Jeb Bush joins unwieldy race as new phase of GOP campaign begins
Jeb Bush stepped into the Republican race for president on Thursday, finally taking his place — after months of hints and relentless fundraising — amid an unwieldy field of GOP candidates unlike any in recent memory. The son of one president and brother of another, the former Florida governor has the rank of front-runner and the donors to match. He now has eight months before the first votes are cast in the Iowa caucuses to prove he’s worthy of both. “It’s as wide-open a race as we’ve seen in a long time,” said Republican strategist Kevin Madden, who described Bush as the “technical front-runner” in a field that stands at 11 major declared candidates. Among them: former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who returned Thursday to presidential politics four years after his 2012 presidential bid ended in disaster, vowing during his own campaign kickoff to “end an era of failed leadership.” While both men were widely expected to enter the race, which got its unofficial start when Bush said in December he was exploring whether to seek the Republican nomination, the confirmation from aides that Bush will indeed run is nonetheless a defining moment for the GOP. The son of George H.W. Bush and younger brother of George W. Bush, he is a favorite of the Republican establishment, the experienced and well-connected party faithful who have showered the 62-year-old with money, staffing talent and encouragement in recent months. His decision ensures the possibility of a general election showdown between two political dynasties as Hillary Rodham Clinton seeks the Democratic nomination. Senior aides confirmed that Bush, who left the Florida governor’s mansion in 2007, will enter the race June 15 during an event at Miami Dade College. They spoke on condition of anonymity so as not to take the edge off his formal announcement. “I want to be the guy to beat,” a confident Bush said while campaigning in Florida earlier this week. The GOP contest now features candidates of different generations, races and genders, whose policy prescriptions are far from monolithic and whose personalities often clash. There are more to come: four sitting governors — Wisconsin’s Scott Walker and New Jersey’s Chris Christie, among them — are likely to join the race before the GOP’s first presidential debate in August. “Everyone is bunched together in the polls, and no one candidate in particular has emerged as a clear leader in the early state contests,” Madden said. Perry opened his campaign in a fight for relevancy among the many Republicans trying to knock Bush from his front-runner position. Despite his record as Texas’ longest-serving governor, Perry may struggle to reach the polling threshold that will decide the 10 candidates who will take part in the party’s first debate on Aug. 6. He announced his candidacy in a humid airport hangar alongside a C-130 cargo plane, like one he flew for the Air Force, and wasted little time in trying to distinguish himself from the swarm of Republican contenders not named Bush. “Leadership is not a speech on the Senate floor,” he declared in an apparent swipe at the four Republican senators in the race: Marco Rubio of Florida, Rand Paul of Florida, Ted Cruz of Texas and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. “It’s not what you say. It’s what you do.” Madden, who previously worked for Mitt Romney, predicted that Bush’s entry would prompt “more obvious head-to-head engagements among the candidates” as they jockey for position. Eight current and former governors could ultimately be in the race, along with five current and former senators, a former neurosurgeon and two business executives. The only woman in the Republican field, Carly Fiorina, has never held elected office, yet the former technology executive appears to be gaining momentum as she campaigns across early voting states including New Hampshire and South Carolina. There are two Hispanic candidates — Cruz and Rubio — while Bush is married to a Mexican native and speaks fluent Spanish. Perhaps more than any of his rivals, Bush has refused so far to bend to his party’s conservative base, sticking to unpopular positions on illegal immigration and education testing standards. And he regularly proclaims loyalty and love for his brother, George W. Bush, whom he lists as a trusted adviser. “Jeb Bush has a good record as a conservative governor, but Common Core and immigration are two huge obstacles he is going to have to overcome,” said Amy Kremer, past president of the Tea Party Express. “It will be interesting to see if he listens to the American people or doubles down on his positions. He has fierce competition. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
DOJ announces investigation of Jefferson County Jail
The U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday announced an investigation into the treatment of adolescent inmates at the Jefferson County Jail in Birmingham, including if they were targets for physical and sexual assaults while being housed with adult inmates or kept in isolation for extended periods. The Department of Justice said investigators will assess whether juveniles are detained at the jail in conditions that pose a serious risk of harm to their physical and psychological well-being. Federal authorities said they received complaints alleging that juveniles were regularly housed with adult inmates where they were physically abused and propositioned for sex and that juveniles were improperly kept in solitary confinement or lockdown, sometimes for months at a time. “Isolation_particularly the prolonged and restrictive lockdown alleged in Jefferson County_can lead to paranoia, anxiety, depression and suicide, and exacerbate pre-existing psychological harms,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Civil Rights Division. Jefferson County Chief Deputy Sheriff Randy Christian disputed the accusations. “The only juvenile inmates we house have committed crimes so violent or heinous that the laws of the state of Alabama require they be charged as adults. If they would rob, rape or murder you, I would likely assume they would also lie to try and make it out of adult jail. It isn’t a place for the faint of heart but it is a place they are treated fairly. We certainly have no heartburn over proving that in court should we need to.” Inmates must be at least 16 to be placed in the county jail, Christian said. The Alabama-based Southern Poverty Law Center in May of 2014 sent a letter urging DOJ to investigate conditions for juvenile detainees at the jail and praised the decision to open an investigation. “They were placed in situations where they were accused of crimes, have not been found guilty, but are housed in situations where they are constantly in fear of their physical safety as well as their sanity,” said Ebony Howard, SPLC senior staff attorney. “When they were offered support by the jail, it was in the form of being placed by themselves in a cell,” Howard said. The SPLC letter requesting an investigation said a 17 year-old had his throat cut by adult inmates at the jail. It also the second time in recent months that an Alabama correctional facility has come under federal scrutiny. The Department of Justice last week announced a settlement agreement with the state over conditions at Alabama’s only prison for women. Federal investigators last year accused the state of subjecting inmates at Julia Tutwiler Prison for Women to an environment of sexual abuse and harassment. State and federal officials agreed to changes to the prison and filed a settlement agreement in federal court. “Our commitment to finding solutions to problems in Alabama’s troubled jails and prisons is ongoing,” U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance for the Northern District of Alabama said in a statement. Vance said, “the best solution is always a collaborative approach that encourages the state and counties to correct conditions that are constitutionally inadequate.” However, she said they will file legal action if necessary. The Special Litigation Section of the Civil Rights Division is conducting the investigation. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Where they stand: Jeb Bush on key topics of 2016 campaign
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush will run for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, aides say, and plans to announce that June 15. Here’s where he stands on some of the issues likely to be debated in the campaign. Immigration Bush supports a system that would allow immigrants in the country illegally to stay, if they plead guilty to illegal entry, pay penalties and past-due taxes, learn English and perform community service. Bush views such a system as vital to accelerating economic growth in the U.S. He took grief from the right with his statement that people come to the U.S. illegally as an “act of love” for their families, but remains insistent that illegal immigration must be addressed in ways that accommodate many who are here. Foreign policy Bush says the U.S. “needs to regain its position militarily in Iraq to bring some order to the Iraqi military.” But what that means, exactly, is unclear. He hasn’t said whether he thinks the U.S. should add more troops. Bush opposed removing Cuba from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism “before it changes its authoritarian ways and stops denying the Cuban people their basic human rights.” He criticized Congress for weakening post-Sept. 11 surveillance powers and disputed the argument those powers infringe on civil liberties. After stumbling over the question at first, Bush said he would not have ordered the 2003 invasion of Iraq, knowing now that the intelligence about its weapons capability was flawed. Budget and entitlement programs As Florida governor Bush cut taxes and the state government workforce and vetoed plenty of spending items in the state budget. As a White House contender, Bush says he would support raising the age to qualify for full Social Security benefits for future retirees, over time. He’s also praised a House Republican plan to partially privatize Social Security by letting people choose private accounts as an option to guaranteed Social Security benefits. He opposes tax increases but also has been against signing pledges to rule them out. Education Bush stands out as a supporter of Common Core education standards. He’s couched his position in milder terms recently as he has traveled to early-voting states where Republican support for the voluntary benchmarks are viewed as a federal mandate. Bush continues to urge states to adopt higher reading, math and language arts standards than they have, assessed with regular testing. But he doesn’t support additional testing or federal intervention in creation of the standards. Social issues Bush became a national figure with abortion opponents as governor when he intervened in the case of Terri Schiavo, a woman who had been kept alive in a vegetative state for 15 years by life support and whose husband wanted her feeding tubes removed. Bush ordered the feeding tubes reinserted only to be overruled by a federal court. Bush’s action was celebrated by anti-abortion groups as affirming the sanctity of life. As governor, Bush signed legislation requiring parental consent for abortions for minors. He opposes abortion rights except when women are victims of rape or incest, or when the woman’s life is endangered by continued pregnancy. He says he opposes gay marriage yet same-sex couples “making lifetime commitments to each other” deserve respect. Climate change Bush accepts the scientific premise that the climate is changing and calls examining the causes a priority. But he says: “I don’t think the science is clear on what percentage is man-made and what percentage is natural.” Those who say they know are guilty of “intellectual arrogance,” he says. He attributes the decline in U.S. carbon emissions to innovations in lower-carbon energy production by hydraulic fracking and horizontal oil and natural gas drilling. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Alabama Senate to vote on general fund
The Alabama Senate is headed to a budget vote as they wrap up a session marred by frustrations and disagreements over a hole-filled general fund. Senators will vote Thursday afternoon on the budget that will include significant cuts to state agencies. Lawmakers failed to reach an agreement this session on revenue. Sen Bobby Singleton, a Democrat from Greensboro, said Republican legislators should be ashamed of the budget. The Republican-controlled Legislature rejected a call by Gov. Robert Bentley, also a Republican, for $541 million in new taxes to fill the budget hole, repay debts and provide additional money for state agencies. Senate Rules Chairman Jabo Waggoner says the plan is to adjourn the session after the budget is passed. Legislators say they are largely resigned to a special session sometime this summer. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
A “humbler” Rick Perry hopes 2016 bid goes better than first
Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry launched his presidential campaign four years ago as an instant front-runner — a proven job-creator with solid conservative credentials, formidable fundraising prowess and perhaps enough cowboy swagger to take Republicans by storm. Then came his embarrassing “oops” moment during a debate and Perry’s tumble from powerhouse to punchline. Now he’s back, hitting Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina hard and early, and studying up on policy to become better prepared. A senior adviser to Perry tells The Associated Press that the former governor will make the widely expected announcement that he’s in the 2016 race on Thursday in Dallas. The adviser requested anonymity to speak ahead of the formal announcement. As Perry returns to presidential politics, the question remains: Will he get another solid chance? “It’s going to be hard to make a first impression a second time,” said Ford O’Connell, a Republican strategist in Washington. Despite his brain freeze on a Michigan debate stage in November 2011 — he forgot the third federal agency he promised to close if elected, then muttered, “Oops” — Perry still has the policy record that made him an early force last time. Perry left office in January after a record 14 years as governor. Under him, the state generated more than a third of America’s new private-sector jobs since 2001. While an oil and gas boom fueled much of that economic growth, Perry credits lower taxes, restrained regulation and limits on civil litigation damages. He also pushed offering economic incentives to lure top employers to Texas and repeatedly visited states with Democratic governors to poach jobs. Perry was thought to be a cinch for four more years as governor in 2014, but instead turned back to White House ambitions. His effort may be complicated this time by a felony indictment on abuse of power and coercion charges, from when he threatened — then carried out — a veto of state funding for public corruption prosecutors. That came when the unit’s Democratic head rebuffed Perry’s demands that she resign following a drunken driving conviction. Perry calls the case against him a political “witch hunt,” but his repeated efforts to get it tossed on constitutional grounds have so far proved unsuccessful. That raises the prospect he’ll have to leave the campaign trail to head to court in Texas. Perry blamed lingering pain from back surgery in the summer of 2011 for part of the reason he performed poorly in the 2012 campaign. He has ditched his trademark cowboy boots for more comfortable footwear and wears glasses that give him a serious look. Perry also traveled extensively overseas and studied policy with experts and economists at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution. He met such business moguls as Warren Buffett and Rupert Murdoch. Lately, Perry has traveled to Iowa, which kicks off presidential nomination voting, more than any GOP White House candidate. “People realize that what the governor did in the high-profile debate, stumble, everyone has done at some point in their lives,” said Ray Sullivan, Perry’s chief of staff as governor and communications director for his 2012 presidential bid. “I think he’s already earned a second look, particular in Iowa.” “I think he’s kind of been freed up to be Rick Perry again,” said Brendan Steinhauser, a Texas political consultant who was director of state and federal campaigns for Tea Party-backed FreedomWorks before managing the re-election campaign of veteran Sen. John Cornyn last year. “That’s going to give him a lot of freedom to do what he does best, which is talk to voters one-on-one, shake hands, do the small meetings.” As an underdog, Perry has visited out-of-the-way places in Iowa, often traveling with a single SUV rather than the busloads in his 2012 entourage. Steinhauser said Perry shouldn’t “start out trying to be larger than life.” One thing Perry hopes to emulate from 2012 is his fundraising, when he amassed $18 million in the first six weeks. He has strong donor contacts nationwide as a former Republican Governors Association chairman. However, his indictments may cause some to hesitate to write him checks. Perry’s camp notes that many past Republican candidates, including Mitt Romney in 2012, rebounded to win the party’s presidential nomination after failing in a previous bid. But O’Connell, the GOP strategist, said the 2016 field is “extremely talented and deep” compared to four years ago. “For him to win the nomination,” O’Connell said, “he’s going to have to be great, but a lot of people are going to have to trip and fall along the way.” Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Jeb Bush says announcement coming June 15
Jeb Bush is giving a strong indication that he’ll join the presidential campaign this month, tweeting that an announcement is coming on June 15. The former Florida governor, widely expected to run for the GOP nomination, tweeted “coming soon” with a link to the website jebannouncement.com. On that page, the date 06.15.15 was listed, followed by the tease, “BE THE FIRST TO KNOW. RSVP NOW!” Visitors to the site could enter their name and email address. Bush also tweeted it in Spanish, “Próximamente 6.15.15.” Bush would enter a crowded primary that includes Sens. Rand Paul, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, among others. Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry is expected to announce his bid on Thursday. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
