Bush urges brother to run for White House
US: Former US President George W. Bush urged his younger
brother Jeb to aim for the White House in a 2016 campaign that could
enshrine his family as America's ultimate political dynasty.
“He'd be a marvelous candidate if he chooses to do so,” Bush said,
when asked about Jeb's presidential prospects in an ABC News interview
aired Wednesday on the eve of the dedication of his presidential library
in Texas.
“He doesn't need my counsel because he knows what it is, which is
'run,'” Bush said. “But whether he does or not, it's a very personal
decision.” Were it not for family baggage following his brother's
controversial presidency, Jeb Bush, the former Governor of Florida,
would likely be the hot favorite for the Republican party's nomination
in three years. Should he overcome such an obstacle and win the
presidency, he would follow his brother and his father George H.W. Bush
into the White House, keeping power in the family in a way never before
seen in American politics.
The elder Bush also set tongues wagging in the interview by
speculating that Jeb Bush could even face former Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton, should she chose to make another run at the Democratic
nomination. “It would be a fantastic photo,” Bush quipped, but warned
that the likely 2016 field would not become clear until after the
mid-term elections.
AFP |