Will Jeb Bush Be the Next Veep?

Does the thought of choosing between a Bush and a Clinton yet again thrill you so badly you can taste the vomit in the back of your throat? Good. Because while you may stand in the way of a Jeb Bush 2016 candidacy, already seemingly pre-determined by major Republican donors and consultants, but reliant upon grassroots acquiescence to their demands with Mitt Romney still fresh in their minds, you may not be able to stop Vice President Jeb Bush.

Because a totally “Tea Party” ticket just isn’t feasible. Or something.

“Jeb would be perfectly acceptable to the base if the nominee is a proven conservative,” said a prominent Republican consultant. “If it’s [New Jersey Gov. Chris] Christie or some moderate, Jeb would be a no go. On the other hand, if a right-wing nominee wanted to make a bow towards the middle and add some Hispanic vote appeal, Jeb would be a good choice.”…

 

“Jeb could be a safe choice for anybody,” said [Stu] Spencer, who worked for three Republican presidents. “He has name ID, a Spanish background, [is] a former governor, and he’s conservative.”…

 

“A straight-up tea-party ticket cannot win,” adds one of the GOP’s most prominent fundraisers. “Too many Republicans and independents will just flat-out not vote for a ticket with two tea-party guys. It will not happen.”

 

And if he has to campaign for only three months as a veep nominee instead of more than two years swimming upstream to be president, a senior Bush family source predicts his wife would sign off. “Being picked for president-in-waiting would be ideal for him and his family,” the consultant said.

This, of course, means that prominent GOP donors and consultants are assuming a “Tea Partier” will be at the top of the ticket and not, say, a more competent, moderate governor of a large state, or someone who is acceptable to both the grassroots “Tea Party” coalitions and the less risk-averse Establishmentarians., which could alternately charge and frighten nearly everyone in America, which means that, at least, the GOP has achieved some measure of universal outreach. Which is, also, apparently, the goal, given that the “consultant” mentions Jeb being key to Hispanic outreach.

The good news is, of course, that Jeb can keep on rolling with whatever aspirations he has and be prepared to take second best with the understanding that it was all in the service of his nation. And we can all rest easy knowing that if he’s Veep on a winning ticket, he’ll always have 2024.

 

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