James Call
A big foot can make noise and Jeb Bush is starting to make noise. About 300 people attended a Right to Rise PAC fundraiser Tuesday, sponsored by some of Tallahassee’s leading lobbying firms and featuring the former Florida governor.
Bush a nascent presidential candidate — he’s “seriously considering” — was enough to make the GOP’s 2014 nominee, Mitt Romney, announce he would not be a candidate in 2016. And after Bush delivered his remarks Tuesday, supporters were sporting Jeb! 2016 stickers.
“I have no idea what his chances are of winning the nomination overall,” former Bush advisor Mac Stipanovich former. “But if Florida will carry him over the line I expect he will win the nomination.”
The Tallahassee event drew Senate President Andy Gardiner, who credits Bush with inspiring him to run for state representative in 2000, CFO Jeff Atwater who was in the Legislature during the Bush years, along with Sens. Garrett Richter and Anitere Flores and Reps. Ray Pilon, Jimmie Smith and Matt Hudson.
Attorney General Pam Bondi declared Florida “Bush Country,” and introduced him as “the next president,” to sustained applause. Bush beamed and clarified that he was still exploring a run and had no time table for a formal announcement.
Supporters paid a $1,000 to mingle with Bush and for a box lunch of a smoked turkey, roast beef or veggie sandwich with chips and fruit. About half the boxes went unclaimed. The attraction was Bush, who people flocked to and greeted with the kind of adulation athletes get.
Bush could be challenged from the right. As governor he focused on education reform and his initiatives were in line with what has evolved into Common Core State Standards, which has generated backlash in part because of standardized tests and national standards — concepts Bush defends.
Immigration is another hot-button issue that may cause problems on Bush’s right flank: He supports immigration as part of an overall economic philosophy while a wing of his party want enhanced border security and a crackdown on illegal immigration.
“It’s been my observation over the years that Jeb will change his terminology, change his approach, will change his tactics but I’ve not seen him change his principles,” Stipanovich said. “Immigration reform may get called something else but he’s not going to change his mind on the subject.”
Bush dashed from the fundraiser for a meeting with Gov. Rick Scott and then a Florida Education Summit. Education reform was a top policy concern for Bush when governor and the summit focused on the grading system and vouchers he implemented 15 years ago.
“He’s gathered all the stakeholders to make sure nothing is dismantled of his legacy because that legacy will be his springboard for the presidency,” said Joanne McCall, vice president of the Florida Education Association, which has filed a lawsuit against the state scholarship voucher program.
