Jeb Bush burnished his conservative credentials to Stephen Colbert during last night’s inaugural episode of “The Late Show” on CBS. Part of the price was that his brother had to take some criticism from his younger sibling.
Bush obviously didn’t welcome questions from Colbert on how he was different than his brother, President George W. Bush. But he was ready for them. After a quip from Bush that he was “younger” and “better looking” than his brother, Colbert asked how he would differ on policy.
“He should have brought the hammer down on the Republicans when they were spending way too much, because our brand is limited government,” Jeb said. “He didn’t veto things, he didn’t bring order and fiscal restraint.”
“So he was not conservative enough?” Colbert asked.
“On spending,” Bush clarified.
Clearly, Jeb Bush wants to pitch voters on his enviable record of fiscal prudence as Florida governor (he said he was known as “Veto Corleone” for his frequent line-item cuts in the budget). By distancing himself from his brother on spending, he hopes to provide a credible contrast from him while not having to address other issues such as the Iraq War.
Despite its mild tone, it was remarkable to see a member of the Bush family criticizing another. Normally, the family keeps any disagreements completely private so the Jeb! campaign must have felt it essential to draw a public contrast with his brother.
