Jeb Bush’s Comeback Strategy: Frighten Children And Swear More

Blake Neff

Jeb Bush has tried to grab hold of the media narrative by launching a “Jeb Can Fix It” comeback tour across New Hampshire, but so far his primary accomplishment appears to be that of frightening children.

While visiting a pharmacy Tuesday, Bush decided to express his disagreement with a recent FDA decision allowing the powerful painkiller OxyContin to be prescribed to sick children suffering through cancer or major surgeries. There are arguments against such prescriptions, mostly based on the fact that OxyContin is highly addictive and could potentially lead to a rise in young people hooked on painkillers.

But that’s not exactly how Jeb put it. Instead, his message to cancer-stricken children was to say “Pain is a part of life.”

One day later, during an appearance in front of a bunch of schoolchildren, Jeb was asked what it was like to be the son of a president. Rather than give a fun answer that may have entertained the children, Jeb responded by describing his daddy issues.

“All he had to do was say, ‘I’m disappointed in you,’ and it would send me in a deep, spiraling depression,” he told the crowd of kids.

At another point of the event, Bush described strategy to secure the border, including deploying drones and reforming America’s system of legal immigration.

The next question, from a young girl, asked him “What’s a border?”

In general, Bush’s comeback tour has reflected a crisis in the Bush campaign, where the candidate’s natural demeanor sometimes clashes with efforts to rebrand himself. At a Wednesday event in Hollis, New Hampshire, Bush tried to differentiate himself from the bombastic Donald Trump campaign.

“I don’t think leadership’s about being the big personality on stage,” Bush said. “The volume in your voice is not a measurement of strength.”

Yet at the same time, Bush is trying to increase his appeal by shouting more and throwing some profanity into his speeches.

“We’re Americans, damn it!” he said in Rye, New Hampshire on Tuesday.

“The president has to lead!” he shouted at voters in Raymond on Wednesday, the same day he said people should ignore the volume of a candidate’s voice. “A president has to roll up their damn sleeves and get to work!”

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