The reason why Jeb said no to a 2012 run....

[scheming daemons]

The Bush family, as evil as they are, knows politics.


They know that

A) Barring a major collapse, Obama will win re-election in 2012 easily.

B) Even with a major collapse, the American people are not ready to vote for someone with the last name "Bush" again... and they may never be.


Obama won't lose in 2012... and he certainly won't lose to someone whose last name is "Bush".



Whatever reasons Jeb gave... they don't matter. He is a political animal. He WANTS to be President. He also knows he has 0% chance of becoming President in 2012.

[saltpoint]

1. That's the most plausible assessment I've heard so far.

As monstrous as they are, the Bush gang knows how to read a poll.

[roguevalley]

12. I agree. did you hear rick santorum is getting geared to run? :)

[saltpoint]

13. Hi, roguevalley. Yes! Ol' Rick is gettin' cranked big

time for the big show.

This could get awful fun real fast!

[roguevalley]

27. TIVO time. :)

[demigoddess]

2. very plausible, but Bush sr. probably would like to live to see

another son in the white house.

[Radical Activist]

3. Of course.

[rasputin1952]

4. Jeb bush would not have a chance...

I don't like his father, but he was tolerable; that stooge of a brother killed off any empathy Jeb may have gotten, (not much).

Whatever "name" and credibility the name of bush had, was destroyed by "w".

[OwnedByFerrets]

10. Monkeyboy had NO chance in 2004 either, but they were able to steal

it. IF "they" wanted Jeb as president, he would be president. They do not NEED the presidency back. They are making millions as it is.

[onenote]

20. chimpy and kerry were neck and neck in the polls leading up to election day

I'm not saying there wasn't election fraud, but suggesting chimpy had "NO" chance in 2004 is a revisionism and chimpy's popularity at that time was greater than Jeb's is now

[OwnedByFerrets]

23. Then let me rephrase it and say Monkeyboy shouldn't have had

a chance in 2004 if millions of americans were apeshit stupid.

[TheDebbieDee]

5. Wasn't Pres. Pierce another incompetent president on Barb Bush's

side of the family?

[saltpoint]

7. He was kind of a political disaster, definitely, but

unlike the entire Bush family tree, Franklin Pierce was a decent person, and -- even more contrasting -- he was intelligent.

[sofa king]

14. He did run down a person while drunk.

With a carriage, if I remember correctly, which made him the first in the long line of Bushes who should have been tossed in jail while they were President, and weren't.

[saltpoint]

16. LOL. Yes. He did, and he was drunk as a skunk by his

own admission.

His staff and local authorities told him that he had lost control of the horse momentarily and that a woman had been struck.

"Well, I'm not surprised," Pierce was reported as saying. "You know how I am when I've had a snootful."

[The Wizard]

6. He'd have a better chance

running as the last of the Romanovs.
Or, Blood Sucking Adolf the Transvestite Serial Killer.

[senseandsensibility]

8. So he definitely ruled it out?

I guess I'm out of the loop.

[OwnedByFerrets]

9. He wont run for president for one reason. The Powers that Be told

him not to. They are making hay NOW. And they are able to point fingers and blame THIS president. Its a win win for them. They need 4 more years for the stupid americans to forget and to be able to steal another election.

[Retrograde]

24. He's waiting for Obama to get the country back on track

It's going to take more than one term to undo what big brother did, and I suspect the mess is going to keep getting worse until 2014 or so, just based on momentum. Obama's put some measures in place to turn things around, but it will still take time to climb out of the hole.

Then, in 2017, Jeb can take over a nice shiny country with (I hope) a dwindling deficit and no serious foreign entanglements and run it back into the ground.

(Yes, I'm feeling cynical today)

[Ross K]

11. HAS he said no?

[rhett o rick]

15. My money is that he will run. nm

[Ross K]

22. So he HASN'T said no?

:shrug:

[rhett o rick]

29. It doesnt matter what he says. He is a lying repuke, a Bush, lying repuke. nm

[Lil Missy]

17. dumbfuck ruined it for any other bush EVER. Worst president ever.

[rhett o rick]

30. Maybe, but keep your eye on Jeb. The Bush Crime Family may come back like Jason in Halloween. nm

[depakid]

18. Has nothing to do with "the almighty Obama" -but with the fact that the Bush brand is trash

and he knows it (as does everyone else).

[dionysus]

28. what, you couldn't sneak in a "messiah" or "cult" ? that would have been too transparent?

:rofl:

[Qutzupalotl]

19. Right on both counts.

Obama is good at debating, IMO. He knows the issues. Any opponent will have a tough time going up against him -- barring major collapse, as you mentioned. Assisting major collapse appears to be the Republican strategy, and this president will call them out on it.

I don't see any good contenders on the other side. Palin/Santorum? Man, that's just sad.

[struggle4progress]

21. It'll be a cold day in hell before the American public elects another Bush

Of course, the American public didn't elect the last one: he came into office by coup and stayed in office by dirty tricks

So it might be possible for another Bush to steal the Oval Office -- but the country will be in an very ugly mood if that happens

[WI_DEM]

25. they are just replicating what Junior did after Poppy lost in '92

and Clinton had two terms and then we got Junior in 2000--they think 8-years will be enough time for people to forget and refurbish the family name.

[old mark]

26. JEB! has effectively placed his name in the list of GOP candidates

by saying he won't run. He will get years of free publicity due to speculation and when he is ready, probably in 2016, he will already have supporters, rich backers and cash, plus a campaign organization in place.

He has alreaady started to run by saying he won't next time.

He may be the "smart" Bush (relatively, that is)...

mark