In 1861, as leaders from the South met in Montgomery to create the Confederate States of America, almost every political observer expected someone from Georgia to wind up as the president of the new nation. Three of the leading candidates -- Howell Cobb, Alexander Stephens and Robert Toombs -- all hailed from Georgia. But Jefferson Davis from Mississippi wound up as the first and only Confederate president as the Georgia candidates all slit each other’s throats.
That story would be repeated in American presidential elections down the road as two candidates battling for their home state engaged in nasty feuds -- and ended up losing the elections. California Republicans Hiram Johnson and Herbert Hoover ended up knocking each other out of the race in 1920. Al Smith almost denied fellow New York Democrat Franklin Roosevelt the presidential nomination at the 1932 convention. George H.W. Bush and John Connelly tore into each other as they divided Texas Republicans in the 1980 primaries.
History seems to be repeating itself. Despite having been allies in Tallahassee, Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio are starting to go after each other as they try to catch Donald Trump and, to a lesser extent, Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina in the Republican presidential primaries. With Scott Walker out of the race, the two Florida Republicans are increasingly aware that there might not be enough political oxygen for both of them.
Bush looked to regain his footing this week and threw a few jabs Rubio’s way. With polls now showing Rubio ahead of Bush in Florida, the former governor looked to nail down the Sunshine State. Twenty Florida senators, including state Senate President Andy Gardiner, threw their support behind Bush this week.
Taking to the national airwaves, Bush hit Rubio’s leadership credentials, painting him as a bit player while he pushed a conservative agenda in Tallahassee. Rubio hasn’t hit back yet but both camps went to the media. This included The Hill where Bush’s team insisted their candidate was showing he was getting aggressive while Rubio’s supporters wrote off the former governor as desperate.
The tensions between the two Florida Republicans are rising in the early states. In New Hampshire this week, even as he had kind words for Rubio, Bush needled the senator’s missed votes in Washington. In Iowa, Politico reported a tracker from Right to Rise, a Super PAC tied to Bush, attempted to record a Rubio meeting but staffers kicked him out.
As some of the other elected officials drop out or fail to gain traction, Bush and Rubio will start tripping over each other’s feet even more. These old allies have only just begun to fight even if whoever drops out first will probably throw his support to the other.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
