As Florida's governor, Jeb Bush was among the nation's most conservative state chief executives. He's quietly embarking on work to convince the right flank of the Republican Party that he would be that same kind of conservative in the White House.
Eight years removed from office, Bush is viewed by some conservatives as a squishy moderate: a member of the GOP's most established family with toxic positions on immigration and education standards.
For that reason, perhaps none of the likely 2016 candidates has more to gain than Bush at this week's Conservative Political Action Conference, the nation's largest annual conference of conservative activists.
"The challenge for him is this isn't about yesterday, it's about tomorrow," said Matt Schlapp, chairman of the American Conservative Union, which hosts CPAC. "The key is, what will he do if he's president of the United States, and does he have a message that will appeal to conservatives?"
Bush speaks at CPAC on Friday, and amid his aggressive fundraising efforts nationwide, his team and key backers are also taking steps to remind the party of his history as a conservative in office.
In phone calls and private meetings, Bush's team is reviving old alliances with top social and economic conservatives, broadening his network of conservative opinion leaders and trying to quiet his more aggressive critics. Al Cardenas, a longtime Bush supporter and former chairman of the American Conservative Union, said it would take Bush six to eight months to "totally set the record straight."
"As I've told the governor, the key word is patience," Cardenas said. "I can tell you as a matter of fact those meetings have begun to be placed on the calendar and are beginning to take place. He wants leaders of the movement to be comfortable with his leadership."
Cardenas and other Bush allies say the problem is one of misperception, as conservatives of a new era are simply less familiar with his record as Florida governor.
Aides say that while in office from 1999 to 2007, Bush was among the first state executives to take on teachers unions, lowered taxes each year and signed Florida's "stand your ground" gun law. He was a hero among social conservatives for his actions to keep Michael Schiavo from removing the feeding tube from his brain-damaged wife, Terri.
Today's criticism centers almost entirely on Bush's support for Common Core education standards and an immigration policy that would create a path to citizenship for people living in the country illegally. He is also hurt by lingering resentment over the rise in government spending during brother George W. Bush's administration.
Skeptics were reminded of their misgivings late last year, when Bush said a Republican might need to "lose the primary to win the general," viewed by some as a swipe at the heavy influence of conservatives in picking the party's White House nominee.
Just four in 10 self-identified conservatives and tea party supporters rated Bush favorably in an Associated Press-GfK poll conducted earlier this month. There was evidence, too, of anti-Bush sentiment in the crowded hotel lobbies Thursday as thousands of activists gathered for CPAC.
"I have not seen a single Jeb Bush button here," said Neil McGettigan, 25, of New Jersey. "Honestly, I think the media's more excited about him than anyone here."
Source: Top Stories - Google News - http://ift.tt/1wthsRf
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