Locked in a room at South Bay Hospital with Gov. Jeb Bush for an hour and on other occasions, I found a man that, while I may not always agree with, I certainly could respect. Mitch Traphagen photos.
In the pages of this newspaper I am not a Republican, Democrat nor Independent. I am nothing at all — and my opinions, particularly on political matters, do not matter at all. Just because this newspaper prints the words that I write does not constitute an endorsement of those words. Nor do I endorse much beyond common decency and goodwill towards our neighbors.
That said, I was saddened when Governor Jeb Bush suspended his campaign for the presidency.
I met and communicated with Governor Bush on a handful of occasions — one was a personal matter that he, personally, tried to help with. On another occasion I was locked in a “green room” of sorts, for nearly an hour, with him before a speech and press conference at South Bay Hospital. In that room I was the only reporter; it just was Governor Bush, a handful of hospital executives and me.
I had a recorder running for the entire time I was in that room. Somewhat ironically, that was only a short time after Gov. Bush received some heat for saying things “off the record yet on a live recorder” that had been recorded by an Associated Press reporter. But I’ve never published a word from the time that I spent with him.
My decision to not publish anything was neither political nor protective. It was simply human decency. Perhaps the Governor didn’t know that I was recording everything, but he likely didn’t care. In those days, he just expected human decency.
He talked about his mother and some of her minor health issues — none of which was anyone’s business, particularly not the 100,000 or so readers of this newspaper.
He talked about a few campaign strategies — none of that was intended to be fodder for the press, despite his saying it in front of a member of the press. It would have served no journalistic purpose for me to publish his remarks.
But mostly he talked about everyday stuff. He is as human as the rest of us. Sure, he has a family name and legacy. Sure, he has wealth few of us can imagine. Sure, he had immense power in those days. But still, in that hour or so, he was just another guy talking about life. He did not put on airs; he did not expect anyone to bow down or even to listen. He just conversed as people do.
And with that, he earned my respect.
During press conferences some reporters would shout out questions in Spanish. Governor Bush would immediately switch from English to respond in Spanish. With 17 percent of the American population Hispanic, that earned my respect. Was there another Governor or President capable of that? No, there wasn’t.
He impressed me when Florida was slammed with back-to-back hurricanes in 2005. He handled it well administratively — in my opinion, better than his brother, the then-President of the United States did, but he also handled it well as a leader. He gave the appearance of a man in charge, as a leader who actually could handle it. And, by and large, he did handle it.
People talked of his brother, President George W. Bush, as a guy you’d want to sit down and have a beer with. No, it was Jeb Bush that would fit that best. He could make you laugh without resorting to childishness and, while you may not walk away with a nice buzz, chances are you’d walk away having learned something, whether or not you agreed with him.
And as the 2016 election kicks into high gear, he struck me as one of the best candidates from the Republican side of the aisle. In some cases, certainly the most sane candidate.
My opinion doesn’t matter and thus I won’t say whether or not I would have voted for him in November. But I do regret his absence from the field of candidates. I regret that I won’t have the opportunity to choose his name or another on the ballot eight months hence.
Is he a perfect man or candidate? No, of course not. But none of them are. None of them have ever been perfect for the office, with the possible exception of George Washington. And even he didn’t necessarily like it.
I have to think Governor Bush bowing out of what can only be described as a bewildering election year must be a relief for him but a tremendous loss for the Republican Party. I’m not entirely convinced that he really wanted to be the President of the United States. But I am sorry for his absence from the field. Jeb Bush could have brought things back to a place where most people live — he could have been someone that people connected to, not with bombastic statements or the use and abuse of religion, profanity and who knows what else, but simply by conversing as normal people do. Details, flubs and all.
Yes, that is the Jeb Bush that I met on a handful of occasions. I still think even today that could have worked as a candidate — one who would actually converse with people. For any number of reasons that don’t necessarily include my voting preferences, I wish it had.