Jeb Bush

John Ellis "Jeb" Bush (born February 11, 1953) is an American politician who served as the 43rd Governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. He is a prominent member of the Bush family: the second son of former President George H. W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush; the younger brother of former President George W. Bush; and the older brother of Neil Bush, Marvin Bush, and Dorothy Bush Koch.


Business experience in Texas and abroad
Bush went to work in an entry level position in the international division of Texas Commerce Bank, a job he received through James Baker, a long time family friend and chairman of the board of Texas Commerce Bank. Bush assisted in drafting communications for the company's chairman, Ben Love.
In November 1977, he was sent to the Venezuelan capital of Caracas to open a new operation for the bank. Bush spent about two years there, working in international finance. He eventually worked for the bank's executive program.
Bush returned to the United States to work without salary on his father's campaign for the Republican presidential nomination in 1980, explaining:
"I wasn't motivated for politics, I wasn't motivated because of ideology or anything. My dad's the greatest man I've ever met or will meet; I can predict that fairly confidently. It was payback time, simple as that."
His father ultimately lost the Republican nomination for President that year, but was chosen to be Ronald Reagan's running mate. That fall, George H.W. Bush was elected Vice President of the United States, and won reelection in 1984. In 1988, the elder Bush won both the Republican Party's presidential nomination and the election, becoming the nation's 41st president. In 1992 Bush's father was defeated for re-election by then-Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton.


Governor of Florida
In 1998, Bush defeated the Democratic opponent Lt. Governor Buddy MacKay by over 418,000 votes (2,191,105; 55.3% to 1,773,054; 44.7%) to become Governor of Florida, after courting the state's moderate voters and Hispanics. Simultaneously, his brother, George W. Bush won a re-election victory for a second term as Governor of Texas, and the Bush brothers became the first siblings to govern two states at the same time since Nelson and Winthrop Rockefeller governed New York and Arkansas from 1967 to 1971. Bush is the first Republican governor of Florida to have served two full four-year terms.


Bush as NFL commissioner
In May 2006, AP reported that Bush was privately approached to become the next commissioner of the National Football League.[40] This is said to be an interest of his, but it was unknown whether he would take the position. The former commissioner, Paul Tagliabue, announced that his tenure would soon be over and he is searching for replacements. "I'm flattered," Jeb Bush said May 24, 2006, of the NFL's interest, "but I'm Governor of the state of Florida and I intend to be Governor until I leave—which is January 2007. And I'm not going to consider any other options other than being Governor until I finish". Roger Goodell eventually became the new NFL commissioner.


Speech at D.C. Summit
On January 27, 2007, Bush spoke as the keynote speaker at the National Review Institute's Conservative Summit in Washington, D.C. speaking about the Democratic take over in Congress. He told political conservatives "we lost, and there are significant reasons that happened, but it isn't because conservatives were rejected. It's because we rejected the conservative philosophy in this country." He told them “don't…abandon conservative principles…we don't need to be the end all and be all for every special interest group, for every constituent that you like, for every person that's given a fundraising check to your campaign, for everything that is just wrong about public policy and politics”. In attendance at the summit was former chairman of the Republican National Committee Ed Gillespie who said if he, like Bush, “left office with approval ratings above 60 percent…he might be in Des Moines today [preparing for the presidential primary]”. Bush denied rumors that he would run for President in 2008, but “when questioned did not rule out running as a vice presidential candidate.” He joked about being out of work for the first time in his life but said he is happy for the opportunity to “take a pause.”


Possible run for U.S. Senate
In 2008, Bush indicated that he was considering running in the 2010 U.S. Senate race for the seat being vacated by Mel Martinez, who announced that he would retire at the end of his term. But in January 2009, he announced that he would not run for the Senate. Instead, he supported Marco Rubio for the position.

2012 Presidential election
Throughout 2009 and 2010, rumors abounded that Bush would attempt to win the Republican nomination for the 2012 presidential election; rumors that he strongly denied from the beginning. In February 2011, after renewed calls were made for him to run for president, Bush was asked whether the door remained closed on a Presidential run. "Yes", was his reply. In July 2011, he reiterated his position that he was not running, although he was heavily critical of the Obama administration. That month his son George urged him to join the 2012 primary.