Jeb Bush’s Problem: He’s Sane

By Bill Maher

Jeb Bush is openly talking about a presidential run, and I, for one, am all for it. Because he’s not Ted Cruz.

If we had to have a Republican president, I’d prefer that it be someone who eats with a fork and a knife. As for the prospect of another Clinton-Bush race, and the rise of dynastic politics in America, I say, “Whatever.” Let Doris Kearns Goodwin fret over that on NewsHour. In the whorehouse of American politics, that’s the least of my worries.

But there’s reason to believe that the Republican Party has moved too far right to get excited about this man. For one thing, he’s not a fire-breather. He’s a policy wonk in a party where no one cares about policy anymore. He’s not only not against Mexicans, he’s married to one. What’s more, he’s already having trouble with Republicans who are bringing up that in 2012 Jeb Bush said he could – repeat could – accept a hypothetical deal with Democrats that accept $1 in tax increases for $10 in spending cuts. And that’s a tiny bit of compromise, and Republicans won’t even accept that much. 

Said Grover Norquist, “Jeb stabbed Republicans in the back just when they were unified in insisting on major spending cuts with no tax increases.” 

So, even though I’m sure I’d disagree with Jeb Bush on a lot of things, I don’t hold his brother against him anymore than I hold Roger Clinton against Bill Clinton. And while I’d be all for Republicans electing a sane, reasonable man who cares about policy, this is the Republican Party in 2014 – it ain’t gonna happen.