Bedford, N.H. – Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush cast himself Saturday as a more pragmatic, less bombastic alternative to the candidates atop the Republican field, and tried to calm New Hampshire voters who feared that their support would endorse a new establishment dynasty.
“The Bush thing, people are just going to have to get over it,” said the Republican, struggling in polls here and across the nation as the insurgent-fueled candidacies of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and billionaire Donald Trump boost them to the top of polls.
Bush’s performance in Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary could make or break his bid to follow in the footsteps of his father and brother, and his town hall meetings across the Granite State have focused on what he calls his “steady” leadership.
“I would argue that the next president needs to be a little quieter,” he said.
“No more trash-talking,” he urged.
“I hope you want someone with a steady hand,” he advised.
He set out to contrast himself from Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who is rising in the polls after his third-place finish in Iowa, telling the crowd that executive experience is paramount. And he took direct aim at the vows from both Cruz and Trump to vanquish the Islamic State.
"When you watch the debates, think about who is there who can be the commander in chief. Is it the loudest voice that insults people, that talks about carpet bombing?" asked Bush, invoking Cruz's plan to destroy the terror group.
“To Sen. Cruz’s edification, we actually have very precise instruments now. We don’t have to kill innocent people.”
He had harsher words for Trump's more, er, Trump-ian strategy.
“To say that we’re going to bomb the S-H-blank-blank out of enemies. Really? Is that a serious thought?”
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