Among Republicans, Nobody Messes with the Bushes

He would seem to be the walking slogan of the Republicans’ campaign. Jeb Bush spoke and all was quiet. It looks like the youngest of the dynasty is heading right for the Republican nomination for presidency. Being a Bush isn’t easy, but it certainly seems to be very effective.

Nobody wants to challenge Jeb, including Mitt Romney, whose hopes to run for re-election lasted about as long as a caramel in the sun. Jeb met with Romney a few days ago and – seemingly magically – Romney decided to step aside from his (pre)candidacy. In the U.S., it’s starting to look like Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton are expecting the nomination on a silver platter. Jeb Bush has shown his ability and there is no shortage of it. Ability or force, some will ask, but either way, nobody seems to be able to overshadow him.

If Hillary and Jeb do win the Democratic and Republican nominations respectively, the United States will have made official that in their country, just as in all the rest, pedigree speaks for itself. But the question is, are all Bushes the same, or what kind of Bush is Jeb?

Considered the bookworm of the family, the introverted and most politically able of the three (the others being his father, ex-president George H.W. Bush, and his brother, also ex-president George W. Bush), Jeb gives off a sort of powerful air when talking about his pal Romney’s campaign, saying, “Mitt won’t be running, but he has a great future with the Republican party.”*

Radical, moderate, conservative or extremist, few know what he really thinks, and that, in politics, is an ace in the sleeve. He speaks Spanish, which tightens things up with Democrats as he can count on a large Latino vote. He moderates his political stances so as to avoid conflict with anyone and anything, and he stays out of the spotlight. George W., though, is without doubt an extra load on Jeb’s back, as no one can deny that the older brother is the least popular and most controversial.

It’s always been recognized that “George… worked the room” while “Jeb… read the books:” the popular one and the studied one. I can’t say if that reputation is good for George, but it certainly helps Jeb a lot.

At the moment, if you talk about the Republicans, you’re talking about Jeb Bush; the others are not yet in the picture. But who is Jeb and what does he think? The New York Times wrote about “The Many Faces of Jeb.” Little is known as to what goes on in his mind and even less about what he does, but his message that “Our friends must know they are our friends and our enemies must know that they are our enemies”* shows little hesitation and plenty of confidence on his part.

Jeb is conservative, interventionist, and more moderate on social issues , which is not to call him progressive. He’s a friend of the Latinos, as his wife is Mexican. It all makes him a Bush, but less. That “less” may sound offensive, but being a Bush isn’t easy, and being the brother and son of a president, less so.

Jeb wants to loosen immigration laws and strengthen the role of the U.S. in the Middle East. He has said loud and clear that we can’t think today like his father or Ronald Reagan did years ago. That sounds like: “I’m a Bush, yes, but above all, I’m Jeb.” The table is set and, at the moment, there are no other guests, only the youngest of the most powerful modern dynasty in the United States, the Bushes.

*Editor’s note: The quote, although accurately translated, could not be verified.