Mitt Romney got shoved out of the 2016 presidential race by Jeb Bush a year ago but he is now getting a little political payback against the former Florida governor.
Bush stole a march on Romney back in December 2014 when he launched an exploratory bid for the Republican presidential nomination. While Romney kept the door open for a few more weeks, he eventually closed it and did not kickoff a third bid for the White House.
Romney talked to the Washington Post in an article which was published over the weekend and he looked to undermine one of the biggest arguments coming from the Bush camp: that their candidate can beat Hillary Clinton in November.
“I like Jeb a lot, I think he’d be a great president, but felt he was unfairly but severely burdened by the W. years — and when I say the W. years, it’s not only what happened to the economy, but the tragedy in Iraq,” Romney told the Washington Post. “A Bush-versus-Clinton head-to-head would be too easy for the Democrats.”
According to the Washington Post, Romney told Bush exactly that last January.
“Jeb, to be very honest, I think it’s very hard for you to post up against Hillary Clinton and to separate yourself from the difficulty of the W. years and compare them with the Clinton years,” Romney said to Bush, according to his interview with the Washington Post. Romney said Bush insisted his campaign would be more about the future than the past.
“I didn’t say anything at that point,” Romney told the Washington Post. “But as he left, I said to myself, ‘Gosh, in my opinion, it’s not going to be as easy to make that separation as I think he gives the impression it will be.’ One of the few things I predicted that turned out to be true.”
Bush’s team told the Washington Post their boss had a private meeting with Romney and would not offer the details of it. But Romney’s take on Bush doesn’t help the former Florida governor at a crucial time for the former Florida governor. Bush hasn’t lived up to initial expectations and he is in trouble in both Iowa and New Hampshire. With both of them sharing many of the same supporters, Romney told them he doesn’t think Bush can beat Clinton. That’s the exact opposite of what Bush is telling Republican primary voters as he tries to contrast himself with other GOP hopefuls like Ted Cruz and Donald Trump.
Despite their kind words for each other in public, the two former governors aren’t exactly close. Bush endorsed Romney towards the end of March in 2012, almost two months after the Florida primary and when the former Massachusetts governor had sewn up the Republican nomination. There’s certainly some bad blood between the camps as Romney himself showed. In his interview with the Washington Post, Romney called out Bush campaign strategist Mike Murphy for going out of his way at the start of the last year to make the case that Romney could not win the 2016 general election, a charge that clearly stings the former Massachusetts governor.
Romney’s jab against Bush hurts the former Florida governor since there are plenty of other Republican hopefuls making the exact same case: that they’re the most electable candidate in November. Marco Rubio, Chris Christie and John Kasich are trying to score points, especially in New Hampshire, by stressing their electability.
As Bush tries to get back in the game and turn his poll numbers around, he’s having a tough time making the case that he’s the Republican with the best chance to take down Clinton in November. Romney’s comments certainly aren’t helping his chances to make that argument.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
