Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016

Jeb Bush suspended his presidential campaign on February 20, 2016.

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Former presidential candidate Jeb Bush

Political offices: Former governor of Florida (1999-2007)

Bush on the issues:

Taxes • Banking policy • Government regulations • International trade • Budgets • Federal assistance programs • Foreign affairs • Federalism • Natural resources • Healthcare • Immigration • Education • Abortion • Gay rights

Republican candidate:

Donald Trump

Ballotpedia's presidential election coverage 2024 • 2020 • 2016

See also: Jeb Bush

Jeb Bush was a candidate for the office of President of the United States in 2016. He officially announced his campaign on June 15, 2015, in Miami. Bush ended his run for the White House after faring poorly in the Iowa Caucuses as well as primary elections in New Hampshire and South Carolina. At a gathering of supporters in the Palmetto State on February 20, 2016, he said:

“

The people of Iowa and New Hampshire and South Carolina have spoken, and I really respect their decision, so tonight I am suspending my campaign.

”

Bush served as the governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. He is the son of President George H.W. Bush and the younger brother of President George W. Bush. Bush was the first brother of a president to run for the office since Robert Kennedy in 1968.

Bush hinted at his intention to run when he posted the following comments on his Facebook page on December 16, 2014: "I have decided to actively explore the possibility of running for President of the United States. In January, I also plan to establish a Leadership PAC that will help me facilitate conversations with citizens across America to discuss the most critical challenges facing our exceptional nation. The PAC’s purpose will be to support leaders, ideas and policies that will expand opportunity and prosperity for all Americans. In the coming months, I hope to visit with many of you and have a conversation about restoring the promise of America."

On April 19, 2013, former President George W. Bush said that he hoped his brother Jeb would consider running for president and would not "be afraid of entering the arena" because of the family name. Seventeen presidents, including George W. Bush, have also served as governors.

In recent candidate rankings, Crowdpac ranked Bush as a 5.1C (C being conservative) on a scale ranging from 10L to 10C, making him the ninth most conservative Republican presidential candidate. Bush received a grade of a "B+/87" from the Leadership Project for America PAC.

On the issues

Quick facts about Bush
Birthday: February 11, 1953
Birthplace: Midland, Texas
Alma mater: University of Texas
Career: Governor of Florida (8 years) Founder, Jeb Bush & Associates (9 years)
Spouse: Columba Bush
Children: George, Noelle and Jeb Jr.
Religion: Catholic

Public policy in the 2016 election
Budgets and Taxes Education Common Core Student debt Energy Clean Power Plan Fracking Environment Climate change Healthcare Medicaid and Medicare Obamacare Redistricting Voting Rights Act Voter ID
Hover over the words for information about the issue and links to related articles.

Economic and fiscal

Taxes

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Taxes

• Jeb Bush published an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal on September 8, 2015 briefly outlining the tax plan he released on September 9, 2015. Bush laid out three main goals in his article: to make the tax code simpler and clearer with three tax brackets of 28, 25 and 10 percent and ditching the existing seven brackets, including the 39.6 percent top rate; to eliminate lobbyist-created loopholes in the tax code; to ensure the tax code does not hinder America’s international competitiveness. Bush argued in the article that his plan would "unleash increased investment, higher wages and sustained 4% economic growth, while reducing the deficit."

• The plan, which is estimated to cost $3.4 trillion over 10 years, would cut taxes for most taxpayers and would repeal the alternative minimum tax, cap the mortgage interest deduction, eliminate the estate tax as well as cut the top corporate tax rate to 20 percent from the current 35 percent top rate.

• In July 2015, Bush said that subsidies for the wind, solar, oil and gas industries should be phased out through tax reform.

• In 2006, the Cato Institute gave Bush an overall fiscal policy grade of "B" and a final-term grade of "C." According to the libertarian think tank, Bush "leaves office with a well-deserved reputation as one of the most aggressive tax cutting governors in the nation. He has proposed and signed into law a tax cut virtually every year of his tenure, ranging from cuts in property taxes to a phaseout of the intangibles tax—a levy on certain financial assets like stocks and bonds that makes Florida’s tax code hostile to capital formation."

• In 2002, the Cato Institute gave Bush a fiscal policy grade of "A." In its annual report card on governors, the Cato Institute stated, "In an era when many governors have dealt with the recession by raising taxes, Jeb Bush has cut the Florida tax burden and held off a tax hike agenda advanced by senators in his own party. In 1999, he cut the Florida property tax by $1 billion, and in 2001 he cut the business intangible tax by $600 million. This past year he regrettably agreed to delay the final stage of the intangibles tax cut until 2003 as part of a budget balancing deal to cut $1 billion in state spending."

• In 2000, the Cato Institute gave Bush a fiscal policy grade of "B." According to the Cato Institute, in his first year as governor, "Bush proposed and signed into law a $1 billion tax cut, the largest in Florida history and one of the largest in the nation in 1999."

Banking policy

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Banking policy

• During the Republican debate on November 10, 2015, Jeb Bush said another financial crisis could be avoided if there were higher capital requirements to avoid concentrated assets. He also criticized the compliance costs of Dodd-Frank on community banks.

• Bush introduced his regulatory reform platform to diminish current regulations and decentralize regulatory authority on September 22, 2015. As part of his agenda, Bush said he would "work with Congress to repeal significant portions of the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial law, and we will reform the complex set of rules that perpetuate too-big-to-fail financial institutions." He further criticized Dodd-Frank, calling it a "two-tiered banking system" where a "few huge financial institutions sit securely at the top, insulated from competition by regulations that impose heavy compliance burdens on their smaller rivals."

• As part his tax plan announced September 8, 2015, Bush called for the end of the carried interest tax loophole allowing fund managers to treat their earned income as capital gains rather than salary and be, consequently, taxed at a lower rate.

• Following his second term as governor of Florida in 2007, Bush worked with financial institutions on Wall Street for seven years. Although he was not an employee of either company, he served in a client-facing role for Barclays and the now-defunct Lehman Brothers, The Wall Street Journal reported.

• In 2006, Bush called excessive executive compensation a "threat to capitalism." He said, "Large rewards for great results can still be attacked, but they're very defensible. But if the rewards for CEOs and their teams become extraordinarily high with no link to performance - and shareholders are left holding the bag - then it undermines people's confidence in capitalism itself."

Government regulations

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Government regulations

• At the fourth Republican primary debate, in a discussion on economic growth, Jeb Bush said "On the regulatory side I think we need to repeal every rule that Barack Obama has in terms of work in progress, every one of them. And start over.

• Bush wrote an op-ed in USA Today on October 7, 2015, to proclaim he “intend[s] to shake up Washington.” As part of his reform agenda, Bush said he would work to establish a balanced budget amendment, a six-year lobbying ban on former members of Congress, congressional term limits and the reduction of the federal workforce by 10 percent.

• On September 22, 2015, Bush proposed a “regulatory budget” designed to ensure that the cost of any new regulation would be offset by the savings of another, a proposal that could threaten the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reform law. He also advocated for many regulations to “repealed or reformed,” including net neutrality rules for the internet and limits on carbon emissions. Bush also said Obama administration Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations were among “the most onerous Obama rules and regulations,” and added that he would repeal the EPA carbon rules for power plants, waters of the United States rule and coal ash disposal rule.

• Speaking at Florida State University on July 20, 2015, Bush called for government reform. He expressed support for a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution, reform of military procurement procedures, a presidential line-item veto right, hiring fewer federal employees and instituting a six-year waiting period before former congressmen can lobby.

International trade

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/International trade

• On November 5, 2015, Jeb Bush said he disagreed with the Obama administration’s decision to potentially reject a bilateral trade agreement with the United Kingdom if it left the European Union. “Great Britain is a sovereign nation, and they must make this decision about their relationship with Europe on their own. The U.S. should not be putting a thumb on the scale and certainly shouldn’t bully an ally. That said, as President, if Great Britain made that decision of course the U.S. would work with them on a trade agreement,” Bush said.

• In an interview on Iowa Public Radio, October 15, 2015, Bush said he would support "trade with Cuba when Cuba is free. The difference between China and Cuba is China has huge economic opportunities for us. Cuba is a country of 11 million people, impoverished, and it's a dictatorship. Any efforts taken by the Obama administration right now has not gotten anything in return."

• In an April 22, 2015, op-ed, Jeb Bush criticized Hillary Clinton for calling the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal the "gold standard" while she was secretary of state and cooling "her enthusiasm considerably" as a presidential candidate. He wrote, "Sec. Clinton’s campaign said trade agreements have to pass fresh tests and even greater scrutiny — and among the issues she raised were elements like currency manipulation that the Obama Administration have said were 'poison pills' that would kill the negotiation. So much for the gold standard. These new reservations are conveniently timed. Sec. Clinton wavered on support for trade the last time she ran for President as well. It seems Secretary Clinton thinks we have a short memory."

• In the same op-ed, Bush expressed his support for the TPP. He wrote, "I know there is political risk in supporting free trade. TPP is President Obama’s biggest trade initiative. I know some political constituencies in my own political party don’t favor it. But I agree with what Hillary Clinton said about TPP in 2012: This is a great deal for America. It would strengthen our ties to our allies throughout the Pacific region, including our close allies and partners in Australia, Mexico and Japan. We could use more friends, frankly. More than that, free trade is essential to creating the sustained, high rate of growth that we need to create well-paying jobs, new opportunities for American farmers and businesses, and even greater access to a global supply of goods and services."

• In 2012, Jeb Bush criticized President Barack Obama for not signing trade agreements with Columbia, Panama and South Korea earlier. He said, "President Obama missed several opportunities early in his administration to secure quick passage of trade agreements with Colombia and Panama which together will create thousands of jobs here in Florida."

Budgets

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Budgets

• Speaking at the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center in New Hampshire on October 14, 2015, Jeb Bush said he supported the government partnering with private sector leaders like SpaceX’s Elon Musk to develop our space program. He said, "I mean what's wrong with having big aspirational goals? It's not in the absence of taking care of the hungry or the poor. We're a big country. We're a generous country. The benefits of this are far more than people realize.”

• During Bush's eight years as governor, "Florida general fund spending increased from $18.0 billion to $28.2 billion during those eight years, or 57 percent. Total state spending increased from $45.6 billion to $66.1 billion, or 45 percent. (This is NASBO data from here and here). Over those eight years, Florida’s population grew 16 percent and the CPI, which measures inflation, grew 24 percent," according to the Cato Institute.

• In 2006, the Cato Institute gave Bush a fiscal grade of "C" for an "explosive growth in state spending, spurred largely by some big-spending schemes proposed by Bush himself, such as the grant of $310 million in taxpayer money to the Scripps Institute to lure it to Florida from La Jolla, California. Real per capita general fund spending has grown an annual average of 5 percent over the past two years, making Bush one of the biggest spending Republican governors in this report card."

Federal assistance programs

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Federal assistance programs

• After being confronted at a New Hampshire town hall meeting on July 23, 2015, about his plan to “phase out” Medicare, Jeb Bush called the program an “actuarially unsound healthcare system” and added that Social Security is an “underfunded retirement system. He said, “The people that are receiving these benefits – I don’t think we should touch that, but your children and grandchildren are not going to get the benefits that they believe they are going to get or that you think they’re going to get. Whenever you get into a conversation about reforming entitlement the first thing that you can be guaranteed of is that the left will attack you and demonize you.”

• In June 2013, Bush argued that increasing legal immigration would fix the imbalance between retired individuals and working individuals, which would then safeguard the future of Social Security. He said, "We're going to have fewer workers taking care of a larger number of people the country has a social contract with to be able to allow them to retire with dignity and purpose. We cannot do that with the fertility rates that we have in our country. We're below break-even today. The one way that we can rebuild the demographic pyramid is to fix a broken immigration system to allow for people to come and learn English and play by our rules, to embrace our values and to pursue their dreams in our country with a vengeance to create more opportunities for all of us."

• In 2013, Gov. Rick Scott expanded and implemented a program to privatize Medicaid, which Bush introduced as a pilot program during his tenure as governor.

• According to The New Yorker, Bush "introduced a pilot program that allowed Medicaid recipients to select from a range of commercial health-care plans. Democrats, and some medical providers, accused him of following an ideologically driven agenda of privatization and cost-cutting that would end up harming patients. Conservatives hailed his reforms as a model for the rest of the country."

Labor and employment

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Labor and employment

• In a July 2015 interview with the New Hampshire Union-Leader, Jeb Bush said he would like for the economy to achieve 4 percent growth. Bush continued, "Which means we have to be a lot more productive, workforce participation has to rise from its all-time modern lows. It means that people need to work longer hours” and, “through their productivity, gain more income for their families. That’s the only way we’re going to get out of this rut that we’re in.”

• In March 2015, Bush opposed the federal minimum wage. He said, "We need to leave it to the private sector. I think state minimum wages are fine. The federal government shouldn't be doing this."

• Bush has been critical of collective-bargaining and teachers unions. In March 2014, Bush said, “Teaching needs to be more of a profession and less of a collective-bargaining process." In November 2012, he said, “We need to have a teacher evaluation system that is based on teachers being professionals, not part of some collective trade union bargaining process. We have a system to reward teachers that’s based on an industrialized, unionized model that is completely inappropriate for the 21st century. There are incredibly fine teachers that get paid less even though they’re doing the Lord’s work consistently over time, and there are teachers that are mediocre that get paid more because they’ve been there longer.”

• In a December 2012 op-ed for the Washington Times, Bush praised Governor Rick Snyder and Michigan legislators for passing a Right-to-Work law.

• In 1999, Bush signed CS/SB 662, which created a "One-Stop Permitting Internet System to provide individuals and businesses with a central source of development permit information." It streamlined and expedited the permitting process for "new, expanding or relocating businesses in Florida."

• According to The Washington Post, Bush "privatized the state government’s personnel department, its child protective services, its prison food services, its Medicaid program, and its defense of death-row inmates."

• According to a document released by the AFL-CIO Bush "entered into approximately 140 contracts with private entities for services that had been provided by state workers. This drive to privatize was called 'The Florida Model.'"

Foreign affairs

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Foreign affairs

Iran nuclear deal

See also: 2016 presidential candidates on the Iran nuclear deal

• On April 2, 2015, Jeb Bush released the following statement on the Iran nuclear deal: "The reported details of the Iran deal include significant concessions to a nation whose leaders call for death to America and the destruction of Israel. Iran remains a major destabilizing force in the region, working against American interests. Today, the Obama administration has agreed to remove U.S. and international sanctions, while permitting Iran to enrich uranium using most of the centrifuges in use today, conduct research into faster, next generation centrifuges, maintain an underground, hardened facility at Fordow, and expand its ballistic missile capabilities. It fails to obtain a guarantee of sufficient inspections. Iran isn’t required to disclose its past weaponization activities and many of the deal’s provisions will expire in the near future. These negotiations began, by President Obama’s own admission, as an effort to deny Iran nuclear capabilities, but instead will only legitimize those activities. Nothing in the deal described by the administration this afternoon would justify lifting US and international sanctions, which were the product of many years of bipartisan effort. I cannot stand behind such a flawed agreement."

Military preparedness and budget

• During the eighth Republican presidential primary debate on February 6, 2016, Jeb Bush talked about his support for requiring women to register for the draft: "I do think that we should not impose any kind of political agenda on the military. There should be -- if women can meet the requirements, the minimum requirements for combat service they ought to have the right to do it. For sure. It ought to be focused on the morale as well. We got to make sure that we have readiness much higher than we do today. We need to eliminate the sequester which is devastating our military. We can't be focusing on the political side of this, we need to realize that our military force is how we project our word in the world. When we're weak militarily it doesn't matter what we say. We can talk about red lines, and ISIS being the J.V. team, and reset buttons and all this. If we don't have a strong military than no one fears us, and they take actions that are against our national interest."

• At the seventh Republican presidential primary debate on January 28, 2016, Bush discussed fixing the Department of Veterans Affairs: “But the first duty of the next president of the United States is to fix the mess at the Department of Veterans Affairs. That's his first responsibility. Look, we have waiting lists for veterans that are -- that are leaving because of the sequester where we're gutting the military. More and more military personnel are leaving becoming veterans, and the waiting list grows. They've given out $140 million of bonuses to Veterans Department employees, including reducing the waiting lists, without giving veterans care. People died, and only three people have been fired. I will make sure that we fire the sheer incompetence inside the Department of Veterans Affairs and then we'll give veterans a choice card so that they don't have to travel hours and hours to get care if they want to go to their private provider. You want to make the Veterans Administration do a better job, give them -- give veterans choices and you'll get a much better result.”

• During the sixth Republican presidential primary debate, on January 14, 2016, Jeb Bush talked about restoring the military: “Well, first of all, under President Jeb Bush, we would restore the strength of the military. Last week, Secretary Carter announced that the Navy's going to be cut again. It's now half the size of what it was prior to Operation Desert Storm. The deployments are too high for the military personnel. We don't have procurement being done for refreshing the equipment. The B-52 is still operational as the long range bomber; it was inaugurated in the age of Harry Truman. The planes are older than the pilots. We're gutting our military, and so the Iranians and the Chinese and the Russians and many other countries look at the United States not as serious as we once were. We have to eliminate the sequester, rebuild our military in a way that makes it clear that we're back in the game.”

• In an op-ed for Town Hall on December 10, 2015, Jeb Bush criticized the “incompetency” of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). “Under my plan, more veterans could choose between receiving care at a VA hospital or using their benefits at another health facility. I believe strongly that giving veterans more choices and control over their health care will create competition that will result in the VA becoming better at providing services and more accountable,” Bush wrote.

National security

• During a campaign stop in New Hampshire on January 20, 2016, Jeb Bush endorsed the idea of a nuclear weapons-free world. He said, “I think there should be a goal of — an aspirational goal, a Reagan-esque goal if you will — of elimination of all nuclear weapons in the world. I think that is not a naive aspiration.” This is a deviation from the belief held by some Republicans, like former Vice President Dick Cheney, that denuclearization weakens the U.S.

• During a January 16, 2016, interview with the Associated Press, Bush said his foreign policy strategy as president would most resemble his father George H.W. Bush’s strategy. He said, "It was a very successful foreign policy and one that I think one could envision a bipartisan consensus emerging around and one the American people could support." Bush also said that he is in favor of using military intervention "sparingly" but with "awesome force.” He added, "The one ingredient that I think is so essential is to not just have a military exit strategy, but have a political strategy not create another void that has to be filled again...where we have to respond again to that void being filled. Syria is a good example of that."

• On January 13, 2016, Libertarian presidential candidate and software developer John McAfee wrote a response to Bush’s January 12, 2016 editorial in Business Insider. “If his understanding of our position is as described in his policy statement, then our best move is to immediately surrender to the Chinese or the Russians and hope for mercy,” McAfee wrote. He argued Bush was incorrect to assert cybersecurity was an economic problem when the threat of an EMP attack or “weaponized software” was a more dangerous potential problem.

• Bush criticized President Obama’s foreign policy in the following tweet published after the State of the Union address January 12, 2016: “Safer? ISIS on the rise. North Korea testing nukes. Syria in chaos. Taliban on march. This president is living in a different world. #SOTU.”

International relations

• At the ninth Republican presidential primary debate on February 13, 2016, Jeb Bush discussed how he would deal with ISIS, Bashar al-Assad and Russia: “The lack of leadership in this country by Barack Obama, John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, thinking that this is a policy that works, this policy of containment with ISIS. It's a complete, unmitigated disaster. And to allow Russia now to have influence in Syria makes it harder, but we need to destroy ISIS and dispose of Assad to create a stable Syria so that the four million refugees aren't a breeding ground for Islamic jihadists. This is the problem. Donald Trump brought up the fact that he would -- he'd want to accommodate Russia. Russia is not taking out ISIS. They're -- they're attacking our -- our -- our team, the team that we've been training and the team that we've been supporting. It is absolutely ludicrous to suggest that Russia could be a positive partner in this. They are on the run. They are making -- every time we step back, they're on the run. The question that you asked was a really good one about what you would do -- what three things would you do. I would restore the military, the sequester needs to be reversed. I would have a strategy to destroy ISIS, and I would immediately create a policy of containment as it relates to Iran's ambitions, and to make it make clear that we are not going to allow for Iran to do what it's doing, which is to move towards a nuclear weapon.”

• At the eighth Republican presidential primary debate on February 6, 2016, Jeb Bush discussed the college student held hostage by North Korea: "It's interesting that that happened literally days [after] when this hostage release took place in Iran. A day or two days afterwards, North Korea took a -- held an American student hostage. I think it's when we send a signal of weakness, when we are negotiating to release people that committed crimes in our country for people that didn't commit crimes that are held hostage in Iran. We saw the shameful treatment of our sailors, that this creates weakness -- sends a signal of weakness around the world. The next president of the United States is going to have to get back in the game. Where the United States' word matters. Where we back up our allies, where we don't send signals of weakness. We need to use every -- every influence possible to get this student back. And I think John is right about this, there are crippling sanctions that are available, as it relates to the two or three banks that North Korea uses to -- to -- use it -- illicit trade. We ought to re-establish sanctions, not just because of the student, but because of their actions that they're taking right now, as it relates to building this missile capability."

• At a New Hampshire campaign event on January 6, 2016, Bush commented on Saudi Arabia’s mass execution of 47 prisoners over the weekend, saying, “A strong relationship with Saudi Arabia would allow us to say you shouldn't be executing people for the types of crimes they committed.”

• Discussing reports of North Korea’s hydrogen bomb test at a New Hampshire campaign event, Bush said January 6, 2016, that “If they have long-range missile capability to deliver, that is a direct threat to the U.S. and there is nothing more to say about it.” He cautioned, however, that “we need to make sure it's been confirmed. You wake up in the morning, you see the news...it's not always necessarily turns out to be.”[sic]

ISIS and terrorism

• In an interview with Newsmax on January 8, 2016, Jeb Bush said that legal restrictions were compromising the military’s ability to defeat the Islamic State. “To me, it is outrageous because it endangers the troops. You cannot have lawyers on top of the war fighters of this extraordinary military force. Of course, the military should apply the standards of war fighting that are the international norms,” he said. Bush added that the U.S. should not "worry about the civil liberties of an ISIS sympathizer. We're at war and we should treat it accordingly."

• At the fifth GOP primary debate on December 15, 2015, Bush discussed defeating ISIS and Donald Trump’s plan to temporarily ban Muslims from entering the country: “Well, first of all, we need to destroy ISIS in the caliphate. That's - that should be our objective. The refugee issue will be solved if we destroy ISIS there, which means we need to have a no-fly zone, safe zones there for refugees and to build a military force. We need to embed our forces - our troops inside the Iraqi military. We need to arm directly the Kurds. And all of that has to be done in concert with the Arab nations. And if we're going to ban all Muslims, how are we going to get them to be part of a coalition to destroy ISIS? The Kurds are the greatest fighting force and our strongest allies. They're Muslim. Look, this is not a serious proposal. In fact, it will push the Muslim world, the Arab world away from us at a time when we need to reengage with them to be able to create a strategy to destroy ISIS. So Donald, you know, is great at - at the one-liners, but he's a chaos candidate. And he'd be a chaos president. He would not be the commander in chief we need to keep our country safe.”

• Appearing on CNBC on November 20, 2015, Bush said his first move as commander-in-chief would be to consult with the military on how best “to destroy ISIS.” He argued there are too many “conditions” in place restricting the actions the U.S. can take. He added that the Syrian crisis could not be solved “in concert with Russia. … Ultimately there needs to be a political solution where Bashar Assad leaves.”

• In a speech at the Citadel on November 18, 2015, Bush said the U.S. should increase the number of ground forces in the Middle East to combat the Islamic State. “The United States—in conjunction with our NATO allies and more Arab partners—will need to increase our presence on the ground," Bush said, although he did not provide an estimate of how many soldiers he would send to the region.

• Appearing on NBC’s "Meet the Press" on November 15, Bush said the U.S. "should declare war and harness all of the power that the United States can bring to bear both diplomatic and military, of course, to be able to take out ISIS. We have the capabilities of doing this, we just haven't shown the wall." When asked what he would like to see President Obama do in the next two weeks to combat ISIS, Bush answered, "Declare a no-fly zone over Syria. Directly arm the Peshmerga forces in Iraq. Re-engage with the Sunni tribal leaders. Embed with the Iraqi military. Be able to create safe zones in Syria. Garner the support of our European allies and the tradition Arab states. Lead. That's what I want him to do. I want him to lead. He has the capability of doing this. We have the resources to do this. This is a threat to Western civilization and we should consider it that way."

Syrian refugees

• At the sixth Republican presidential primary debate, on January 14, 2016, Jeb Bush argued with Donald Trump over his plan to temporarily ban Muslims from entering the country: “Donald, Donald -- can I -- I hope you reconsider this, because this policy is a policy that makes it impossible to build the coalition necessary to take out ISIS. The Kurds are our strongest allies. They're Muslim. You're not going to even allow them to come to our country? The other Arab countries have a role to play in this. We cannot be the world's policeman. We can't do this unilaterally. We have to do this in unison with the Arab world. And sending that signal makes it impossible for us to be serious about taking out ISIS and restoring democracy in Syria. So I hope you'll reconsider. I hope you'll reconsider. The better way of dealing with this -- the better way of dealing with this is recognizing that there are people in, you know, the -- Islamic terrorists inside, embedded in refugee populations. What we ought to do is tighten up our efforts to deal with the entry visa program so that a citizen from Europe, it's harder if they've been traveling to Syria or traveling to these other places where there is Islamic terrorism, make it harder -- make the screening take place. We don't have to have refugees come to our country, but all Muslims, seriously? What kind of signal does that send to the rest of the world that the United States is a serious player in creating peace and security?”

• On November 17, 2015, during an interview on Bloomberg Politics' “With All Due Respect,” Bush said that banning Syrian refugees from coming to the United States is not the way to solve the problem with ISIS. He said, “The answer is to lead, to resolve the problem in Syria.” Bush also clarified his previous statement about asking the U.S. to let in Christian refugees, noting that it was not meant to discriminate against other refugees. He said, “There's no discrimination to simply say that you want to protect religious minorities that are being exterminated.”

• On November 15, 2015, during an interview on CNN’s "State of the Union," Bush discussed accepting refugees from Syria. He said, "I think we need to do thorough screening and take a limited number, but ultimately the best way to deal with the refugee crisis is to create safe zones inside of Syria." Later that day he added, "The great majority of refugees need to be safely kept in Syria. Which means the safe zones need to be serious."

• On November 15, Bush said the U.S. should concentrate its refugee assistance on Christian Syrians. "I think we need to do thorough screening and take in a limited number. There are a lot of Christians in Syria that have no place now. They'll be either executed or imprisoned, either by Assad or by ISIS. We should focus our efforts as it relates to the refugees for the Christians that are being slaughtered," Bush said.

• In the same interview on CNN, Bush said "Islamic terrorism" should be named "for what it is." He said, "This is not a question of religion. This is a political ideology that has co-opted a religion, and I think it's more than acceptable to call it for what it is and then organize an effort to destroy it."

Domestic

Federalism

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Federalism

Judiciary

• Bush said on February 18, 2016, that he would nominate a new Supreme Court justice if he were in President Obama’s position, but said that in this “divisive” political climate, it would be “unlikely that the Senate would provide the necessary consent for that nomination.” He added that his own Supreme Court pick would “not aspire to legislate from the bench.” His comments come after Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia passed away on February 13, 2016. Senate Republicans have said that the seat should be filled by the next president, not President Obama.

• Jeb Bush said during the Republican presidential debate on February 13, 2016, that President Barack Obama "has every right to nominate Supreme Court justices. I'm an Article II guy in the Constitution. ... We want a strong executive for sure. But in return for that, there should be a consensus orientation on that nomination, and there's no doubt in my mind that Barack Obama will not have a consensus pick when he submits that person to the Senate." Commenting on what type of nominee should be put forward, Bush described "someone with a proven conservative record, similar to Justice Scalia, that is a lover of liberty, that believes in limited government, that consistently applied that kind of philosophy, that didn't try to legislator from the bench, that was respectful of the Constitution."

• Bush also released the following statement, in part, on February 13, 2016: "Justice Scalia was a brilliant defender of the rule of law–his logic and wit were unparalleled, and his decisions were models of clarity and good sense. I often said he was my favorite justice, because he took the Constitution, and the responsibility of judges to interpret it correctly, with the utmost seriousness. Now it is up to all of us to fight for the principles Justice Scalia espoused and carry forth his legacy."

• At the ninth Republican presidential primary debate on February 13, 2016, Bush discussed whether he would have a litmus test for a U.S. Supreme Court nominee: “Not on specific issues, not at all. I think the next president -- if I'm president, I will appoint people -- I'll nominate people that have a proven record in the judiciary. The problem in the past has been we have appointed people thinking you can get it through the Senate because they didn't have a record. And the problem is that sometimes we're surprised. The simple fact is the next president needs to appoint someone with a proven conservative record, similar to Justice Scalia, that is a lover of liberty, that believes in limited government, that consistently applied that kind of philosophy, that didn't try to legislator from the bench, that was respectful of the Constitution. And then fight and fight, and fight for that nomination to make sure that that nomination passes. Of course, the president, by the way, has every right to nominate Supreme Court justices. I'm an Article II guy in the Constitution. We're running for the president of the United States. We want a strong executive for sure. But in return for that, there should be a consensus orientation on that nomination, and there's no doubt in my mind that Barack Obama will not have a consensus pick when he submits that person to the Senate.”

• On January 24, 2016, Bush detailed his commitment to appointing conservative federal judges. He wrote, “In my view, the federal courts have a vital but limited role in our national life. Their job is not to second-guess laws or to substitute their own judgment for the provisions of the Constitution. It is to apply the laws as written, and follow the Constitution above all. … As president, I will search for nominees who agree with this job description—nominees in the mold of such Justices as Samuel Alito, Antonin Scalia, and Clarence Thomas—and I will fight for their confirmation.”

• Bush wrote an op-ed for Fox News.com on December 9, 2015, detailing his proposal to restore states’ rights. He pledged to veto legislation that “exceeds federal authority,” nominate judges who believe in “the Constitution’s limits on federal authority,” reform the regulatory process to return power to the states, and permit states “to enforce laws that promote the goals of federal immigration law without allowing states to create their own immigration regimes.”

• When asked at a December 1, 2015, campaign event in Iowa about his effort as governor to save Terri Schiavo’s life, Bush said, "I can assure you, this was a very, very difficult time and it breaks my heart I was not successful.” He added that he did everything that he could legally do, noting the importance of respecting the Constitution. He said, "You better be serious about that. Rule of law in this country continues to be something that keeps us extraordinary and exceptional."

First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

See also: 2016 presidential candidates on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act

• In a radio interview in September 2015, Jeb Bush said the Washington Redskins should not be required to change their name. “I don’t think politicians ought to be having any say about that, to be honest with you. I don’t find it offensive. Native American tribes generally don’t find it offensive,” Bush added. Daniel Snyder, the team’s owner, contributed $100,000 to a super PAC backing Bush in July 2015.

• Speaking of the Kentucky county clerk who refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, Bush said on September 3, 2015, “[She] is sworn to uphold the law and it seems to me there ought to be common ground, there ought to be big enough space for her to act on her conscience and for, now that the law is the law of the land, for a gay couple to be married in whatever jurisdiction that is.”

• During a July 2015 campaign stop in South Carolina, Bush said decisions regarding Confederacy-related names and symbols, like changing the name of a local high school sports team from the Rebels, “ought to be sorted out at the local level.”

Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA)

• During a March 30 interview on The Hugh Hewitt Show, Jeb Bush commented on Indiana's Religious Freedom Restoration Act. He said, "I think if you, if they actually got briefed on the law that they wouldn’t be blasting this law. I think Governor Pence has done the right thing. Florida has a law like this. Bill Clinton signed a law like this at the federal level. This is simply allowing people of faith space to be able to express their beliefs, to have, to be able to be people of conscience. I just think once the facts are established, people aren’t going to see this as discriminatory at all."

Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

• On February 16, 2016, Jeb Bush tweeted a photo of a gun with his name engraved on it. The tweet said: "America." Bush later explained the tweet, saying, "The purpose was we went to a gun manufacturing facility where lots of jobs are created, high-wage jobs. And I received a gun and I was honored to have it." Bush visited “FN Manufacturing, a high-security firearm company in Columbia, South Carolina,” according to CNN.

• During the sixth Republican presidential primary debate, on January 14, 2016, Jeb Bush discussed how to help prevent mass shootings. He said, “The first impulse of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton is to take rights away from law- abiding citizens. That's what they do, whether it's the San Bernardino, Calif. attack or if it's these tragedies that take place, I think we need to focus on what the bigger issue is. It isn't law-abiding gun owners. Look, I have an A plus rating in the NRA [National Rifle Association] and we also have a reduction in gun violence because in Florida, if you commit a crime with a gun, you're going away. You're going away for a long, long while. And that's what we should focus on is the violence in our communities. Target the efforts for people that are committing crimes with guns, and if you do that, and get it right, you're going to be much better off than creating a political argument where there's a big divide. The other issue is mental health. That's a serious issue that we could work on. Republicans and Democrats alike believe this. The president's first impulse is do this by executive order, power he doesn't have. Why not go to Congress and in a bipartisan way, begin to deal with the process of mental health issues so that people that are spiraling out of control because of mental health challenges don't have access to guns.”

• On January 12, 2016, Bush announced his “Sportsmen's Coalition" advisory committee. According to a statement from Bush’s campaign, the group, which is made up of officials from government, agriculture, and wildlife departments, “will help spread Jeb’s message about the importance of hunting and fishing traditions and protecting the second Amendment for law-abiding citizens."

• Speaking about President Obama's “call for enhanced background checks,” Bush said January 5, 2016, that Obama’s plan to prevent gun violence "shows an utter disregard for the Second Amendment as well as the proper constitutional process for making laws in our nation."

• On January 3, 2016, Bush told Fox News' Fox News Sunday, that he opposed Obama’s proposed executive action regarding gun control. He said, “His first impulse always is to take rights away from law-abiding citizens, and it’s wrong. And to use executive powers he doesn’t have is a pattern that is quite dangerous.”

Crime and justice

• In an interview with The Des Moines Register editorial board on January 13, 2016, Jeb Bush expressed support for Justice Department investigations of police conduct where there was “overt discrimination,” but noted that such investigations can increase tensions between police officers and community members.

• Bush, who appeared at a drug addiction and prevention forum in New Hampshire on January 5, 2016, announced the day before that he would seek to limit “pill mills” offering excessive prescriptions for pain medication and increase access to drug courts. Bush also called for increasing penalties against drug traffickers and violent drug offenders, increasing security along the U.S.-Mexico border and ending duplication of treatment programs across federal agencies. He also talked about his daughter’s drug addiction. He said, “What I learned was that the pain that you feel when you have a loved one who has addiction challenges and kind of spirals out of control is something that is shared with a whole lot of people.” He added, “For dealers, they ought to be put away forever as far as I’m concerned. But users — I think we have to be a second-chance country.”

• In an interview with Christianity Today published on December 2, 2015, Bush admitted it was a “struggle” to balance his Catholic faith and his support for capital punishment. “I’ve tried to explain it but sometimes in life it’s not an either/or—it’s not so simple. We’re always confronted with challenges where one’s values come into conflict and this was a perfect case of that. I was very uncomfortable signing death warrants, but I think it was because it was the law, number one. Number two, I think because I met families that, in their minds, justice was being denied by the delays. They could not get closure in their lives until the death penalty was complete and was executed.”

• According to the American Bar Association, after former President George W. Bush "launched his Faith-Based and Community Initiatives in 2001," Bush "opened faith-based prisons" in Florida.

Territories

• During the seventh Republican presidential primary debate on January 28, 2016, Jeb Bush discussed whether Americans should bail out Puerto Rico: “No, they shouldn't. And I believe that Puerto Rico ought to have the right of self-determination. If I was a Puerto Rican, I'd vote for statehood so that they have full citizenship. They serve in the military. They would have to pay federal taxes. They would -- they would accept the responsibilities of full U.S. citizenship. But they should have the right of determine -- self-determination. Before you get to that, though, Puerto Rico is going to have to deal with the structural problems they face. You know, it's -- it's a fact that if you can pay for a $79 one-way ticket to Orlando, and you can escape the challenges of a declining economy and high crime rates, you move to Orlando. And a lot of people are doing that. And the spiraling out-of- control requires Puerto Rico to make structural reforms. The federal government can play a role in allowing them to do that, but they should not -- the process of statehood or the status of Puerto Rico won't be solved until we get to the bigger issue of how you deal with the structural economic problems they're facing right now.”

• On July 27, 2015, Jeb Bush advocated for debt relief for Puerto Rico. "I think we ought to have structured recasting of their debt and structured recasting of their social obligations," Bush said. He also noted he supported statehood for the island but only after its financial crisis had beeb been resolved.

Natural resources

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Natural resources

Environmental Protection Agency

• On September 24, 2015, Jeb Bush described the Environmental Protection Agency as being “aggressive” in its regulatory scheme. “Their whole effort has been to destroy the coal industry and all the communities that are associated with it,” Bush said, noting he would roll back regulations impacting the coal industry.

Energy development

• Jeb Bush discussed his energy policy at a Pennsylvania event on September 29, 2015. His plan was designed to lift restrictions on oil and gas production and exportation, approve the Keystone XL pipeline, reduce environmental regulations and accommodate state energy production needs, in order to help boost the economy to four percent growth.

• During a speech in October 2013, Bush advocated for the "approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, 'rational' regulations on fracking, and opening federal lands to drilling," according to Politico. Bush said, “We should let market forces, not crony capitalism, decide where to invest and how to incentivize citizens to conserve. A real energy strategy could add an additional 1 percent growth over the long haul.”

Climate change

• Jeb Bush addressed climate change with a group of voters in Iowa on December 1, 2015. He said, "I'm not sure I would have gone to the climate summit if I was president today,” referring to the gathering of world leaders in Paris. Acknowledging that he has not “seen the specifics,” he said he is worried that the proposals coming out of Paris “could have an impact on the here and now, on people that are really struggling right now.” Bush also said, "The climate is changing, its been changing forever. The question is how much of it is impacted by man and what impact is that and how long will that impact play out."

• In a July 2015 interview with Bloomberg BNA, Bush stated he believes climate change is partially driven by human activity. “The climate is changing; I don’t think anybody can argue it’s not. Human activity has contributed to it. I think we have a responsibility to adapt to what the possibilities are without destroying our economy, without hollowing out our industrial core,” Bush said. He also expressed support for the Keystone XL pipeline and condemned the expansion of the Environmental Protection Agency.

• During a 2011 interview with Fox Business, Bush said, climate change "is not unanimous among scientists that it is disproportionately manmade. What I get a little tired of on the left is this idea that somehow science has decided all this so you can’t have a view. Science has decided that embryonic stem cell research is the way to go and if you don’t agree with that then somehow you’re Cro-Magnon Man or something like that.”

Environmental protection

• On October 21, 2015, Jeb Bush said he would relocate the Interior Department to a western city like Reno, Salt Lake City or Denver, where public land management issues were more common. He added that he would take a localized “states-first” approach to developing conservation and land use policies.

• On September 22, 2015, Bush said Obama administration Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations were among “the most onerous Obama rules and regulations,” and added that he would repeal the EPA carbon rules for power plants, waters of the United States rule and coal ash disposal rule.

• TIME reported on September 1, 2015, that Bush might see opposition as he campaigns in Florida, because of his environmental record related to the St. Johns River and Rice Creek. He approved a pipeline that would have allowed the Georgia Pacific’s plant in Palatka, Florida, to carry waste into the St. Johns River if pollution levels became too high in Rice Creek, the customary depository for the chemicals. When the levels in Rice creek did become too high, environmentalists opposed the pipeline, while Georgia Pacific advocated for it. Ultimately, Bush left office in 2007 before the pipeline was constructed. Scott Arceneaux, executive director of the Florida Democratic Party, said of Bush’s environmental record on Tuesday, “He’s going to run on his record here (in Florida) why he should be President. We’re going to remind folks about all the things he didn’t do.”

• In 1999, Bush signed a bill that created "the Florida Forever Program, a 10-year, bond-funded program for the acquisition of environmentally significant lands and for water resource development projects."

Healthcare

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Healthcare

• Jeb Bush criticized a decision of the Food and Drug Administration’s to support of a version of slow-release OxyContin for children. Bush voiced his concern on November 4, 2015, in Hollis, New Hampshire. New England has seen a surge of deaths related to prescription opioids.

• On October 13, 2015, Bush rolled out a plan to replace Obamacare. His plan would put limits on federal payments to states and create a transition plan for the 17 million people receiving insurance coverage under Obamacare. He proposed providing higher tax credits for purchasing catastrophic health insurance and would allow higher contribution limits on health savings accounts for out-of-pocket expenses. The plan also proposed to limit the tax-free status of employer-provided health insurance. The proposal would also give power to the states to design Medicaid programs and increase funding for the National Institutes of Health.

• In November 2013, Bush said that the Affordable Care Act is “flawed to its core...If the objective is, don't worry about the budget, we'll just finance it the same way we're financing our deficits right now, build a bigger debt, you could see this thing surviving. But it will have failed what the promises were. It will have failed the American people. And I don't think it will bend the cost curve."

• During an October 2013 speech, "Bush said Obamacare needs to be repealed," according to Politico.

Immigration

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Immigration

• At the fourth Republican primary debate November 10, 2015, Jeb Bush said he opposed the mass deportation of those in the U.S. without documentation. He said, "Twelve million illegal immigrants, to send them back, 500,000 a month, is just not -- not possible. And it's not embracing American values. And it would tear communities apart. And it would send a signal that we're not the kind of country that I know America is. And even having this conversation sends a powerful signal -- they're doing high-fives in the Clinton campaign right now when they hear this. That's the problem with this. We have to win the presidency. And the way you win the presidency is to have practical plans. Lay them out there. What we need to do is allow people to earn legal status where they pay a fine, where they work, where they don't commit crimes, where they learn English, and over an extended period of time, they earn legal status. That's the path -- a proper path."

• Jeb Bush said on September 22, 2015, that America “should not have a multicultural society,” calling it “the wrong approach.” He explained, “America is so much better than every other country because of the values that people share – it defines our national identity. Not race or ethnicity, not where you come from. When you create pockets of isolation – and in some cases the assimilation process is retarded because it's slowed down – it's wrong. It limits people's' aspirations."

• Bush expressed his opposition to ending birthright citizenship on August 18, 2015. “This is a constitutionally protected right, and I don't support revoking it,” Bush said.

• On August 19, 2015, Bush said, “If there’s abuse, if people are bringing — pregnant women are coming in to have babies simply because they can do it, then there ought to be greater enforcement. That’s [the] legitimate side of this. Better enforcement so that you don’t have these, you know, ‘anchor babies’, as they’re described, coming into the country."

• Bush stood by his use of the term “anchor babies” on August 20, 2015, while taking questions from the press in New Hampshire. When asked if he regretted using the term, Bush responded, "No, do you have a better term? OK, you give me, you give me a better term and I'll use it. I'm serious."

• On August 24, 2015, Bush suggested his use of the term “anchor babies” primarily referred to Asian parents who engaged in birth tourism. “What I was talking about was the specific case of fraud being committed where there is organized efforts — and frankly it’s more related to Asian people — coming into our country, having children in that organized effort, taking advantage of a noble concept, which is birthright citizenship,” Bush said.

• Jeb Bush released the details of his immigration policy on his campaign website in August 2015. To address border security issues, Bush called for “creating more forward-operating bases” closer to the border, using advanced counter-surveillance technology and improving border infrastructure with road construction and maintenance. For interior enforcement, Bush recommended requiring electronic verification of employment eligibility, adequately tracking and deporting immigrants overstaying their visas, and withholding federal funding for sanctuary cities.

Education

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Education

• Jeb Bush released an education plan on January 18, 2016 on the blogging site Medium. Bush wrote, “My plan is budget neutral and returns power to states, local school districts and parents. My plan requires a complete overhaul of a system from one that serves bureaucracies to one that serves the needs of families and students and is based on four conservative principles: 1) education decisions should be made as close to the student as possible; 2) choice of all kinds should be expanded; 3) transparency is essential to accountability; and 4) innovation requires flexibility.” He also wrote that he would accomplish his plan with four steps: First, “doubling support for charter schools; strengthening the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program; and making federal aid to low-income (Title I) and special needs students (IDEA) portable, so states can give scholarships directly to those students to attend the school of their choice;” Second, requiring “states to ensure every citizen receives a complete picture of student achievement, system progress and finances in their schools;” Third, “empower[ing] states with the flexibility to improve their schools, while ensuring the federal government does not interfere in academic standards, curriculum or content;” Fourth, giving “schools whose teachers achieve good results for low-income students more money, incentivizing and rewarding success.” He remarked in an accompanying video “Dr. King's vision for America was based on equality of opportunity. … Without a quality education there is no equality of opportunity. It is the civil rights issue of our time.”

"Governor Bush Reflects on 15 Years of the A+ Plan for Education."

• On August 19, 2015, Bush called for “total voucherization” at an education summit in New Hampshire. He explained, “Let the suppliers come up with the creative solutions, have high expectations and accountability, and get out of the way."

• On June 23, 2015, Bush wrote an op-ed for The New York Post advocating for school choice. Noting Hillary Clinton has "an outsize influence in New York politics," Bush criticized her for supporting Mayor Bill de Blasio, an opponent of charter schools. If elected, Bush said he would "reduce the power and authority of the federal Department of Education, sending more money and flexibility back to the states so greater school-choice opportunities can be made available to parents and their children."

Common Core

• Jeb Bush's education foundation has advocated the Common Core State Standards Initiative. In October 2013, he said, "I understand there are those opposed to the standards. But what I want to hear from them is more than just opposition. I want to hear their solutions for the hodgepodge of dumbed-down state standards that have created group mediocrity in our schools. Criticisms and conspiracy theories are easy attention grabbers. Solutions are hard work. Be a problem solver."
  • At a GOP summit in New Hampshire in April 2015, Bush discussed Common Core and the federal government, saying, "We don’t need a federal government involved in this at all."
  • According to Politico reporter Marc Caputo, Bush did not use the term "Common Core" during a February 2015 educational policy speech. Bush said, “I’m for higher standards. And I’m for creating real restrictions of the federal government’s role in this. So you can alleviate people’s fears that you’re going to have some kind of control by the federal government of content or curriculum or even standards. I’m against the federal government being involved in demanding that assessments be done in a certain way.” Bush also called the public education system “government-run, unionized monopolies.”
  • In July 2014, Bloomberg Business reported, "Bush’s nonprofit Foundation for Excellence in Education in Tallahassee has stepped up its support of Common Core. Foundation director Patricia Levesque has written opinion articles defending the initiative, using student gains in Florida as evidence the educational model works."

Abortion

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Abortion

• During a campaign event in South Carolina, on February 11, 2016, Jeb Bush criticized Donald Trump’s stance on abortion and said that, like Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, Trump likes to divide people for his own gain. On the issue of abortion, he said, “In Florida we eliminated partial-birth abortions, the horrific procedure that Donald Trump just 12 or 13 years ago supported. I’ve never met a person other than Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump who has that radical of a view.” Citing Trump’s many insults, Bush said, “It’s based on this notion that if everybody reaches their full potential, whatever that is, that is divinely inspired, then extraordinary things will happen for our country. Trump, across the board, doesn’t understand this. Neither does our president. It’s dangerous to have a president like ours today whose best skill is to divide people in order to make himself look better.”

• During CNN's September 16 Republican presidential debate, Bush spoke about his stance on abortion and about defunding Planned Parenthood. He said, "I'm the most pro-life governor on this stage. I got to act on my core beliefs. It's part of who I am. Life is a gift from God. And from beginning end we need to respect it and err on the side of life. And so I defunded Planned Parenthood. We created a climate where parental notification took place. We were the only state to fund crisis pregnancy centers with state moneys. We were totally focused on this. And I would bring that kind of philosophy to Washington, D.C. So here is a solution to this. Title X of the HHS funding, there is something that was the 'Reagan Rule.' It was passed in 1988. And in that rule it was defined, and the courts approved this, that a Planned Parenthood, you couldn't separate the money between the actual abortion procedures, and there are 330,000 abortions that take place in this clinic, and their promotion of it. He interpreted it the right way, the courts ruled in his favor, and Planned Parenthood did not get funding during that time until President Clinton came in. When I'm elected president, we will restore that interpretation of Title X. And this deal will be finished. ...There are 13,000 community-based organizations that provide health services to women, 13,000 in this country. I don't believe that Planned Parenthood should get a penny from the federal government. Those organizations should get funding, just as I increased funding when I was governor of the state."

• At a town hall on August 25, 2015, Bush said he did not believe Planned Parenthood should receive any federal funding because "they’re not actually doing women’s health issues."

• On August 4, 2015, while speaking about Planned Parenthood and community health centers, Bush said, "I’m not sure we need a half a billion dollars for women’s health issues." Later that day, he released the following statement: "With regards to women’s health funding broadly, I misspoke, as there are countless community health centers, rural clinics, and other women’s health organizations that need to be fully funded. They provide critical services to all, but particularly low-income women who don’t have the access they need. I was referring to the hard-to-fathom $500 million in federal funding that goes to Planned Parenthood – an organization that was callously participating in the unthinkable practice of selling fetal organs."

Gay rights

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Gay rights

• Jeb Bush’s book, Reply All, became available for pre-order on August 26, 2015. It covers his time as governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007 using hundreds of emails to officials and citizens. One released exchange between Bush and a gay friend shows his long-held stance against gay marriage. “Your relationship with [your partner] can be made more permanent through contractual obligations that set forth asset disposition and other issues. However, I don’t believe that your relationship should be afforded the same status in the law as a man and a woman agreeing to marriage. The institution of marriage is under attack in our society and it needs to be strengthened. This does not have to be at the expense of other kinds of relationships but in support of the most important institution in our society," Bush wrote.

• On June 26, 2015, Jeb Bush released a statement asserting that the legality of same-sex marriage should have been decided by the states rather than the Supreme Court in Obergefell v. Hodges. The statement read: "Guided by my faith, I believe in traditional marriage. I believe the Supreme Court should have allowed the states to make this decision. I also believe that we should love our neighbor and respect others, including those making lifetime commitments. In a country as diverse as ours, good people who have opposing views should be able to live side by side. It is now crucial that as a country we protect religious freedom and the right of conscience and also not discriminate."

• In March 2013, Jeb Bush argued that same-sex marriage should be decided by state governments. He said, “I would prefer it to be a state-by-state issue. That’s how we have dealt with a lot of issues in the United States. Our federal system is a spectacular way to deal with changing mores -- and states can take advantage of opportunities much better than federal government. This could be a place where the states play a role, as is the case right now.”

Civil liberties

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016/Civil liberties

• In a radio interview on December 11, 2015, Jeb Bush said he supported the decriminalization of marijuana, but opposed legalization. “Marijuana is a gateway drug just as opiates are a gateway drug. … The new heroin and the new marijuana are highly, highly toxic,” he said, but he added that it should be “a state issue” rather than a federal one.

• In a November 16, 2015, interview on MSNBC, Bush argued in support of the National Security Agency (NSA) being granted the authority to collect information about Americans’ phone use, including phone numbers and the duration of calls. “I think we need to restore the metadata program, which was part of the Patriot Act. It expires in the next few months. I think that was a useful tool to keep us safe and also to protect civil liberties,” he said.

• On October 8, 2015, Bush said he opposed reauthorizing the Voting Rights Act “to continue to provide regulation on top of states as though we're living in 1960 – because those were basically when many of those rules were put in place.” He added, “There's been dramatic improvement in access to voting – exponentially better improvement. I don't think there's a role for the federal government to play in most places – there could be some – in most places where they did have a constructive role in the '60s, so I don't support reauthorizing it as is."

• Bush admitted to smoking marijuana when he was younger during the September 2015 GOP debate. “40 years ago, I smoked marijuana, and I admit it. I'm sure that other people might have done it and may not want to say it in front of 25 million people. My mom's not happy that I just did,” stated Bush. He then commented seriously on drug legalization with the statement, “It is appropriate for the government to play a consistent role to be able to provide more treatment, more prevention,” but said that the legalization of marijuana in Colorado was a “state decision.”

Race and ethnicity

• In 1999, Jeb Bush proposed the “One Florida” initiative, which ended "affirmative action in college admissions and some state contracts," according to the Tampa Bay Times.

Urban policy

• On his 2016 presidential campaign website, Jeb Bush said he would replace federal housing assistance with grants to each state to "allow states to meet the needs of poor families, in the way that makes most sense in each state."

• In an interview with The Des Moines Register editorial board on January 13, 2016, Bush expressed support for Justice Department investigations of police conduct where there was “overt discrimination,” but noted that such investigations could increase tensions between police officers and community members.

• In September 2015, Bush discussed how Republicans could connect more with black voters. "Our message is one of hope and aspiration. It isn't one of division and get in line and we'll take care of you with free stuff. Our message is one that is uplifting – that says you can achieve earned success," Bush said. The New York Times and The Washington Post compared this comment to a poorly received statement made by former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-Mass.) during the 2012 election after he was booed during a speech for the NAACP. Romney said, "Your friends who like Obamacare, you remind them of this: If they want more stuff from government, tell them to go vote for the other guy — more free stuff. But don’t forget nothing is really free."

• On August 13, 2015, Bush became the first 2016 Republican presidential candidate to be the target of a protest by Black Lives Matter activists. During a town hall event in Las Vegas, Nevada, activists began to chant "black lives matter" after Bush answered a question about racial inequality. Bush ended the event shortly after without making a closing statement.
  • Allie Brandenburger, a spokeswoman for Bush, claimed he had met with Black Lives Matter activists prior to the town hall. "Gov. Bush listened to the group and they discussed barriers to upward mobility in this country, and ways to overcome them as a community by starting to get a few things right in government," Brandenburger said.
  • The Huffington Post reported on August 14, 2015, that Bush had not spoken with any Black Lives Matter activists that day. Kevin Hooks, the president of the Las Vegas Urban League, said that he set up a meeting in which Bush "met with a local elected official, a GOP lobbyist and a staffer from an anti-poverty organization."

• Bush was asked if Martin O'Malley should have apologized for saying "all lives matter" when confronted by Black Lives Matter activists in July 2015. Bush said, “No, for crying out loud, no. We’re so uptight and so politically correct now that we apologize for saying lives matter? Life is precious. It’s a gift from God. I mean, I frankly think it’s one of the most important values that we have. I know in the political context it’s a slogan, I guess. Should he have apologized, no? If he believes that white lives matter, which I hope he does, then he shouldn’t apologize to a group that seems to disagree with it.”

• In January 2015, Bush said that immigration could provide a catalyst for American cities like Detroit to improve. He said, "It just seems to me that maybe if you open up our doors in a fair way and unleashed the spirit of peoples' hard work, Detroit could become in really short order, one of the great American cities again. Now it would look different, it wouldn't be Polish. ... But it would be just as powerful, just as exciting, just as dynamic. And that's what immigration does and to be fearful of this, it just seems bizarre to me."

• While Bush was governor of Florida in 2005, the state's overall crime rate dropped to its lowest rate since 1971. The number of violent crimes, however, increased 1.6 percent from the previous year.

• Bush opposed a publicly mandated mass transit project in Florida that would have connected the state's largest five cities. He eventually killed the project in 2004. In a note to a constituent about the matter, Bush wrote, "People thought it was 'cool' to have a really fast train running from Miami to Tampa. No costs were discussed. The higher taxes that are necessary will dramatically change the dynamic."

• As part of Bush's effort to renew urban communities in Florida in 1999, an Office of Urban Opportunity was established to execute the community revitalization project Front Porch Initiative. This initiative sought to connect urban residents with both state agencies and private partners to improve the area's educational, economic and environmental conditions, in at least 20 communities by 2002. By October 2002, the program's performance was being questioned. The St. Petersburg Times noted, for example, that "the Department of Juvenile Justice hastily handed out grants to 67 community groups in an attempt to beat a state budget deadline. It failed to conduct background checks and, in one case, awarded a $30,000 grant to the fledgling for-profit recording company of a man with a 12-year history of drug and weapons convictions. The money was supposed to go to established programs that steer kids away from drugs and violence."

Rural policy

• Jeb Bush's campaign announced the formation of a "Sportsmen's Coalition" on January 12, 2016, to "spread Jeb’s message about the importance of hunting and fishing traditions and protecting the Second Amendment for law-abiding citizens."

• In a December 2015 op-ed published by The Iowa Republican, Bush discussed several policy positions impacting rural communities.
  • Bush wrote, "Overreaching federal regulations stifle the potential of American agriculture and make a mockery of state authority and private property rights. For example, the federal 'Waters of the United States' rule is simply an illegal power grab that demonstrates a gross lack of understanding about what it takes to run a farm or business. ... On day one of my administration, I will stop every single regulation in process. I will immediately begin a sweeping reform of federal regulations, including repeal of the most onerous Obama-era rules and regulations including the 'Waters of the United States' rule and Dodd-Frank financial regulations. I will execute detailed plans I have already laid out to: free us from overbearing regulations; reverse the illegal federal power grab of states’ rights; and loosen the tight grip on lands that burdens ranchers in the West."
  • Bush stated that one reason he supported trade deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership was because they give the U.S. "the potential to feed billions of new middle-class consumers in Asia and Africa over the next few decades."
  • Bush said he supported the Renewable Fuel Standard until its planned termination date of 2022. "As we move forward over the long haul, there should be certainty for people to invest and we ought to continue to innovate to create the lowest cost energy sources in the world. Ultimately if you can compete in an open market place, then you’ll thrive, we need to make sure there is market access. I do think that phasing out, getting to a place where we don’t pick winners and losers and we don’t create mandates, over time, is the proper thing to do," he wrote.
  • Describing agricultural research as "undervalued," Bush said more federal funding should be used to support agricultural innovation.

• On October 21, 2015, Bush called for the Department of the Interior to be relocated from Washington, D.C., to the West. "Ninety percent plus of their activities are out here. But the folks that actually do the work, that impede the partnerships from being created, all live in Maryland, Virginia and Washington. I think they ought to be living out amongst us," Bush said while campaigning in Nevada.

• In October 2015, former Secretary of Agriculture and U.S. Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) endorsed Bush in an op-ed in Agri-Pulse, calling him an "advocate for rural Americans." Johanns argued that Bush's tax policies, particularly the repeal of the death tax, would benefit farmers. "Under Jeb Bush extreme regulations such as the power grabbing Waters of the United States rule, which expanded Washington's reach over hundreds of millions of acres of farmland, will be modified or repealed," Johanns wrote.

• Bush argued in June 2015 that gun control regulation should be left up to the states given the different needs of different communities. He said, "Rural areas are very different than big, teeming urban areas."

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See also

• Jeb Bush
• Presidential election, 2016