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In video, conservative group labels Jeb Bush ‘unelectable’
Ed O'Keefe
Amazon.com Post
February 19
A leading conservative group with a far-reaching presence in social media is looking to raise fresh doubts about the potential presidential candidacy of Jeb Bush.
ForAmerica, a group founded by longtime conservative commentator L. Brent Bozell, is releasing a short online video on Thursday designed to raise questions about Bush's conservatism. The premise of the film is built around an appearance Bush made in 2013 alongside former secretary of state Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Bush, as chairman of the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, awarded the group's Liberty Medal to Clinton during an elaborate ceremony on Independence Mall on Sept. 10, 2013, a day shy of the one-year anniversary of the attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya that left four Americans dead.
At the time, Bush was criticized by conservative commentators, including radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh, for giving Clinton the honor so close to the anniversary of the attack.
“It’s bad enough the woman is getting this award . . . and then to find out that someone who is touted as a Republican presidential candidate is going to be presenting it to her because he runs this organization," Limbaugh said at the time.
In its 69-second video, ForAmerica plays clips of Bush praising Clinton's public service and Clinton reminding the crowd of the personal ties between the Bush and Clinton families.
Bush is seen thanking former president Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton "for your service to our country. We're united by love of country and public service."
Clinton is then seen thanking Bush: "This is not the first time that a Clinton and a Bush have shared this stage," she said.
The video ends with the word "UNELECTABLE" flashing on screen in red letters.
Bozell argues that Clinton could use this footage to blunt attacks by Bush and other Republicans on her record as the nation's top diplomat.
“If Jeb Bush is her opponent she will make him look ridiculous,” Bozell said in a statement announcing the video. "Anytime Jeb calls Hillary 'Obama 2.0,' any criticism he makes of her awful record as Secretary of State, any time he shows how much of an extremist she is on the issues, will be completely dismissed when she reminds everyone that he gave her an award for public service. As it stands, Jeb has absolutely no credibility to criticize her because he has already anointed her as a great public servant; and he inexplicably did so almost a year to the day of the Benghazi massacre."
For his part, Bush sharply criticized President Obama's foreign policy during a closely-watched address in Chicago on Wednesday. While he never explicitly mentioned Clinton, his criticisms could be interpreted as an indirect attack on her record as Obama's first secretary of state.
"Our words and actions must match so that the entire world knows that we say what we mean and mean what we say," he said Wednesday. "There should be no gap there. This administration talks – but the words fade. They draw red lines and then erase them. With grandiosity, they announce resets and then disengage."
Bozell's group claims to reach 8 million supporters, mostly via Facebook, including 1.2 million who live in states that will host the first nine GOP primaries or caucuses: Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Florida, Nevada, Maine, Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri.
Ed O'Keefe
Amazon.com Post
February 19
A leading conservative group with a far-reaching presence in social media is looking to raise fresh doubts about the potential presidential candidacy of Jeb Bush.
ForAmerica, a group founded by longtime conservative commentator L. Brent Bozell, is releasing a short online video on Thursday designed to raise questions about Bush's conservatism. The premise of the film is built around an appearance Bush made in 2013 alongside former secretary of state Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Bush, as chairman of the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, awarded the group's Liberty Medal to Clinton during an elaborate ceremony on Independence Mall on Sept. 10, 2013, a day shy of the one-year anniversary of the attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya that left four Americans dead.
At the time, Bush was criticized by conservative commentators, including radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh, for giving Clinton the honor so close to the anniversary of the attack.
“It’s bad enough the woman is getting this award . . . and then to find out that someone who is touted as a Republican presidential candidate is going to be presenting it to her because he runs this organization," Limbaugh said at the time.
In its 69-second video, ForAmerica plays clips of Bush praising Clinton's public service and Clinton reminding the crowd of the personal ties between the Bush and Clinton families.
Bush is seen thanking former president Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton "for your service to our country. We're united by love of country and public service."
Clinton is then seen thanking Bush: "This is not the first time that a Clinton and a Bush have shared this stage," she said.
The video ends with the word "UNELECTABLE" flashing on screen in red letters.
Bozell argues that Clinton could use this footage to blunt attacks by Bush and other Republicans on her record as the nation's top diplomat.
“If Jeb Bush is her opponent she will make him look ridiculous,” Bozell said in a statement announcing the video. "Anytime Jeb calls Hillary 'Obama 2.0,' any criticism he makes of her awful record as Secretary of State, any time he shows how much of an extremist she is on the issues, will be completely dismissed when she reminds everyone that he gave her an award for public service. As it stands, Jeb has absolutely no credibility to criticize her because he has already anointed her as a great public servant; and he inexplicably did so almost a year to the day of the Benghazi massacre."
For his part, Bush sharply criticized President Obama's foreign policy during a closely-watched address in Chicago on Wednesday. While he never explicitly mentioned Clinton, his criticisms could be interpreted as an indirect attack on her record as Obama's first secretary of state.
"Our words and actions must match so that the entire world knows that we say what we mean and mean what we say," he said Wednesday. "There should be no gap there. This administration talks – but the words fade. They draw red lines and then erase them. With grandiosity, they announce resets and then disengage."
Bozell's group claims to reach 8 million supporters, mostly via Facebook, including 1.2 million who live in states that will host the first nine GOP primaries or caucuses: Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Florida, Nevada, Maine, Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri.
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