5 ms·

Could someone elaborate on the reasons for his lack of popularity? Is it because of his Brother/Father's track record? Sorry for my ignorance, I don't live in

Could someone elaborate on the reasons for his lack of popularity? Is it because of his Brother/Father's track record? Sorry for my ignorance, I don't live in the U.S so I'm just an observer.

yuncun 11y ago
Probably because he's too moderate. There are more extreme candidates that people gravitate to.
Uhhrrr 11y ago
People are understandably wary of having a de facto monarchy (this hurts Hillary Clinton as well). Also, W was not very popular by the end of his second term. Besides that, Jeb is not super charismatic, and is at odds with the base on immigration.
- finid 11y ago
  > Besides that, Jeb is not super charismatic His brother was not particularly charismatic either, but he's a former 2-term president and also a former 2-term Texas governor.
  - hga 11y ago
    Uhhrrr was perhaps being polite, he's much less charismatic than his brother.
  - Uhhrrr 11y ago
    In person, W was apparently very charismatic. I remember seeing an Atlantic article and an article by one of his ghostwriters which spoke to this, but I can't find them quickly. "Journeys With George" shows some of it, though: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEzTn1khVAM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEzTn1khVAM .
protomyth 11y ago
Somewhat, but we are only talking about Republican voters here. The problem with Jeb is he got slammed with Common Core (a big no-no with Republican rank-and-file) and his dumb attack on Rubio. He is not really regarded as a conservative and really doesn't know how to energize voters. It doesn't really help that many of his backers are regarded as "establishment" and that is really ticking off the local voters since they seem to squander every opportunity given. You can see some of this split in the opinions about Fox News and the, hell with it, Trump voters. His child on the other hand will probably do very well when he runs for national office as he has the charisma his father lacks. One thing about watching this stuff from the outside, understand the media is primarily coastal-based and their opinion of either President Bush probably is not reflective of the voters in Iowa. Look at a county election map of the US for some insight. I would also say Nate Silver is doing a pretty good job of it again.
- hga 11y ago
  He also quite explicitly said we need Latin American immigrants because we natives aren't as entrepreneurial as they are, a very bad position for this election, and something the base has been in frank revolt about since his brother's big 2006 push. And, yeah, he was the anointed establishment candidate, raised 103 million for his super PAC in the first half of 2015, none of those play well in this election. He's much more hapless than his brother on the campaign trail, as noted by others we've had enough of the Bush family, etc. etc.
  - protomyth 11y ago
    His brother was a master at the campaign trail (and his wife did very well herself). I know people don't like his policies or him personally, but people should understand how good he was meeting people and doing the campaigning. Its very much like Republicans who don't get President Clinton.
    - hga 11y ago
      Hmmm, I'm not sure, I was rather distracted in the 2 presidential campaigns his brother ran, but I don't think those they were masterful. My impression is that he himself is maybe merely good and not at all "hapless" ... and that aspect of politics doesn't do much for me. Heck, the first presidential candidate I rooted for was Nixon ^_^! (When I was 7, but still did so 4 year later when he ran against McGovern.)
finid 11y ago
More than one factor must have contributed to his lack of popularity, despite his pedigree. But one that I know for sure contributed, is he's not conservative enough in the eyes of the Republican base. In other words, he's viewed as being closer to liberals or "too soft" on a range of issues, including but not limited to immigration, willingness to use American military power abroad, and not religious enough. It has also been said that "Bush fatigue" contributed, but I think if he had been spitting conservative fire from day 1, he'd had been the right candidate for the extreme right of the Republican base.
- emilsedgh 11y ago
  So is half of America that religious and conservative to actually approve people like Ted Cruz, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina?
  - dragonwriter 11y ago
    > So is half of America that religious and conservative to actually approve people like Ted Cruz, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina? More than half of the Republican Party is. You don't need support of half of America to be a major party nominee (or even win the election, for that you just need more support than the other major party nominee -- ignoring the distorting effects of the electoral college system, which can actually let you win without even that, if your support has the right geographic distribution.)
    - DrScump 11y ago
      Combined with the fact that less than 62% of legally registered voters voted in the 2012 (Presidential) election, well under half the population.
  - protomyth 11y ago
    Yes, although Dr. Carson suffers from the same religious prejudice issue (he's SDA) that Mr. Romney (Mormon) suffered from.
  - finid 11y ago
Outdoorsman 11y ago
I suspect you may be on to something... His father, George H. W. Bush, was known for prosecuting a fairly "successful" war--the 1990-1991 Gulf War--that ostensibly lasted about 5 months...essentially "ejecting the Iraqi army from Kuwait"--the stated goal... his domestic record was viewed as "less than stellar"... Americans pay attention to things like that and seem to relish a victory...listen to the response to Whitney Houston singing the National Anthem at the 1991 Super Bowl: https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=whitney+houston+super+bowl https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&e... (This is worth a listen even if you're only interested in the question itself...it's the best rendering I'm aware of at any time in U.S. history.) The audience's response hints at the "prevailing" national mood at that time... His brother, George W. Bush, served 2 terms with mixed results...some counted him as one of the least-talented (intellectually) Presidents the U.S. has ever seated...here you can factor in the controversial 2003 invasion of Iraq itself, and the mishandling of a response to Hurricane Katrina, especially in the city of New Orleans... I'll stop here; the tale is long and complicated...those are just major highlights... Jeb Bush is likely quite capable of exceeding expectations, but some say he lacks charisma, charm...there's probably some reluctance to elect another Bush because of journalists and historian's evaluations of the presidencies of his father and brother... Having said all that, he might be the best qualified "moderate" candidate the Republicans could field in this election...time will tell...he appears to be out of the running for a nomination...
- DrScump 11y ago
  <some counted him (GWB) as one of the least-talented (intellectually) Presidents the U.S. has ever seated> That's the popular media and pop-culture narrative, but it just wasn't true. Read firsthand accounts from non-media policy experts who were there, for example... http://keithhennessey.com/2013/04/24/smarter/ http://keithhennessey.com/2013/04/24/smarter/ Similarly, Eisenhower and Reagan were portrayed as a dottering grandfatherly types disinterested in policy during their tenure, but honest historians later gave them their due.
  - Outdoorsman 11y ago
    That's precisely why I used the word "some"... The questioner asked about his brother's track record, specifically the potentially negative aspects of that record...public perception, even if shaped or influenced, remains that...truth often doesn't enter into it, just as you correctly allude...thanks for your response...

Could someone elaborate on the reasons for his lack of popularity? Is it because of his Brother/Father's track record? Sorry for my ignorance, I don't live in the U.S so I'm just an observer.

yuncun 11y ago

Probably because he's too moderate. There are more extreme candidates that people gravitate to.

Uhhrrr 11y ago

People are understandably wary of having a de facto monarchy (this hurts Hillary Clinton as well). Also, W was not very popular by the end of his second term. Besides that, Jeb is not super charismatic, and is at odds with the base on immigration.

finid 11y ago
> Besides that, Jeb is not super charismatic His brother was not particularly charismatic either, but he's a former 2-term president and also a former 2-term Texas governor.
- hga 11y ago
  Uhhrrr was perhaps being polite, he's much less charismatic than his brother.
- Uhhrrr 11y ago
  In person, W was apparently very charismatic. I remember seeing an Atlantic article and an article by one of his ghostwriters which spoke to this, but I can't find them quickly. "Journeys With George" shows some of it, though: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEzTn1khVAM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEzTn1khVAM .

protomyth 11y ago

Somewhat, but we are only talking about Republican voters here. The problem with Jeb is he got slammed with Common Core (a big no-no with Republican rank-and-file) and his dumb attack on Rubio. He is not really regarded as a conservative and really doesn't know how to energize voters. It doesn't really help that many of his backers are regarded as "establishment" and that is really ticking off the local voters since they seem to squander every opportunity given. You can see some of this split in the opinions about Fox News and the, hell with it, Trump voters. His child on the other hand will probably do very well when he runs for national office as he has the charisma his father lacks. One thing about watching this stuff from the outside, understand the media is primarily coastal-based and their opinion of either President Bush probably is not reflective of the voters in Iowa. Look at a county election map of the US for some insight. I would also say Nate Silver is doing a pretty good job of it again.

hga 11y ago
He also quite explicitly said we need Latin American immigrants because we natives aren't as entrepreneurial as they are, a very bad position for this election, and something the base has been in frank revolt about since his brother's big 2006 push. And, yeah, he was the anointed establishment candidate, raised 103 million for his super PAC in the first half of 2015, none of those play well in this election. He's much more hapless than his brother on the campaign trail, as noted by others we've had enough of the Bush family, etc. etc.
- protomyth 11y ago
  His brother was a master at the campaign trail (and his wife did very well herself). I know people don't like his policies or him personally, but people should understand how good he was meeting people and doing the campaigning. Its very much like Republicans who don't get President Clinton.
  - hga 11y ago
    Hmmm, I'm not sure, I was rather distracted in the 2 presidential campaigns his brother ran, but I don't think those they were masterful. My impression is that he himself is maybe merely good and not at all "hapless" ... and that aspect of politics doesn't do much for me. Heck, the first presidential candidate I rooted for was Nixon ^_^! (When I was 7, but still did so 4 year later when he ran against McGovern.)

finid 11y ago

More than one factor must have contributed to his lack of popularity, despite his pedigree. But one that I know for sure contributed, is he's not conservative enough in the eyes of the Republican base. In other words, he's viewed as being closer to liberals or "too soft" on a range of issues, including but not limited to immigration, willingness to use American military power abroad, and not religious enough. It has also been said that "Bush fatigue" contributed, but I think if he had been spitting conservative fire from day 1, he'd had been the right candidate for the extreme right of the Republican base.

emilsedgh 11y ago
So is half of America that religious and conservative to actually approve people like Ted Cruz, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina?
- dragonwriter 11y ago
  > So is half of America that religious and conservative to actually approve people like Ted Cruz, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina? More than half of the Republican Party is. You don't need support of half of America to be a major party nominee (or even win the election, for that you just need more support than the other major party nominee -- ignoring the distorting effects of the electoral college system, which can actually let you win without even that, if your support has the right geographic distribution.)
  - DrScump 11y ago
    Combined with the fact that less than 62% of legally registered voters voted in the 2012 (Presidential) election, well under half the population.
- protomyth 11y ago
  Yes, although Dr. Carson suffers from the same religious prejudice issue (he's SDA) that Mr. Romney (Mormon) suffered from.
- finid 11y ago

Outdoorsman 11y ago

I suspect you may be on to something... His father, George H. W. Bush, was known for prosecuting a fairly "successful" war--the 1990-1991 Gulf War--that ostensibly lasted about 5 months...essentially "ejecting the Iraqi army from Kuwait"--the stated goal... his domestic record was viewed as "less than stellar"... Americans pay attention to things like that and seem to relish a victory...listen to the response to Whitney Houston singing the National Anthem at the 1991 Super Bowl: https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=whitney+houston+super+bowl https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&e... (This is worth a listen even if you're only interested in the question itself...it's the best rendering I'm aware of at any time in U.S. history.) The audience's response hints at the "prevailing" national mood at that time... His brother, George W. Bush, served 2 terms with mixed results...some counted him as one of the least-talented (intellectually) Presidents the U.S. has ever seated...here you can factor in the controversial 2003 invasion of Iraq itself, and the mishandling of a response to Hurricane Katrina, especially in the city of New Orleans... I'll stop here; the tale is long and complicated...those are just major highlights... Jeb Bush is likely quite capable of exceeding expectations, but some say he lacks charisma, charm...there's probably some reluctance to elect another Bush because of journalists and historian's evaluations of the presidencies of his father and brother... Having said all that, he might be the best qualified "moderate" candidate the Republicans could field in this election...time will tell...he appears to be out of the running for a nomination...

DrScump 11y ago
<some counted him (GWB) as one of the least-talented (intellectually) Presidents the U.S. has ever seated> That's the popular media and pop-culture narrative, but it just wasn't true. Read firsthand accounts from non-media policy experts who were there, for example... http://keithhennessey.com/2013/04/24/smarter/ http://keithhennessey.com/2013/04/24/smarter/ Similarly, Eisenhower and Reagan were portrayed as a dottering grandfatherly types disinterested in policy during their tenure, but honest historians later gave them their due.
- Outdoorsman 11y ago
  That's precisely why I used the word "some"... The questioner asked about his brother's track record, specifically the potentially negative aspects of that record...public perception, even if shaped or influenced, remains that...truth often doesn't enter into it, just as you correctly allude...thanks for your response...