Jeb Bush remains a primary Republican target

Sure, Donald Trump has the lead and most of the public's attention.

But another candidate with a well-known name and a big bank account — Jeb Bush — remains the primary target for other Republicans seeking their party's 2016 presidential nomination.

In some cases echoing the attacks of Democrats, Republicans have criticized Bush over immigration, Common Core, gaffes on the campaign trail and his status as the "third Bush" to seek the presidency in 30 years.

The reasons, according to political analysts: Bush and his backers have more than $100 million to spend, and he generally is considered one of the favorites for the Republican nomination. In many ways, they said, the Republican race revolves around Bush.

"There's a rule in politics — punch up," said Republican strategist Rick Wilson.

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Fielding a question about his family's legacy during last week's debate, Bush said the electoral bar may be "higher for me," but he plans to run on his record as Florida governor.

"I'm going to have to earn this," Bush said.

Trump, who leads many Republican polls, has led the charge against Bush, saying he lacks the "energy" to be party leader and president. In Michigan this week, the billionaire businessman pointed out the debate drew more than 24 million cable television viewers.

"Who do you think they were watching?" Trump said. "Jeb Bush? I don't think so."

Other Republicans have taken jabs at Bush as well:

• New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who is battling Bush in the key New Hampshire primary, criticized him for a speech this week blaming President Obama and Hillary Clinton for problems in Iraq and the rise of the Islamic State. Christie said it's a mistake to "re-litigate" the unpopular Iraq War that began during the George W. Bush administration.

"It's bad decision-making by Gov. Bush, but I'm not running his campaign," Christie told radio show host Laura Ingraham on Wednesday.

Christie has also pointed out that the former Florida governor has been out of office more than eight years, telling The Weekly Standard: "I haven't seen him around much since he left office in 2007, in terms of working on Republican issues around the country."

• Ohio Gov. John Kasich, also pressing Bush in New Hampshire, has said he began exploring a presidential run in part because Bush failed to seize control of the race. "I thought Jeb was just going to suck all the air out of the room, and it just hasn't happened," Kasich said in June.

• Rick Perry, the former governor of Texas, challenged the strength of the Florida economy on Bush's watch: "One analyst recently estimated that more than a third of Florida's job growth under Jeb Bush's administration was due to the housing bubble."

• Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, in his announcement speech last month, said he and his brother "didn't inherit fame and fortune from our family," an apparent reference to Bush's roots.

• Businesswoman Carly Fiorina criticized Bush for a misstatement he made on women's health issues. In pledging to pull federal funding for Planned Parenthood, Bush said that "I'm not sure we need a half a billion dollars for women's health programs." He later said he misspoke.

"I think it's gonna become an ad in a Democratic campaign," Fiorina said, noting that Clinton has already "jumped all over it for a reason: because she saw an opportunity. And it is foolish to say that women's health isn't a priority. Of course it's a priority."

During a recent Red State Gathering of conservative political activists in Atlanta, Bush critics cited his support of a pathway to legal status for migrants in the country illegally, as well as support for Common Core standards that they describe as an attempted federal takeover of the education system.

They also called Bush the symbol of a Republican establishment they say has let the party down.

"He probably would be more effective than a lot of people believe," said Diane Hubbard, 57, a political volunteer from Mooresville, Ind., a suburb of Indianapolis. "But at the same time people are looking for something new and different."

Kerry Luedke, 45, from Woodstock, Ga., said Bush is "trying very hard to be a conservative when most of us know he is not." She called him "a more big government type of person," while she and others are "searching for the most conservative president."

Gena Hood, from Canton, Ga., said she likes Jeb Bush, but "I just don't think this country will elect a third Bush ... It smells too much like a political dynasty to me."

In answering some of the policy criticisms by conservatives, Bush has said his immigration plan emphasizes border security, but something has to be done about the 11 million people or so who are already here illegally. They could only earn legal status after passing a series of tests, he said, including tax payments and learning English.

As for Common Core, Bush said he wants higher education standards, but states would run the programs, not the federal government.

In asking for votes during the debate, Bush said: "We can grow economically and restore America's leadership in the world, so that everybody has a chance to rise up."

Moving forward, the best thing Bush can do is to continue to stress his very conservative record as Florida governor, Wilson said, from tax cuts to "pro-life" issues to fights with teachers' unions over charter schools.

Republican strategist Rich Galen said that many GOP opponents believe that "political gravity" will bring down the politically inexperienced Trump, while Bush will remain in a strong position because of his bank account. Opponents are attacking Bush in hopes of forcing him to spend as much of that money as possible, as quickly as possible, Galen said.

Galen said Bush can play the "nominee presumptive," and spend his time campaigning against Clinton and the Democrats.

"You don't have to panic," he said. "You don't have to go into defensive mode."

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