This Isn’t the Candidate You’re Looking For
I had the chance to meet former Florida Governor Jeb Bush a few years ago when he was in Indianapolis. We chatted for a while and I thought he was very thoughtful, engaging, even tempered and while principled, also pragmatic.
Unfortunately for Bush, that’s not what the majority of the GOP primary electorate has been looking for this cycle. In fact, it seems they want the opposite.
Instead of thoughtful, they want simplistic.
Instead of engaging, they want polarizing.
Instead of even tempered, they want angry.
Instead of principled and pragmatic, they want dogma and demagoguery.
And instead of choosing a Republican Governor from a state that has gone blue in the last two Presidential elections, a plurality is picking someone who alleges to be an outsider and who has manipulated government for the last few decades to get rich off the system.
Now this isn’t to say that Bush wasn’t without flaws. His even temper could easily be mistaken for a lack of passion making it difficult for for voters to make that necessary emotional connection. Also, the fact that his father and brother were both President did not help in a time where voters were looking for something different. And to be honest, he seemed like someone who more comfortable governing than campaigning.
But such is the world of politics. You might say timing is everything. You not only have to have the organization, money and discipline to compete, but you also have to be what voters are looking for at the time. I point to John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama as examples. Each ran as agents of change in one form or another and appealed to an electorate that was tired of what they had seen in the previous administration.
Bush was ultimately a victim of bad timing. He wasn’t the candidate Republicans were looking for. Now it’s time to move along.
