Thread: Draft Jeb?

April 2, 2014 By C. Jay Engel

Draft Jeb?

The 2016 Presidential battles are beginning to take root. Polls have been released, advisors are testing the waters. The GOP wants a win. It’s been too long. They are faced, however, with a rising Tea Party faction who is aggravated with past GOP compromises and blunders on the United States’ most important issues: from war to health care and from spending to taxes.

It is well known that the GOP struggles with a split between those who might be referred to as “establishment” and those who were influenced, even if not in total, by libertarian Ron Paul. Thus, Rand Paul is a serious contender where he might not have been eight years ago. Things move fast these days.

But if the Tea Party is attracted to Rand Paul, and, to a lesser extent, Ted Cruz, the establishment is quite hesitant. It shouldn’t take long to understand why. Paul, while perhaps not as consistent or philosophical as his father, does trouble those who seek a neoconservative hegemony over the Republican Party. The establishment has its own preferences and Conservatives ought to be aware of the GOP spilt and the preferences of each faction.

Allegedly, as Hotair reports, “the inevitable ‘draft Jeb’ campaign shifts into high gear.” Hotair quotes a Washington Post article which states:

“Many of the Republican Party’s most powerful insiders and financiers have begun a behind-the-scenes campaign to draft former Florida governor Jeb Bush into the 2016 presidential race, courting him and his intimates and starting talks on fundraising strategy.

“Concerned that the George Washington Bridge traffic scandal has damaged New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s political standing and alarmed by the steady rise of Sen. Rand Paul (Ky.), prominent donors, conservative leaders and longtime operatives say they consider Bush the GOP’s brightest hope to win back the White House…

Christie has establishment support, but Christie is in scandal too early. More recently, Christie has been cleared of wrongdoing by an internal investigation. But apparently, for the “Republican Party’s most powerful insiders and financiers,” he is still too risky. Presidential candidates are investments for these folks. Why push a politician cloaked in scandal when Jeb Bush, a Florida guy, is available and has a name? George W. Bush left the White House with low ratings. But the American people have short span memories and commentators tend to look more favorably on past presidents than they were when in office.

It is looking like Jeb Bush is their man. If the Tea Party has Rand Paul, the establishment has Jeb. Individuals like Jeb are precisely the type of people that the Tea Party was created to protest. If Jeb is going to get the official approval, it would seem like he has an uphill battle. But don’t underestimate the influence of money in politics. Rand Paul has many in the grassroots, but Jeb Bush has many elites with unbelievable monetary resources.

The GOP isn’t going to enter 2016 as a united front. It will be in a full-fledged war.

Tagged as: c jay engel, jeb bush, rand paul, tea party, the establishment


About C. Jay Engel


C.Jay Engel lives Northern California with his wife, where he writes politics, economics, and Christian theology. Visit his blog, Reformed Libertarian, and follow him on twitter @reformedliberty.

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you can let this goof ball be YOUR leader; He will not lead me nowhere