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He ain't heavy, he's our brother
By S.V. Date, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer TALLAHASSEE -- Love him or hate him, you've got to feel sorry for Jeb Bush. Not Jeb Bush the at-times imperious governor, but Jeb Bush the brother, who for the past year and a half has had to swallow his pride and his sense of sibling rivalry to help older brother George W. Bush get the job that so many people -- their parents among them -- have thought would be Jeb's own destiny. But for two elections that went awry six years ago, we could very likely be watching our own governor of Florida criss-crossing the nation, his eye on the highest political prize a mere two weeks away. Instead, Texas incumbent Gov. Ann Richards lost in 1994, and the late Florida Gov. Lawton Chiles won, and suddenly everything was upside down. We can only imagine that moment when older brother George broached the subject with little brother Jeb, explained that he had given it a lot of thought, and had decided to make a go of it -- both men knowing full well that, in all likelihood, a run by one would almost certainly rule out a run by the other. We can only imagine the younger Bush, sucking up any ignoble thoughts a jealous brother might have and immediately offering a firm hand, a hug, an assurance that, by God, he would make sure Florida went for George. Of course, it hasn't worked out that way. Instead of Florida docilely going for the brother of a popular governor -- like so many Republicans expected -- George W. Bush has had to spent precious money and even more precious time trying to win a state critical to his national electoral strategy. And in what could be the ultimate irony, it now appears that Jeb Bush's leadership of Florida could not only not be helping his brother's campaign here, but actually hurting it. Indeed, more than once, our Gov. Bush has hinted that he has avoided too many joint appearances with his brother in Florida because he didn't want to invite "comparisons." Mr. Bush has always immediately clarified that what he meant was that if voters were inclined to dislike him, he didn't want that transferred to his brother. This explanation is high-minded, if less than forthcoming. After all, Floridians can't help but compare, and the comparisons many of them seem to be making do not favor the Texas governor. Our Gov. Bush's work ethic made him zip through college in 21/2 years, quickly start a family, and now, bring his driven ways to Tallahassee with a marathon work schedule and a willingness to delve into policy minutiae. The other Gov. Bush, by his own account, didn't really start taking his own life seriously until middle age, and reportedly cares for neither long work days nor fine detail. Our Gov. Bush, both in person and on television, comes across immediately as a smart, articulate, thoughtful guy. The other Gov. Bush . . . well, again: Our Gov. Bush makes a tremendous first impression. And, for those voters to whom this might matter: Our Gov. Bush is objectively taller, and, subjectively, better looking. To Jeb Bush's quite earnest request to entrust the nation to his brother, many a Floridian is asking: Why should we? If our Bush is the better, smarter, harder-working Bush, why should we make the lesser of them the Leader of the Free World? More than a few Republicans -- privately, naturally -- are wondering how, if brother George becomes president, can our own Jeb ever hope to get there himself? And the true Machiavellians are strategizing thusly: If a recession is looming, wouldn't it be smarter not to be in the White House over the next years? And, to play that out, won't the Florida Bush's best chance for the highest office come in 2004, should his brother lose next month, by playing on American guilt for wrongly having denied the White House to not one, but two Bushes? The public comparisons and the speculation are genuinely hurtful to Jeb Bush, as they would be to any brother. They are, nonetheless, there. Expect them to intensify come Nov. 8 -- especially if George W. Bush does not win.
S.V. Dte is the Tallahassee bureau chief for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at (850) 224-1368 and via e-mail at: s_v_date@pbpost.com
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