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 The appearance of the elder Bush on the campaign trail may help
Jeb Bush with South Carolina Republicans who hold the former
president in high regard. But it also carries some risks, given his
launching of the Iraq war in 2003, which ended up being unpopular
with many Americans and which Republican front-runner Trump has
seized on to criticize him.
George W. Bush, who has stayed out of politics for the most part
since leaving office in early 2009, showed he remains an engaging
speaker, generating cheers repeatedly over 20 minutes from the
biggest crowd Jeb Bush has enjoyed in his campaign.
Without mentioning Trump by name, the 69-year-old George W. Bush
left no doubt he was talking about the New York billionaire who uses
incendiary rhetoric at his campaign events.
"These are tough times and I know that Americans are angry, but we
do not need someone in the Oval Office who mirrors and inflames our
anger and our frustrations," the former president said.
Real strength, he said, means facing challenges and prevailing.
"Strength is not empty rhetoric. It is not bluster. It is not
theatrics. Real strength comes from integrity and character. And in
my experience, the strongest person isn't usually the loudest person
in the room," George W. Bush said.
Whether the elder Bush's presence will help his 63-year-old brother
in the South Carolina Republican primary on Saturday remains to be
seen. Jeb is running fourth in polls in South Carolina, behind
Trump, Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Florida Senator Marco Rubio.
Trump, at a news conference in Charleston earlier in the day,
continued a stream of insults directed at the Bush family, insisting
that the former president bore responsibility for the Sept. 11,
2001, attacks that took place on his watch.
"Excuse me, the World Trade Center came down during the reign of
George Bush, right? It came down. That was the greatest attack in
the history of the United States – worse than Pearl Harbor.... We
weren't safe," Trump said.
George W. Bush offered some vivid imagery of what took place on
Sept. 11 without addressing Trump's criticism and saluted U.S.
military personnel, a key constituency in South Carolina.
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In his first public campaign appearance of the year for his brother,
George W. Bush also met privately with South Carolina's Republican
governor, Nikki Haley, who has yet to endorse a candidate for the
primary vote.
George W. Bush's standing has risen among all Americans since he
left power in 2009 and he has stayed on the sidelines of his
brother's presidential bid, headlining private fundraisers but
otherwise staying off the campaign trail.
That he is getting out in public now shows the urgency Jeb Bush sees
in a good performance in South Carolina. Bush finished in sixth
place in the Iowa caucuses and in fourth place in the New Hampshire
primary - the first contests in the state-by-state battles to pick a
party nominee for the Nov. 8 presidential election.
Jeb Bush predicted a good showing on Saturday, telling the crowd
that "Saturday is going to be a surprise."
Trump is also keeping an eye on Cruz and trying to prevent him from
gaining ground on him. He issued a statement accusing Cruz of dirty
politics for running a negative ad against him.
Trump also threatened to sue Cruz to determine whether he can
legally serve as president since he was born in Canada and therefore
might not meet the requirements set out in the U.S. Constitution.
"One of the ways I can fight back is to bring a lawsuit against
him," Trump said.
(Additional reporting Andrea Shalal in Washington; Editing by
Frances Kerry and Dan Grebler)
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