls that show him doing well, regardless of source.
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The top two Republican candidates in the race, the silly and embarrassing Donald Trump, and the clueless and passive Ben Carson, must not have entered into Bush’s planning a year ago. However, officials with the group would not say when such ads might begin to air. In a campaign season where voters are voicing frustration with Washington, he’ll be cast as a problem solver who can get the nation’s capital on track.
