Jeb Bush’s campaign addressed the problem of his mother saying the country doesn’t need another Bush presidency head-on, in a fundraising email signed by Barbara Bush herself.
“When the idea of Jeb running for President first came up, I was hesitant,” Mrs. Bush writes. “You may have heard about that. When you see the pounding candidates, their spouses, and even their children take, what mother wouldn’t be? But our problems are so profound that America needs a leader who can renew the promise of this great nation.”
That’s an allusion to her previous public opposition to the idea of him running. “He’s by far the best-qualified man, but no. I really don’t,” she told NBC in 2013. “I think it’s a great country, there are a lot of great families, and it’s not just four families or whatever. There are other people out there that are very qualified, and we’ve had enough Bushes.”
In the email, she says “Jeb is our best chance of taking back the White House in 2016, and I hope that you will join me in pushing him to run.”