Your 2016 Presidential Candidate Speculation Thread

Jeb Bush says he "misheard the question" about invading Iraq, doesn't clarify further.

tbh, i totally believe that. it doesn't matter - he fucked up - but the way he answered the question suggested that he thought he was being asked if he supported invading Iraq at the time:

"Knowing what we know now, would you have authorized the invasion?" Fox News host Megyn Kelly asked Bush in a sit-down interview.

"I would have," Bush said.

"And so would have Hillary Clinton, just to remind everybody," he added. "And so would almost everybody that was confronted with the intelligence they got."

and the reference to hillary clinton supports that as well, because hopefully he has heard that hillary reversed her stance on the war (in her most recent book, at least - she didn't change her stance in time for the 2008 primary obv)

http://i.imgur.com/EN9lmws.jpg

again, it doesn't matter either way, because he already fucked up. if it does turn out to be hillary vs jeb, she can say that he still supports the war, even to this day, and his only defense will be a confusing explanation that he misheard the question or something, which will make no sense to anyone a year from now when everyone's forgotten the original question, how it was stated, and exactly how he answered it.

oh, btw, rod is saying "i wish i knew what i know now, when i was younger" while staring wistfully into one of your older relative's eyes at a concert where everyone is sitting down

its also just a very tricky question for bush even if he heard it correctly like the war is still popular with republicans and seeming to dis his brother is a bad look, but the fact that he was not prepared to answer it is p incredible

definitely

i assume his best move is to do the politician thing where you ask the question to yourself, rephrased to a version you're prepared for, and then answer that.

Q: "knowing what you know now, when you were younger, and stronger, would you have supported invading Iraq?"
A ver. 1: "Did I support the invasion then, based upon the evidence we had at that point? Yes, I did, and Hillary Clinton did, as well as many others bla bla"
A ver. 2: "I won't go into hypotheticals, but based upon the evidence we had then, bla bla"

but he forgot to do the politician thing

Do I support the troops? Of course I support the troops. Excuse me I have to use the restroom *footsteps in the hall decrescendo*

otm, and apparently wasnt coached ahead of time? how long has he been planning this run, nagl

we should get into the politico coaching biz, we understand this stuff

here's a tip for free, jeb: anytime asks about the Iraq War, say "you mean the Iraq War that started in 2003? Or the war that included *big quote fingers* Operation Desert Shield and *more exaggerated quote fingers* Operation Desert Storm? It's a complicated region; one can't make assumptions."

but the base wants assumptions!

"ha yeah my older bro is full of beans sometimes thats why we love him so much!"

btw it's fine to criticize his bro's fiscal policies; it's on this basis alone that NRO types and commenters think he's a failed president. The Iraq War is still "oh well shit intelligence happens."

i'm not sure why the Iraq war is a big issue anyway. almost all conservatives (and many others) completely fucked up in supporting it from the beginning and then were too proud/afraid to go against their team to criticize it afterward, and jeb's no different. they're all in the same boat, none of them want to talk about it. so why not just admit he was wrong about Iraq? it wouldn't hurt him in the general election either. Hillary made the same mistakes and already ripped off the band-aid.

feel like the family connection will make it a big deal along w everything else gwb ever did, like how many times do you think rand paul is gonna say george bush during the debates, and if jeb makes to the general lord help us

coach tip for jeb: if rand paul gives you shit about your family, give rand paul shit about his family

mutually assured destruction

i could see rand paul mentioning gwb a bit, but seems like the focus will be obama given that he's wrapping up 8 years in charge. most of the other GOP candidates are recycled from the 2012 campaign, and i don't remember bush coming up too often (maybe i'm forgetting though. i forget!) it was just obama/obama/obama

there wasnt a bush running in '12!

So 1996 was the last time the GOP had a primary field where no one's dad had tried to run for president as well.

hasn't being out of office for 6-1/2 years sent GWB's poll numbers zooming? "hey he's laffin' it up with Bill Clinton, everyone likes him"

i knew there was something missing in my life in 2012!

increased approval is standard for ex presidents but it wont be hard to remind ppl what a bummer he was

clinton wld be overjoyed to have the general come down to brand bush v brand clinton btw

yeah, was gonna say. remembering the 90s is generally a more pleasant experience than remembering the 00s

Wonder if Bill will sneak some debate advice to Jeb like he did for Mitt.

well, except for the people who got thrown off welfare or bought paper houses. xp

just talking abt as an election srategy, obvs bill clinton is one of histories greatest monsters irl

https://twitter.com/HillaryClinton/status/598193075085783040

okay maybe the designer they hired was onto something after all

hell, i'll make some of those for you all for $3.

such a power move to be mononymous enough to brand yourself by a single letter and yet still pretend it's all about giving other people/states/causes representation.

we all need a brand to follow

Huckabee's design team in full panic mode

ok i'm back. now who's next?

http://i.imgur.com/ZJiiFI0.jpg

lmao

they can't use anything that uses his last name because it just tempts people to think of fuckabee

xpost lol

You forget that the previous governor's name was Jim "Guy" Tucker. You wanna talk about slips of the tongue.

Yeah, GWB is going to be an enormous albatross for Jeb.

"And our next question is for Governor... Bush? Of the Asshole Bushes?"

lol

and as if on cue:
Calling in to Sean Hannity’s syndicated radio show, [Jeb] Bush said he had misunderstood a question that one of Mr. Hannity’s Fox News colleagues, Megyn Kelly, had asked him in an interview shown on Sunday and Monday nights.

“I interpreted the question wrong, I guess,” Mr. Bush said. “I was talking about, given what people knew then.”

The attempt at mopping-up was quick, but it did not bring the controversy to an immediate end: When Mr. Hannity asked about the 2003 Iraq invasion again, in yes-or-no fashion, Mr. Bush said he did not know what the answer would have been, saying, “That’s a hypothetical.” Then, he seemed to go out of his way to absolve his brother, former President George W. Bush, who ordered the invasion: “Mistakes were made, as they always are in life,” Mr. Bush said.

this is the best u can do J.E.B.

apparently jeb also told someone at an event this afternoon that speculating on what he would do, given the information he has now, would be a "disservice" to the troops who have already served.

"If we are going to get into hypotheticals, I think it does a lot of disservice for a lot of people who sacrificed a lot," Bush said, according to Chalian's tweets.

"Going back in time, does a disservice for them," he said, according to Chalian.

Who could've thought Presidentin' would be so darn hard!

"I don't want to have to tell those people they died for nothing... (please don't make me say it)"

going back in time wld be extremely tight actually

to me the best response is prob "i wldve invaded north korea instead"

then at least ppl know that when u go back in time they will still sacrifice

I guess it's cool to make people die for no good reason, as long as everyone is too polite to talk about it

xp

"i wldve invaded a very cool to invade country that i will prob still invade if... you make me the next president of the united states! and if u dont ill never tell u which country it is it could be any of them and there are more than one hundred"

a good debate question wld be "which country will u invade if elected president"

No fair invading Grenada again, though. It's paid its dues.

they would all say Iran