I imagine her to be a lovely lady. That she avoids the public scene may be seen as a liability for JEB but her roles are theirs to determine. If he thinks she is fabulous, his heart throb, the love of his life, and his most cherished companion, we should all honor that.
1
Ummm, excuse me but Romero Britto is not an "artist". He is a shallow formulaic commercial hack who outsources his overpriced work to underpaid peons. Here in Miami his brightly colored simplistic garbage adorns countless vending machines, backpacks and dog sweaters. He's shallow, money-hungry and disrespected by real artists.
In other words, a perfect pal for the Bush clan.
In other words, a perfect pal for the Bush clan.
9
Sometimes people are shy because they don't want people to see their real selves. That could be the case here.
In any case, no more Clintons and no more Bushes.
In any case, no more Clintons and no more Bushes.
5
The first sentence says it all in two ways: "For 20 years, Columba Bush anticipated the day she would have to answer one big question: Would she support her husband, Jeb Bush, if he decided to run for president?"
First, this reminds me of Arnold Schwarzenegger and how smart some immigrants really are: they know that if you want to get ahead in America, it's a good idea to marry into a wealthy, ruling class family.
Second, it speaks to the sense of entitlement within such a family, being able to contemplate twenty years in advance one's turn in the pecking order of power.
I know Saturday is an off day for news coverage, but I'm afraid this kind of fluff on the Times Homepage is another indication of the Times risking losing its "brand", as it seeks to expand its readership by appealing to readers more interested in the vapid and the ephemeral.
First, this reminds me of Arnold Schwarzenegger and how smart some immigrants really are: they know that if you want to get ahead in America, it's a good idea to marry into a wealthy, ruling class family.
Second, it speaks to the sense of entitlement within such a family, being able to contemplate twenty years in advance one's turn in the pecking order of power.
I know Saturday is an off day for news coverage, but I'm afraid this kind of fluff on the Times Homepage is another indication of the Times risking losing its "brand", as it seeks to expand its readership by appealing to readers more interested in the vapid and the ephemeral.
5
Arnold was wealthy and successful long before he married Maria Schriver.
4
"serrano ham" is no Latin fare, but a Spanish (from Spain, Europe) one.
just saying.
just saying.
6
Thanks for pointing that out. The article doesn't clearly identify the restaurant, but it could have been the now-closed Copas Y Tapas in Coral Gables, Florida. A web search will find the menu.
She sounds like a good woman. That's good enough for me.
3
I have a feeling that this was not the first time Mrs. Bush tried to sneak something declarable through Customs.
It seems unlikely that a person would dare to smuggle $19,000 worth of goods though Customs unless one had sneaked lower cost items through before without being caught.
I think the Bush family -- the John Ellis Bush family, that is -- has some problems and seems a bit troubled.
It seems unlikely that a person would dare to smuggle $19,000 worth of goods though Customs unless one had sneaked lower cost items through before without being caught.
I think the Bush family -- the John Ellis Bush family, that is -- has some problems and seems a bit troubled.
10
I have valued First Ladies who had leadership and education .
Hillary Clinton was a lawyer, later a Senator and Head of Dept of State, Michelle is a Princeton educated lawyer and supportive US Vets and their families and a good mother to her young girls. Teresa Heinz Kerry was not a First Lady but I wish she had been. She speaks several languages and translated at the UN and is devoted to the environment. Rosalyn Carter was a leader to caregivers and wrote several books and is united with her husband to travel the world and cure eye disease and support voting rights and Eleanor Roosevelt was a big leader for FDR and due to his handicap from Polio she was important to him and to our country.
There are other First Ladies that chose to be in the background such as Mamie Eisenhower, Mrs Truman, Mrs Bush ( wife of Herbert George), Nancy Reagan "just say no" George W Bush's wife - the librarian - I cannot remember her name and Jeb Bushes wife might be in that category.
Hillary Clinton was a lawyer, later a Senator and Head of Dept of State, Michelle is a Princeton educated lawyer and supportive US Vets and their families and a good mother to her young girls. Teresa Heinz Kerry was not a First Lady but I wish she had been. She speaks several languages and translated at the UN and is devoted to the environment. Rosalyn Carter was a leader to caregivers and wrote several books and is united with her husband to travel the world and cure eye disease and support voting rights and Eleanor Roosevelt was a big leader for FDR and due to his handicap from Polio she was important to him and to our country.
There are other First Ladies that chose to be in the background such as Mamie Eisenhower, Mrs Truman, Mrs Bush ( wife of Herbert George), Nancy Reagan "just say no" George W Bush's wife - the librarian - I cannot remember her name and Jeb Bushes wife might be in that category.
3
How refreshing it would be to have a First Lady who doesn't have to suck the oxygen out of the room with her own political agenda and ambitions or have her face plastered on every magazine known to man. Now, if the liberal media doesn't destroy her...
7
The authors of this article made a grave misstatement in simplifying Columba's episode of intense press scrutiny when Jeb was Governor as "weeks of bad press for a European shopping spree." A simple fact check would have turned up Columba spending $19,000 worth of undeclared clothing and jewelry bought in France, but Columba only declaring $500 at customs. Customs agents had conducted a random check and discovered that Columba bought much, much more than $500 worth of shopping items. She lied about the items on her customs form and thought she could get away with it. That was the issue. Shame on the New York Times for not clearly stating the facts.
10
Apparently Mr. Bush would put his White House aspirations above his family's needs. This article is a profile of a troubled family that has suffered from the father's commitment to politics above wife and children. Is being president more important than being a full, involved participant in one's own family? Apparently Mr. Bush thinks it is. He's wrong. The country can do without him. His wife and children cannot.
12
So Jeb Bush's camp thinks they can sew up the Hispanic vote because his wife is Hispanic? That's absurd.
I'm white, raised Episcopalian from hard-core Republican parents, and was sent to Catholic schools. Does this mean I will automatically vote for anyone who is white, Republican, Episcopalian or Catholic? Quite the contrary.
There are 5 US supreme court justices who are Roman Catholics and their rulings have done everything possible to denigrate society and favor the uber-rich and powerful. Not the teachings of Jesus, but definitely the heartbeat of Catholicism.
As a country we cannot afford another religious kook at the helm. Jeb went into prayer and Bible study and a desire to convert to Catholicism to resolve his issues with an unsuccessful campaign run. How inept is that? I want to vote for someone - anyone - who can lead, take action, do something positive (or at least try). If you want to pray your problems away, do that on your own time and your own time.
I won't vote for Jeb, any more than I would vote for her. Her idea of Catholic charity work is to get concert tickets for the poor to attend Folklorico de Mexico performances. All that Bush wealth and she donates concert tickets? How about doing something to help them get jobs or an education? You know the real world issues….
I'm white, raised Episcopalian from hard-core Republican parents, and was sent to Catholic schools. Does this mean I will automatically vote for anyone who is white, Republican, Episcopalian or Catholic? Quite the contrary.
There are 5 US supreme court justices who are Roman Catholics and their rulings have done everything possible to denigrate society and favor the uber-rich and powerful. Not the teachings of Jesus, but definitely the heartbeat of Catholicism.
As a country we cannot afford another religious kook at the helm. Jeb went into prayer and Bible study and a desire to convert to Catholicism to resolve his issues with an unsuccessful campaign run. How inept is that? I want to vote for someone - anyone - who can lead, take action, do something positive (or at least try). If you want to pray your problems away, do that on your own time and your own time.
I won't vote for Jeb, any more than I would vote for her. Her idea of Catholic charity work is to get concert tickets for the poor to attend Folklorico de Mexico performances. All that Bush wealth and she donates concert tickets? How about doing something to help them get jobs or an education? You know the real world issues….
18
We put way too much emphasis on the spouses of politicians. Imagine if that were the case for most of us when we are competing for a new job. I hope voters are able to focus on more salient issues as the election nears.
6
Can we get Columba without JEB? Unfortunately, she cannot run as she is a naturalized citizen. But then, the good side of that is Ted Kruz is also a foreigner.
4
I dont know who "Ted Kruz" is, or what "foreigner" means, but Ted Cruz is eligible to serve as President by virtue of having been born to an american citizen (his mother), regardless of where he was born.
1
He goes to Mexico to learn Spanish. He then marries this Mexican woman. He then converts to Mexican Catholicism (usually more traditional and highly devotional), willing to change of one of the most defining experiences, one's faith. He has continued to support her in her cultural and ethnic endeavors, including the advancement of Latin American arts. As a President, hypothetically speaking, how much more influence would Columba have on him, especially when it comes to Latino/Hispanic issues, values, aspirations, ideals, and people? In many ways, he was instrumental in contributing to the realization of Columba's American Dream. And it cannot get more American than this, especially for someone who purportedly is the daughter of a Mexican migrant worker.
7
While I think it is about time that a person of Latin heritage inhabit the White House, I can't think of a worse situation than that being a Bush of any kind ever again. Any overly critical assessment of her is a moot point; that she married into this dreadful dynasty is punishment enough. I can only imagine that spending time (and spending big money!) in Europe is one of the only perks she has in this family of "take no prisoners" politicians and "them or us" thinkers. It must have seemed an American dream for the daughter of a migrant worker who abandoned his family to marry the scion of rich, powerful New England (and recently Texan) plutocrats, but it is no wonder she retreats into the fantasy of Mexican soap operas and shopping sprees. That is one family where I'm sure the melting pot just doesn't melt that easily.
11
"The little brown ones" - what an awful and racist thing to say about your own grandchildren. Unforgivable.
20
This is a great article giving insight into Jeb Bush and his family dynamics. Very refreshing.
3
Like Columba, I also dread his running for President.
37
Columba will not fit the mould that the press and many Americans have in mind. She will not fit the pattern; hers is better. Unfortunately, too many Americans want a "showy" lady to stand by HER man. They want the first lady to be "pretty", vacuous, superficial, and subservient. The last political, behind the scenes, and on your face, socially-conscous First Lady, was Eleanor Roosevelt. She could dish it out and Americans listened when she spoke. After that, whom do we have? All good women, with good causes indeed, but all sacrificing their persons, families and careers, to embolden their husbands political standing.
What could be said about reluctant Bess Truman, placid Mamie Eisenhower, traumatized Jackie Kennedy, beautifying Lady Bird, Iron-made Pat Nixon, stressed out Betty Ford, dedicated Rosalyn Carter, adoring and behind-the scenes President Nancy Reagan, pushy wife and mother of language deficient children Barbara Bush, enduring Hillary Clinton, mild-mannered librarian Laura Bush, and finally, nutrition guru Michelle Obama. Pitiful what this society does to their First Ladies. Their potential and political voices blocked by an acerbic press and unappreciative public. They all gave more to the nation than was reported. They did not want to steal the thunder from their husbands and bring more attention to their families. A stoic bunch.
I suggest to Columba (and the public at large) to read First Ladies biographies. She won't feel so different or alone.
What could be said about reluctant Bess Truman, placid Mamie Eisenhower, traumatized Jackie Kennedy, beautifying Lady Bird, Iron-made Pat Nixon, stressed out Betty Ford, dedicated Rosalyn Carter, adoring and behind-the scenes President Nancy Reagan, pushy wife and mother of language deficient children Barbara Bush, enduring Hillary Clinton, mild-mannered librarian Laura Bush, and finally, nutrition guru Michelle Obama. Pitiful what this society does to their First Ladies. Their potential and political voices blocked by an acerbic press and unappreciative public. They all gave more to the nation than was reported. They did not want to steal the thunder from their husbands and bring more attention to their families. A stoic bunch.
I suggest to Columba (and the public at large) to read First Ladies biographies. She won't feel so different or alone.
16
Nutrition guru? One in five American children go to bed hungry. You don't think food insecurity is an important issue? The First Lady does. Mrs. Obama has done more for vets and their families than the wife of that previous president who startef all the wars.
14
So many comments about Mrs Bush appear to be from "white privileged" persons. You really understand very little about other cultures other than your own. Understandable why the U.S. is in such a horrible race war we are in and probably will be forever.
5
"Prejudice" has been around as long as "Love". If you have a solution then get it printed and drop it down on countries all over the world!
The illegal behavior of not declaring her (very expensive!!) purchases is a deal-killer for me. I'm surprised more people aren't mentioning that. Isn't the GOP supposed to be anti-crime? Or maybe not for rich folks. Sorry, otherwise she seems very down-to-earth, but breaking the law so as not to declare her items is not acceptable to me at least.
21
As a proud "Brown " Nevada voter, I say. Señora Bush will bring a fresh and positive air to politics, a First Lady that is not into politicis but family, real Family real values...she can make a move back to Family as main stream of our society...we've seen how one person can make a difference in our society..hope they do run for President. Must learn from her attitude!
3
Real family values such as? Do you count criminal activity as a family value?
10
Columba Bush seems like a very nice and practical lady.
The incident of not declaring purchases to customs because she didn't want her husband to know how much she spent actually says a great deal more about his control issues than anything.
Her daughter should not be a target for anyone during the elections, because rare is the family these days who either hasn't had a member in rehab for one reason or other or who doesn't have someone who should be in rehab.
Good thing she is testing the waters early because the FLOTUS position doesn't look like any piece of cake.
The incident of not declaring purchases to customs because she didn't want her husband to know how much she spent actually says a great deal more about his control issues than anything.
Her daughter should not be a target for anyone during the elections, because rare is the family these days who either hasn't had a member in rehab for one reason or other or who doesn't have someone who should be in rehab.
Good thing she is testing the waters early because the FLOTUS position doesn't look like any piece of cake.
4
I think it says more about her ethics. Or lack of same. Also, lying to customs is colossally stupid, particularly if your husband is an elected official.
11
A first lady does not get a salary. I think a FLOTUS should be paid instead of being treated like a stay at home (White)housewife depending on her husband's income like a child. I think this subject should be discussed and transitioned into what works for a modern woman. First Lady is a huge and uniquely powerful platform for doing good that should not be squandered by a traditional woman who does not want to parlay the role she's gotten into something big for her country and the world, not just focus on her own family but also focus on the greater American and global family. I think if a first lady is active and a highly credentialed like Michelle Obama, she should be paid a salary. First Lady is an important position that needs to be valued instead of just a roosting place for the president's spouse. And the same thing goes for the First Gentleman when that happens.
5
Thanks for this insightful article and portrait of the wonderful woman Mrs. Bush apparently is, and many of us have known little about. Mr. Bush, no doubt, has another non-political side that she loves, but his involvement in politics has tested their relationship, and caused problems for their family, for years. How sad that Mr. Bush's lust for political power - and, of course the public attention that goes with it - is more important to him than the well-being of his marriage and family.
4
For me the most odd and striking part of the article came at the end:
"Friends and associates asked about her political opinions say that more than anything, she believes her husband has a calling.
"Or, as Mrs. Bush put it in a Spanish-language interview in 1991 with the Miami magazine Selecta: 'I am a firm believer in destiny. I feel that what is important is written, and you do what you do.'”
What in the world does this mean?
"Friends and associates asked about her political opinions say that more than anything, she believes her husband has a calling.
"Or, as Mrs. Bush put it in a Spanish-language interview in 1991 with the Miami magazine Selecta: 'I am a firm believer in destiny. I feel that what is important is written, and you do what you do.'”
What in the world does this mean?
13
That puzzled me too. She may be expressing what is called "Latin fatalism" in this book:
Business in Mexico: Managerial Behavior, Protocol, and Etiquette
Candace Bancroft McKinniss, Arthur A. Natella
Psychology Press, 1994
https://books.google.com/books?id=ep1lXs77XAEC
Business in Mexico: Managerial Behavior, Protocol, and Etiquette
Candace Bancroft McKinniss, Arthur A. Natella
Psychology Press, 1994
https://books.google.com/books?id=ep1lXs77XAEC
1
I despise the GOP but her quiet and learned dignity can elevate Jeb - and is a great counter point to wanna-be, grand standing Hilary (she also just might make Barbara Bush sightings easier to take if Jeb wins)
1
Why do people place such value on a woman being "quiet?" It's code for not challenging patriarchal control
23
Lots of haters here! Columbia Bush is not aggressive or independent enough, she is cowed by her frugal husband into lying about how much she spent on her Paris purchases, she is backing the wrong charities, she doesn't have a separate career (see Michelle Obama who is also trashed). And so on. She sounds like a nice woman with a lot to offer, albeit one who prefers to stay out of the limelight. Why on earth did she marry into that particular political WASP dynasty? I feel sorry for her!
11
The same people bemoaning questions about Obama's faith and patriotism are posting some pretty vicious comments about a decidedly non-political spouse of a politician. Stay classy folks, being decent doesn't mean only being decent towards people that share your political ideology.
11
Mrs. Bush doesn't seem to be the sort of person any sentient person would want to spend any time with, let alone have as a first lady. Self absorbed (Mexican soap operas) and antisocial (after 40 years here she doesn't speak acceptable English?) she barely escaped arrest and conviction for smuggling due to her husband's position as Governor. Not even an accomplished liar like the rest of the Bush family; a so-so mother with two of her children running afoul of the law (drug addiction and stalking) despite the fact that she appeared to have no other occupation. She will implode at some point during the campaign, of that you can rest assured.
21
If Jeb decides to run, I hope Columba is strong enough to handle the heat that will surely come her way. If "the brown ones" caused her to tremble, she should tell Jeb to back out now because that is nothing compared to what she will hear in the 2016 campaign. The knives are out for any wife who is not thin, blond, or doing anything other than staring adoringly at her husband 24/7, Ask Teresa Kerry, Michelle Obama or Howard Dean's wife.
17
How despicable are the Bush parents, that GHW Bush did not meet Columba until the day of her wedding, and Barbara not until a few weeks before. I give credit to Jeb for marrying the woman he loved despite his family's feelings. That said, his policies are not for me.
15
Why despicable? There is nothing in the story or narrative to indicate how or why that happened. We have no idea if the Bush family even knew she existed before that moment. Too much missing from her story to know what happened or not - but we did learn that Jeb's wife really likes Mexican soap opears and likes Miami better than the capitol of Florida. Not much here to like or dislike.
1
It tells me a lot about Jeb Bush that he married someone as thoughtful and kind as Columba Bush.
2
And as simple...
7
His advisors are thinking: "We will mold her into the perfect lady for the Latino vote"
12
I think it was Toni Morrison who said whites are the only american citizens who don't have to hyphenate (african-american, latin-american). Since Mrs. Bush is an American citizen, there should be no need to keep labeling her birth origins to frame her as if she's not as american as everyone else here who has immigrant origins. We should vote along the lines of policies and character, not country of origin. Just sayin'
2
If I could say anything to Mrs Bush it would be "keep your husband home to find his calling elsewhere Ma'am.". We have not yet recovered from the last Bush in the White house.
23
I, for one, would gladly welcome Columba as the nation's first Latina First Lady.
It has less to do with her heritage and more with her real life experiences, like struggling to help her daughter through a drug addiction. It makes her real, one of us. Moreover, she has apparently survived the somewhat obvious pain of being associated with one of our nation's most elite and WASPy families. The mere fact she referred to Barbara Bush as "Mrs. Bush" rather than mom (or mama) years after she joined the Bush family accentuates her role as an outsider and probably more distant than any of Barbara's other daughters in law.
She is the daughter of a migrant worker whose children were once referred to as the "little brown ones." She knows the hurt and embarrassment of being an outsider. But that makes her even more like us. As First Lady, her presence alone will reinforce the idea that, for Mexicans, whose country was stolen from the U.S., will no longer be viewed as people crossing over illegally into a land that was once their own.
This won't sit well with most of the establishment and many who view Mexicans in a bad light. But it will spark an even larger movement, one focused on the expansion of rights and respect for all Mexicanos.
And that will be a good thing.
It has less to do with her heritage and more with her real life experiences, like struggling to help her daughter through a drug addiction. It makes her real, one of us. Moreover, she has apparently survived the somewhat obvious pain of being associated with one of our nation's most elite and WASPy families. The mere fact she referred to Barbara Bush as "Mrs. Bush" rather than mom (or mama) years after she joined the Bush family accentuates her role as an outsider and probably more distant than any of Barbara's other daughters in law.
She is the daughter of a migrant worker whose children were once referred to as the "little brown ones." She knows the hurt and embarrassment of being an outsider. But that makes her even more like us. As First Lady, her presence alone will reinforce the idea that, for Mexicans, whose country was stolen from the U.S., will no longer be viewed as people crossing over illegally into a land that was once their own.
This won't sit well with most of the establishment and many who view Mexicans in a bad light. But it will spark an even larger movement, one focused on the expansion of rights and respect for all Mexicanos.
And that will be a good thing.
19
Most of the US land was taken over from southern countries. The other refugees came by boat. Read your history!
Good grief people. Some of you are so eager to disparage this woman. Too often we throw out criticisms and insults about candidates families that are not only unfounded and hurtful, but have no relevance to policy issues. I wish her well.
10
My wife is Hispanic will top "some of my best friends are Hispanic". One for the Bush. Problem is, all this will melt away as Bush tries to please the wingnuts who hate Hispanics, hate Immigration and probably will reject a "Mexican" like they did Michelle. Trying to win a Repub Primary and then trying to undo all you have said in a National election is impossible for any of these candidates.
4
Just wait until the first Teabilly in some redneck enclave starts heckling Columba about "picking his fruit and vegetables." Yeah, that's going to go over really well.
12
The Labor unions in this country are not going to vote for Bush anyhow so why do you think a Bush would play to the anti-immigration Labor Unions.
3
His wife maybe Latina. But it does not bode well for the Latinos if he is addressing his own kids as 'BROWN KIDS'. I can just imagine the Bush Family Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners
2
Jeb Bush did not call his own kids "the brown ones." His father, George H.W. Bush was the one who used the term.
Doesn't anyone read these articles?
Doesn't anyone read these articles?
19
Oh, I'm sure they are about as much fun as Liz and Mary at the Cheney holiday dinners.
13
As stated in the article, it was George H.W. Bush (refered to as the elder Bush) that said "the little brown ones."
I have no love of any of the Bushes, and am not excited about anyone else. I'm pretty much done with politics as reported in the news. Who knows how this woman is: everything is so distorted and mean it's hard to know what to believe. If I were in her shoes I'd be doing the same, except I'd probably be a lot like Bess Truman and stay mostly on the farm, or closer to my daughter for those inevitably horrible press moments.
Isn't there anyone who cares if people are becoming more and more alienated from the political process? I guess some in Congress would be delighted if we all just turned our backs and they could direct things from the corporate boardroom. I'd hate to think there was something we could've done. Does just anything go now? Sigh. It's a long time until elections.
Isn't there anyone who cares if people are becoming more and more alienated from the political process? I guess some in Congress would be delighted if we all just turned our backs and they could direct things from the corporate boardroom. I'd hate to think there was something we could've done. Does just anything go now? Sigh. It's a long time until elections.
1
I will not be voting for Jeb Bush because I do not agree with his party's view of the issues that face us or with most of the views he has expressed in the past.
I agree with you that it's impossible to know what Columba Bush is really like. Anyhow, I don't really care. Whether or not she is kind, mean, good, evil, smart, dumb, etc. is not really germane, except as idle curiosity. Nor is her ethnic background of interest to me, although I'm sure that will be important to the demographers and strategists of all the campaigns.
I agree with you that it's impossible to know what Columba Bush is really like. Anyhow, I don't really care. Whether or not she is kind, mean, good, evil, smart, dumb, etc. is not really germane, except as idle curiosity. Nor is her ethnic background of interest to me, although I'm sure that will be important to the demographers and strategists of all the campaigns.
7
People may feel alienated but its the only job Congress and the Senate have. Unfortunately, they take long vacations and delay passage on any critical bills. In industry, one would be fired for sitting on a project.
1
Columba reminds me a bit of Laura Bush; in the background trying to undertake projects that don't quite square with Republican ideals. For Laura I think it was literacy or libraries, something Republicans just won't fund while slashing human service budgets. As First Lady, Columba would have an impossible task; to find a benign way to advocate for immigrants and victims of domestic violence, constituencies that have little standing in her husband's party. And she has the added pressure of performing this self-canceling act as a Hispanic woman, under maximum scrutiny. She might as well stick to painting or watching soap operas, sort of like Laura reading a stack of books while W. took us on a real life adventure to Iraq.
33
How very presumptuous of you to assume that education and support for domestic violence victims is a uniquely democratic characteristic. I am an independent and dislike such blatant bias from party faithful, that take away from the common humanity and beliefs we all share. It has become a uniquely American pastime, on both the left and the right to claim all that is good and human, to their own ideology.
2
Except that Laura Bush was educated and working as a librarian when she met George. How does this woman in any way resemble an educated, working woman of whatever color or ethnic origin? I am glad it has worked for them as a couple but after 40 years she isn't fluent in English. I just hear the articulate, educated and interesting wife of the president of Afghanistan on NPR - now THAT is First Lady material!
7
I think it is remarkable that she didn't divorce him when their Grand Daddy called his Grandchildren "little brown ones."
Unbelievable. Or all too believable.
Unbelievable. Or all too believable.
11
So you would subject yourself, your spouse and your children to a divorce and a broken home because of a comment by your in-law? If everyone did this very few marriages would survive.
1
Jeb Bush may qualify for the presidency in contrast to other GOP candidates but I will have reservation to vote for him. Reasons:
1) He cannot distance himself from the influence of the family especially W.
2) All war mongers of his brother's regime will influence his policy.
3) He cannot and will not punish those war criminals and some of them may get positions of decision making in his presidency
4) All names that surfaced after his foreign policy speech in Chicago does not give a warm feeling of him being his 'own man'.
5) He cannot take a position on legalizing drugs though he himself took drugs and his daughter has drug addiction.
6) It will be a white wash on immigration policy with his wife in the election campaign. he will take his relationship just to win election
7) It is amazing that Jeb Bush so far did not find anything good of the current administration though the country was rescued from all total disaster in all areas of foreign relation, economy, banking collapse and social disparity.
1) He cannot distance himself from the influence of the family especially W.
2) All war mongers of his brother's regime will influence his policy.
3) He cannot and will not punish those war criminals and some of them may get positions of decision making in his presidency
4) All names that surfaced after his foreign policy speech in Chicago does not give a warm feeling of him being his 'own man'.
5) He cannot take a position on legalizing drugs though he himself took drugs and his daughter has drug addiction.
6) It will be a white wash on immigration policy with his wife in the election campaign. he will take his relationship just to win election
7) It is amazing that Jeb Bush so far did not find anything good of the current administration though the country was rescued from all total disaster in all areas of foreign relation, economy, banking collapse and social disparity.
11
Not hard to imagine what she will endure, if Jeb gets the nomination. As others she will have to hide her feelings. Only Hillary would enjoy a run.
Let us hope, and pray, that Columba has enough influence in their marriage to persuade him to get out while the getting is good. He obviously doesn't have the sense.
10
Columba's instincts are right on. Jeb should listen to her.
6
Mrs. Bush is the reason I would vote for Jeb Bush, even though I am a life-long Democrat. The Republican party would definitely see her as an asset to Jeb Bush's campaign. However, the reality is that the right wing would see her as a liability because of her ethnicity. I can imagine the dirt the other candidates would be looking for, such as illegals in her family. And to the Rush Limbaughs of the world her Mexican accent would be totally unaccceptable for a First Lady. If the far right can't accept Mrs. Obama, God help a First Lady who is so ethnic!
6
How would your appreciation of Mrs. Bush help you when her husband takes us into another war or damages our economy?
11
I doubt if she has much influence on politics just like other First Ladies, except Eleanor Roosevelt.
1
Is this all it takes to be a first lady? Marry up and then sink into the background, never bettering yourself. Thank you, First Lady Michelle Obama (lawyer, hospital executive, wife, mother), for all you do for veterans and for your country. Columba has nothing to worry about. The right will go easy on her. They won't ask her whether she hates America (she didn't become a citizen for 14 years after marrying Jeb). They won't ask her about the war on drugs, considering that her drug-addict thief daughter never served a day in jail. They certainly won't ask her about immigration. She's exactly the kind of political wife the Republican party loves.
28
Yet another Bush wife who "knows" her place as the submissive in a safe, cushy wealthy marriage. I, for one, would prefer a passionate first lady who talks and reads about politics. A negative role model for girls is the image of a frozen faced, fake smiling statue standing obediently on a stage. It's so disheartening to see another Bush aim for the oval office with a gleam of aristocratic entitlement in his eyes; it speaks volumes about the joke our democracy has become due to uber wads of cash and cronyism.
23
I do not like the Bush legacy -- one thing I would correct about this article is the condescending reference to the subject of Columba's painting being "a little cat." There is a current movement in painting which purposefully uses these simple subjects and stylistically places the subject in a specific context. I don't actually understand it, but I do know about it.
2
It is painful to watch political spouses who actually dislike the mechanics of politics. While Ann Romney's physical problems gave her more stiffness in public than just a dislike of politics could account for, that "touch me not" aura was a factor in the image of Gov. Romney as "too royal to deal with the masses".
After the GOP campaign to discredit Mrs. Obama for caring about the health of US children by promoting healthy eating, one can only wonder what those GOP stalwarts will say about a First Lady whose interest is combating drug addiction due to a daughter who is an addict. One can just hear the FOX blondies ridicule Mrs. Bush's "heavily accented English" as not "American" enough. Sure they will.
After the GOP campaign to discredit Mrs. Obama for caring about the health of US children by promoting healthy eating, one can only wonder what those GOP stalwarts will say about a First Lady whose interest is combating drug addiction due to a daughter who is an addict. One can just hear the FOX blondies ridicule Mrs. Bush's "heavily accented English" as not "American" enough. Sure they will.
9
We all marry people who turn out to be at least a little bit different than who we married. She has known for a long, long time that Jeb was a politician. She needed to decide way back when if she could do this. She is a grown women who chooses to remain married to a (successful) man of his trade. She loves the money, and it comes with a price. she is a big girl and can leave if she wants at any time.
5
Jeb was her meal ticket. Let's not overthink this.
5
'Nice lady' as 'First Lady'? An uneducated woman who had many opportunities after her marriage to a Bush yet did not develop educationally during her marriage? Would NYTimes readers be able to have a sustained conversation with her? With the governor of Wisconsin about to enter the race, the Reps are the undereducated party, and proud of it. Where is our country headed when our elected officials have limited vision and inflict their limitations on all of us?
18
Better a Spanish-speaking, family-devoted First Lady than a philanderer as First Gentleman.
9
The daughter is by all accounts a mess, and the younger son has also had his problems (no college education, public drunkenness and resisting arrest). Such things happen in many families, but it certainly complicates the "family-devoted" PR line.
10
George P. Is a Rice grad, J.D. from UT. I'll never vote for him, but check your info.
Your article makes it pretty clear that she has little going for her. I certainly don't want a First Lady who has broken the law and spends her time watching soap operas, and on top of that has a daughter that's been a drug addict.
Let's stop with the Bushes. The first one was fine, The second helped destroy this country, and the third should stick to cooking dinner.
Let's stop with the Bushes. The first one was fine, The second helped destroy this country, and the third should stick to cooking dinner.
21
The first one was not 'fine'.
8
We chose not to re-elect the first one, but his family has refused to accept that as fact.
2
The more I think about it, the more I think the tragedy here is that Jeb and Columba's daughter will have her personal situation with drug addiction dug out by the press hyenas (they don't dig for real stories, but they do love these easy, scandalous ones) and her life will be negatively encroached upon. It's as a father that I think Jeb should back away and not seek this office. And even if she says to him, "yeah, go for it, dad, I'm tough enough", he should not do it.
He's putting his family at risk, there's no question about it in my mind and I must say, as I've learned more about Jeb Bush, the more I dislike him for who he is, not because of his brother's damaging presidency.
He's putting his family at risk, there's no question about it in my mind and I must say, as I've learned more about Jeb Bush, the more I dislike him for who he is, not because of his brother's damaging presidency.
14
If their daughter was anyone else she would be in jail. She got off easy.
12
Columba did not endure "weeks of bad press for a European shopping spree." She endured weeks of bad press for twice lying to Customs about the value of goods she was bringing into the country. As later noted in the article, she claimed about $500, when the purchases exceeded $19,000. Additionally, her fear to tell Jeb what she actually spent seems to suggest an inequality in their marriage that ought to concern people, particularly women.
30
@ jdd - "We" are allowing millions of illegal aliens to live illegally in this country. People who crossed the border without inspection in violation of law or lied to a state department official to obtain visitor visas and then use them to immigrate. What's really wrong about what Columba did? Hypocrisy at its best in the liberal, progressive mind.
2
Except that we liberals understand that illegal immigrants are most often driven to break the law by desperation and fear. What's Columba's excuse?
8
@ A. Wagner - "...most often driven to break the law by desperation and fear."
Hypocrisy at its best. You should know that's a lie! There are breaking the law for the economic benefit of living in the USA. Columba's excuse, economic benefit.
Hypocrisy at its best. You should know that's a lie! There are breaking the law for the economic benefit of living in the USA. Columba's excuse, economic benefit.
2
I think it's wrong and simplistic to think that a majority of Hispanics would vote for Jeb Bush because his wife is Mexican. I guess that type of thinking shows that non-Hispanic voters think of Hispanics as immature, dumb, "little brown people" who would put real issues aside like the economy, education, and immigration policy and concentrate instead on simply putting a Mexican born First Lady in the White House. Really, guys?
8
“At home, we’re a common, ordinary couple.” Yes indeed. If it weren't for the fact that elections are purchased nowadays this very common, ordinary couple has a shot at the Presidency, thanks to their wealth and connections. Sort of like the old, "let them eat cake" aristocracy from which our forefather fled a few centuries ago.
15
Fascinating...does her illegal/undisclosed expenditure of $19,000 for clothing define her? Is she a trinket to be placated? Does Jeb have no interest in her as a partner, friend and confidant? Is she but a servant to his ambitions?
His mother ruled the roost at home as a powerful and intimidating woman who could bully the men in her life. Did he find a complacent easily intimidated counterpoint to his Mom? Is he is so ambitious and self centered that it matters not what his spouse thinks?
The picture of the two of them at his foreign policy speech is amazing. He is grinning like a sheepish school boy with his misconduct about to be revealed. She is looking at him with a mix of affection and a hint of OMG what is he really doing? It has nothing to do with me but only him. Her disdain/disgust is palpable and his grin conveys, "I am busted but I am still gonna do it anyway."
We know that paradigm well with his elder brother who was reformed by his strong, principled schoolmarm wife. She tried to save him from a life of adolescent foolishness and dissolution, drug addiction and failure. He never learned how to speak grammatically and was a patsy for Cheney and the neocons.
His strong self willed mom could not raise powerful, thoughtful and independent men, only those who continued to ambivalently seek maternal guidance.
Her son George almost destroyed us. Do we want another damaged man?
His mother ruled the roost at home as a powerful and intimidating woman who could bully the men in her life. Did he find a complacent easily intimidated counterpoint to his Mom? Is he is so ambitious and self centered that it matters not what his spouse thinks?
The picture of the two of them at his foreign policy speech is amazing. He is grinning like a sheepish school boy with his misconduct about to be revealed. She is looking at him with a mix of affection and a hint of OMG what is he really doing? It has nothing to do with me but only him. Her disdain/disgust is palpable and his grin conveys, "I am busted but I am still gonna do it anyway."
We know that paradigm well with his elder brother who was reformed by his strong, principled schoolmarm wife. She tried to save him from a life of adolescent foolishness and dissolution, drug addiction and failure. He never learned how to speak grammatically and was a patsy for Cheney and the neocons.
His strong self willed mom could not raise powerful, thoughtful and independent men, only those who continued to ambivalently seek maternal guidance.
Her son George almost destroyed us. Do we want another damaged man?
20
"What is important is written, and you do what you do." Ah, yes. Bush talk. Words which mean something only to the speaker. Wisdom lost in the syntactical tangle which is the family curse. Barbara is the only one in the family who says what she thinks. She is cursed with tactlessness but her words come out having meaning. Columbia must have picked up Poppy and W and Jebbie's way with words. We're in for a spell in grammatical purgatory if he runs. In the words of the sainted Miranda Priestly: "That's all."
7
"Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, well we won't be fooled again...or something like that".
3
Lying on a customs declaration form is ILLEGAL and a crime. She did not feel like paying import taxes so she knowingly lied on the form and committed a crime. Period.
26
Of course. Life is that simple. Many Americans commit crimes big and small in this country every day even up on your high horse
4
bikemom1056 - So if lots of people do something wrong then it's OK?
6
This certainly explains Jeb Bush's fealty to the disastrous drug war. Blaming politics for an addiction betrays an ignorance that is frightening. And Mr. Bush has little choice, no? He was a huge partier, who met a humble, devout Carholic, while having every ambition in the world.
She didn't want any of it, but love prevailed. And that means compromise. So, when times are tough and things start falling apart, it's easy to blame something inanimate for a disease. And that means demanding that Mr. Bush take certain stands.
Never mind that keeping drugs illegal empowers the violent with billions of untaxed calital, with which they use to run other illicit businesses and to wage terror on communities and nations. Never mind that the grossly racist outcomes have hindered this nation's growth for over 40 years - the supposed end of Jim crow. Never mind that drug use is the same today as always, and the same amongst all socioeconomic groups. Their daughter has a disease, so that trumps all.
It's a terrifying prospect. If elected, it's a virtual guarantee the 40 years of fighting our own diseased citizens will continue, and at a cost of about $40,000,000,000 annualy, not counting the lost productivity and opportunity for these victims, and the need for government assistance this will continue to place on us all.
Because their daughter is sick. Very, VERY frightening set of motivations and it's why he will not be getting my vote.
She didn't want any of it, but love prevailed. And that means compromise. So, when times are tough and things start falling apart, it's easy to blame something inanimate for a disease. And that means demanding that Mr. Bush take certain stands.
Never mind that keeping drugs illegal empowers the violent with billions of untaxed calital, with which they use to run other illicit businesses and to wage terror on communities and nations. Never mind that the grossly racist outcomes have hindered this nation's growth for over 40 years - the supposed end of Jim crow. Never mind that drug use is the same today as always, and the same amongst all socioeconomic groups. Their daughter has a disease, so that trumps all.
It's a terrifying prospect. If elected, it's a virtual guarantee the 40 years of fighting our own diseased citizens will continue, and at a cost of about $40,000,000,000 annualy, not counting the lost productivity and opportunity for these victims, and the need for government assistance this will continue to place on us all.
Because their daughter is sick. Very, VERY frightening set of motivations and it's why he will not be getting my vote.
7
"A Bush Outsider" That is what it says on the front page. A wife of 20+ years may be unfamiliar or wary of politics but surely she is not an Outsider to the family and if she is, then that says way more about the Bush family than her.
8
Mrs Jeb Bush will be a great role model to all the other presidential candidates because of her real-life experience of our Mexican neighbor. And what ever immigration policy she accepts will be accepted by the hispanic voters of the USA and in Mexico. Both MR and Mrs Bush speak fluent spanish
Now the hispanic voters and Black voters will finally understand and appreciate all the goodness a Republican party will offer to a civilized society.
Now the hispanic voters and Black voters will finally understand and appreciate all the goodness a Republican party will offer to a civilized society.
4
And speaking Spanish represents the "goodness" of the Republican Party? Seriously? Their policies do not represent anything civil
8
It does not matter how deep and dirty their adversay tries to destroy the character of Columbia Bush, she will play the biggest factor in the next president election. People in this country do not make decision in base of politics, facts or importance but as a tribe. Remember Colin Powell endorsing Barry?The tribal factor will weight more than any other one more time
4
Certainly you have your "tribe" as "Barry" tells us. We know the Republican "tribe" which doesn't base any decision based on facts or even science. We presume that you mean the President Barack Obama.
7
She would have been taken into custody for lying on that customs from, if the bush's hadn't pulled some strings. And remember, Jeb and Columba are of the ultra conservative Opus Dei crowd and helped the domino's owner Tom Monahan, get tax breaks and zoning exemptions to build that Catholics only community near Naples and the Catholic version of Bob Jones University, Ave Maria University. Then here is the abomination of jeb meddling in the death of terry schiavo....
11
Who is we? Do you represent someone? Who is we but the annoying confirmatoon that you act and think as a tribe member. Tribe people make tribal decisions not only in politics, also in judicial, social and financial matters. This is not fiction or made up for debate purposes, it is a fact. Jeb Bush will be the next american president if he does not file for divorce to please his brother comrades before election day. Signed.
1
A First-Lady - of any political persuasion - without an agenda; a breath of fresh air.
3
Her "agenda" would be arts or domestic abuse. Every First Lady has an "agenda" because that is what the public expects…no "breath of fresh air" involved
7
Everyone has an agenda...to be without one is to be incurious, lazy and a waste of space. Especially to be in a powerful position and do nothing with it to add to the greater good. I wonder what people would think of a First Gentleman without "an agenda." He would be talked about as a ne'er do well. But a woman? Many would prefer she stay home and shut up. And that's an ugly double standard
4
He has too much baggage, she has too many buttons...
8
These people have serious influence on the lives of so many Americans ie migration, taxes, wars etc. etc. This is scary.
14
As a voter of Hispanic descent, it offends me when people assume I will vote for someone because the candidate's skin color is the same as mine or we have the same mother language. The group of people labeled by Americans as Hispanic is as diverse as Americans, English, Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders are even though they have the same skin color and share a language. Sharing a skin color and a language doesn't mean you automatically share culture, values or ideologies. Such uniformity doesn't even exist within the country of origin itself or within the so called Hispanic communities here. We are all different and just like white voters, we can see beyond skin color and language to cast a vote.
86
Indeed. Sadly, this will be lost on the entirety of the Republican party as they try to maneuver their way into the hearts of people they've openly hated for decades.
And they will defend themselves with, 'but Bush III has a latina wife!'
Yet the absurdity of it all won't stop them. It's election season...where's Mitt for a dose of levity? Oh yeah, he learned from past experience and decided to sit this one out.
And they will defend themselves with, 'but Bush III has a latina wife!'
Yet the absurdity of it all won't stop them. It's election season...where's Mitt for a dose of levity? Oh yeah, he learned from past experience and decided to sit this one out.
2
Your comments are right on point but they do not go far enough, HIspanics do not share a skin color nor do they necessarily share a culture. For example Argentines are European in most senses. You could drop them in the middle of Germany and they would fit in. Persons from Spain are very different from persons from Puerto Rico. The only connection Hispanics may have is that at one time most shared a common Spanish. (and Spanish is diverging and becoming less standardized) That is it. You might as well identify Americans as a separate race which of course they are not. The concept of Hispanic or Latino is term used by the census bureau to collect information
3
Well said. In the same way, I resent when people assume that I would or should vote for Hilary because I'm a woman and am liberal. No, she will need to win my vote based on her policy vision and track record.
5
I'm not impressed. By either Columba nor her husband. By either Hillary nor her husband. The American political machine has come up with the perfect candidates to antagonize all intelligent voters, to make us simply not want to vote for anyone. Democracy only works if we have viable, engaging choices. Democracy is messy business with unpredictable results, unless we are given no choices. Allow us to choose not to vote for either unacceptable candidate, so its not 'their' fault. Quite a well-planned solution, don't you think? Or maybe, why would anyone decent want to be president of the United States? "Who would ever want to be king?"
14
A bit more snark in this article than Columba Bush and her family would seem to warrant. The Bush family appears to be warm, together, and bound to fend off the wants of reporters to teat down yet another family when the husband or wife runs for high office.
Please let this apparently wonderful woman have her opportunity to live outside the muck and mire of political hardball.
Please let this apparently wonderful woman have her opportunity to live outside the muck and mire of political hardball.
4
Columba wants out? Stay in Florida during the campaign, and if he becomes President, stay there while he is in office. We all judge the relationships of others, to some degree, by those in our own lives.
My wife is my best friend and closest confidant, and I expect in many matters, Columba's relationship with Jeb is similar. I don't think any Presidential spouse would be told nuclear launch codes, she will hear many confidential matters of state by her proximity to power. So unless she is willing to virtually divorce him, she'll have to be vetted just as every First Lady for much of the nation's history has.
My wife is my best friend and closest confidant, and I expect in many matters, Columba's relationship with Jeb is similar. I don't think any Presidential spouse would be told nuclear launch codes, she will hear many confidential matters of state by her proximity to power. So unless she is willing to virtually divorce him, she'll have to be vetted just as every First Lady for much of the nation's history has.
1
Couldn't agree more! i found the article offensive on several levels, not to mention the 5 cent psychobabble in so many of the comments!
2
"Please let this apparently wonderful woman have her opportunity to live outside the muck and mire of political hardball."
I presume this admonition is directed at the RNC and Bush in particular. Only they can decide if she is going to be part of then political process. The "liberal media" will confine itself to the sort of soft-ball coverage best exemplified here by Sheryl Gay Stolberg. The problem is, as they found with Callista Gingrich, they can only polish so much. The facts are as stubborn as they are unpleasant.
I presume this admonition is directed at the RNC and Bush in particular. Only they can decide if she is going to be part of then political process. The "liberal media" will confine itself to the sort of soft-ball coverage best exemplified here by Sheryl Gay Stolberg. The problem is, as they found with Callista Gingrich, they can only polish so much. The facts are as stubborn as they are unpleasant.
7
If Jeb chooses to run and there's no doubt in my mind that that's where he's going, his wife will be slaughtered not just by the media but by many outside the media as well. She will be picked apart for anything from her religion to her accent. She'll have no personal life. Bush knows that but he's just too much of an ambitious megalomaniac to care. I feel kind of sorry for her for what's about to come her way.
13
I find it somewhat amusing that there are so many comments slamming the NYT for doing this article. Where are the cries of outrage at the numerous articles and columns that have been done about Hilary, almost on a daily basis? What should be inducing the screams is the fact that we basically have been told that the race is already decided a year and a half before the next election, just five months after the vile, disgusting one we just went through. Articles about another Clinton or Bush are both nauseating, but the Times can not cover only one. Not if you want them to be seen as a liberal version of the Fox News. That's reality. What would be a heck of a lot more encouraging would be to hear a roar from the crowd that the only thing we have in politics these days are two dynasties, both bought and paid for by the billionaires that control America right now. Bush? Clinton? They're both farces. At least the NYT is being fair in exposing both sides of it. And for that I'm grateful.
7
If we vote for someone, anyone, other than these two clowns, that will take care of it, right?
This Bush, Jeb, is too thin-skinned to last through the campaign. He has already refused to discuss his brother's term in office. Jeb's wife is a reluctant partner. Jeb will also be confronted on his daughter's addiction, the pass she got while others were punished. He will be asked to comment on his brother's policies and Obama's. He can't use the "I only discuss Florida" excuse. Add whatever dirt the media digs up in the next 12 months, and Jeb is a ticking time bomb.
18
He is rigid and humourless.
3
Jeb Bush would--with his Latina wife--would be as good for Latinos as Clarence Thomas has been for African Americans.
31
Finally, a comment on the money.
5
Or, Hillary for women
4
" ... she believes her husband has a calling."
And therein lies the rub. Beware of Bushes who think they have a divine right to the presidency.
And therein lies the rub. Beware of Bushes who think they have a divine right to the presidency.
25
Ann Romney had the same delusional idea. What is it with these coddled, parochial Republican women who see their clay-footed husbands as the messiah?
10
So you don't believe either DNA or marriage confers a divine right to the presidency? That would rule out Hillary Clinton, right?
Azalea: I'm not a big Hillary fan, but no rational person can deny that the woman is a fighter, a hard worker, and very smart. She doesn't act like someone who feels they have a divine right to anything, who can just show up and be appointed. If anything, she is an overachiever, not a spoiled child like Romey - who on the night of the election hadn't even penned a concession speech he was so sure he would win despite every poll telling him otherwise.
5
I honestly dont think it makes a difference who is president. But 1. We know a Rep. will be next 2. I dont like the idiot from NY. 3. We are very tired of the Bushes.... but a latino first lady? It has an appeal even to me. However, neither of them have made the best decisions so far. I'm over politics.
2
Idiot from NY State? I don't think so.
You should use your crystal ball to make money on the stck market
1
Wasn't SS recently indicted?
Would the Bush’s prove that Mrs Bush is not an "illegal" living under an assumed name? Their word is not enough. That is required by Republicans.
14
She applied for and got citizenship the right way, the legal way. She didn't sneak into the country
"Proof" is not required only by Republicans. Surely you know that both Democrats and Republicans raised the question of John McCain's citizenship:
"In the most detailed examination yet of Senator John McCain’s eligibility to be president, a law professor at the University of Arizona has concluded that neither Mr. McCain’s birth in 1936 in the Panama Canal Zone nor the fact that his parents were American citizens is enough to satisfy the constitutional requirement that the president must be a “natural-born citizen.
In 1937, Congress addressed the problem, enacting a law that granted citizenship to people born in the Canal Zone after 1904. That made Mr. McCain a citizen, but not one who was naturally born, Professor Chin said, because the citizenship was conferred after his birth.
"In his paper and in an interview, Professor Chin, a registered Democrat, said he had no political motive in raising the question.
"In March, Laurence H. Tribe, a law professor at Harvard and an adviser to Senator Barack Obama, prepared a memorandum on these questions with Theodore B. Olson, a former solicitor general in the Bush administration. The memorandum concluded that Mr. McCain is a natural-born citizen based on the place of his birth, the citizenship of his parents and their service to the country."
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/us/politics/11mccain.html?_r=
"In the most detailed examination yet of Senator John McCain’s eligibility to be president, a law professor at the University of Arizona has concluded that neither Mr. McCain’s birth in 1936 in the Panama Canal Zone nor the fact that his parents were American citizens is enough to satisfy the constitutional requirement that the president must be a “natural-born citizen.
In 1937, Congress addressed the problem, enacting a law that granted citizenship to people born in the Canal Zone after 1904. That made Mr. McCain a citizen, but not one who was naturally born, Professor Chin said, because the citizenship was conferred after his birth.
"In his paper and in an interview, Professor Chin, a registered Democrat, said he had no political motive in raising the question.
"In March, Laurence H. Tribe, a law professor at Harvard and an adviser to Senator Barack Obama, prepared a memorandum on these questions with Theodore B. Olson, a former solicitor general in the Bush administration. The memorandum concluded that Mr. McCain is a natural-born citizen based on the place of his birth, the citizenship of his parents and their service to the country."
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/11/us/politics/11mccain.html?_r=
Due diligence, as well as due process. Big deal, Azalea, so it was resolved before the election, not carried on afterwards as a witch hunt, as was actually done to the President.
http://www.nytimes.com/1999/06/19/us/jeb-bush-s-wife-is-fined.html There is much more…the explanation makes sense. She was hiding what she bought from her husband..but why did she think it was ok to try to hide the stuff? And why did she feel the need to hide her purchases from her husband? I think it casts their marriage in a not so flattering light. Typical, I get it with husbands trying to control. But if she was that intimidated and they posess such wealth, it puts Jeb Bush also in a not so flattering light and makes her look like a less then stellar a character in her own right. I feel for her, actually. But not totally.
10
War profiteers and Wall Street are running this show.
Both Jeb & Hilary are warmongers and fronts for Wall Street.
Hilary is their back-up plan for JEB and JEB is their back-up plan for Hilary.
NO difference.
Both Jeb & Hilary are warmongers and fronts for Wall Street.
Hilary is their back-up plan for JEB and JEB is their back-up plan for Hilary.
NO difference.
13
There's a big difference when it comes to the Supreme Court.
2
Don't fret, Mrs. Bush--your husband is a non-hoper. Another Bush after the last family disaster would be too depressing for words.
5
Mrs. Columba Bush "married into a famously political American family and had always been an outsider: a prayerful Roman Catholic". I unwittingly married into a super ambitious political family; sons of a dentist from NJ, all 3 sons obsessed with politics, throwing their weight behind Stephen A. Oxman, Yale law with Bill and Hillary, who became Asst. Sec. of State in '92, now Head of the Board of Princeton and on the Board of the Carnegie Corporation http://carnegie.org/about-us/board-of-directors/. As the only Catholic, the family took aim, calling me a mackerel snapper and a papist. My own father was the Chief Civilian Scientist for CECOM, a pioneer in radar during WWII, so I had exposure to the Pentagon growing up. My accidental affiliation with those with extreme political ambitions has damaged my life in ways I could never have imagined. When families like this, whether it's old $ or new, are tight-knit in their political goals, ruthlessness is their oxygen. Women and children are trophies in this world, not valued. Should you, a wife in this "realm" opt out for extremely legitimate reasons, you will be crucified, so I have heart for Mrs. Jeb Bush. She's in a tough spot, and so are we, since we don't need another Bush or Clinton in the White House. But the heirs to the greatest generation are not to be trusted no matter which party affiliation, has been my personal experience. Americans now live in a fully corrupt land, no heroes in sight.
14
And so the soap opera of "The Election" starts again. Lots of money to be spent, lots of money to be made. Entertainment for the masses who are led to believe that we still live in a democracy where voters decide on issues based on their own judgments of what is good for a civil society. Fluff pieces on candidate families serve a role in this show. But entertainment is core to American life, isn't it? Anywhere else in the world, the political positions of candidates are important and are scrutinized. Their religion is not discussed, their families don't appear in public. What is wrong with us?
31
"Entertainment for the masses who are led to believe that we still live in a democracy"
We do not live in a democracy - America is a Constitutional Republic and for good reason per our founding fathers.
http://www.stopthenorthamericanunion.com/NotDemocracy.html
<< Many people are under the false impression our form of government is a democracy, or representative democracy. This is of course completely untrue. The Founders were extremely knowledgeable about the issue of democracy and feared a democracy as much as a monarchy. They understood that the only entity that can take away the people's freedom is their own government, either by being too weak to protect them from external threats or by becoming too powerful and taking over every aspect of life.
A Constitutional Republic has some similarities to democracy in that it uses democratic processes to elect representatives and pass new laws, etc. The critical difference lies in the fact that a Constitutional Republic has a Constitution that limits the powers of the government. It also spells out how the government is structured, creating checks on its power and balancing power between the different branches.
The goal of a Constitutional Republic was to avoid the dangerous extreme of either tyranny or mobocracy but what exists in America today is a far cry from the Constitutional Republic our forefathers brought forth.>>
We do not live in a democracy - America is a Constitutional Republic and for good reason per our founding fathers.
http://www.stopthenorthamericanunion.com/NotDemocracy.html
<< Many people are under the false impression our form of government is a democracy, or representative democracy. This is of course completely untrue. The Founders were extremely knowledgeable about the issue of democracy and feared a democracy as much as a monarchy. They understood that the only entity that can take away the people's freedom is their own government, either by being too weak to protect them from external threats or by becoming too powerful and taking over every aspect of life.
A Constitutional Republic has some similarities to democracy in that it uses democratic processes to elect representatives and pass new laws, etc. The critical difference lies in the fact that a Constitutional Republic has a Constitution that limits the powers of the government. It also spells out how the government is structured, creating checks on its power and balancing power between the different branches.
The goal of a Constitutional Republic was to avoid the dangerous extreme of either tyranny or mobocracy but what exists in America today is a far cry from the Constitutional Republic our forefathers brought forth.>>
1
There's the Bill of Rights and then there's the lesser known Bill of Goods. The latter is what's been sold to the American public which, taken as a whole, is too stupid and/or indifferent to realize it. Anyone who still thinks their vote makes a difference is nuts. This is the purest form of oligarchy...government by the rich and for the rich. Get used to it. Short of armed insurrection, it's not going anywhere.
1
in a word :money
1
Columba Bush have my sympathy for various reasons having mama Bush as mommy in law besides married to the Bush clan.
Have your armor around girl you may need them !
Have your armor around girl you may need them !
5
Contrary to the snarkiness of the lunatic liberals who usually inhabit these precincts, your description of this fine woman who may someday inhabit the White House is appreciated by this voter as necessary background, a free press at its best in keeping the public informed about the lives and backgrounds of the candidates for public office. Especially one who is likely to run for President of the United States.
3
Anyone who uses a phrase - "lunatic liberals" cannot really complain of snarkiness anywhere else. What ruin the rest of your comments with a silly attack phrase?
13
The differences between Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush are huge in regard to education and professional accomplishment she outran him long ago. In the case of marriage, Hillary and Bill Clinton are intellectual equals -- both highly educated intelligent people who started out as nobodies in politics -- no wealthy Daddy or family connections to hand them anything so they had to make their own path to success. Meanwhile Jeb Bush was a poor student in prep school, opted to go to U of Texas instead of taking the free ride to Yale as a "legacy" and then continued his rebellion by marrying an uneducated Mexican woman in a quickie ceremony. Since that time he's obviously traded on the family name for everything he's done == from land deals in South Florida to the state's governorship. Meanwhile his wife from all appearances has been unhappy - what else would you call a wife who didn't live in the governor's mansion but opted to live in Miami. The question is what motivated Jeb to marry this woman with whom it appears he has zero in common? Why would he marry someone who he knew would antagonize his parents just as his going to U of T antagonized them? Jeb is just a spoiled, entitled twit with a Daddy and Mommy complex and with zero compassion -- who can forget his obnoxious behavior in the Terri Schiavo case -- and that lack of compassion or interest in anyone other than himself appears to extend to his wife.
9
"Why would he marry someone who he knew would antagonize his parents….."
I think you answered your own question.
I think you answered your own question.
4
She'd be much more refreshing as a First Lady than Bill Clinton!
6
She'd be much more boring.
4
I sincerely hope that "destiny" allows this woman to retain her private lifestyle while keeping the White House free of another Bush presidency.
12
She sounds like a wise woman to me. Too bad that her husband is still searching for something to validate his existence. Family, money and fame and even a new religion hasn't helped him, so he wants to rule America and feel powerful. Yuk.
9
Recruit Oprah.
She could sponsor her own campaign and not owe anything to foreign donors.
She could sponsor her own campaign and not owe anything to foreign donors.
5
Do we already need another Bush who was an "academic underachiever from Phillips Academy in Andover, Mass., in 1971." Do we really need a First Lady who is so down to earth, she lies to customs officials about bringing in to this country $19,000 of luxury goods?
As far as it being Jeb Bush's calling to be President, it has nothing to do with it being a calling and has everything to do with being the family business, and all the money and connections that goes with that family business.
As far as it being Jeb Bush's calling to be President, it has nothing to do with it being a calling and has everything to do with being the family business, and all the money and connections that goes with that family business.
29
Oh please…this is not relevant to what the public needs to know. But reading through the comments, I see she has a history that is not so hot. Smuggling jewels? Every family has its problems. But with that sort of wealth, why not just pay the tax? Is it another revelation of entitlement that this whole family reeks of?
21
The right wing today believes that taxes are for peasants. The Fortune 500 and the millionaires and billionaires shouldn't have to pay.
7
The article mentions the 1999 episode of Mrs. Bush being caught with items not reported to customs, but we in Atlanta were given the details by our newspaper reporters. She was caught hiding jewels in loose face powder - a definite attempt to fool customs officials - and she was taken from the Atlanta airport, charged and jailed in the city. At the time our reporters also told of her daughter's drug addiction. So, mom was smuggling and daughter was a druggie. And we would want them to be the First Family?
30
She'll fit right in. The Clintons really paved the way by lowering the bar for all sorts of reprehensible personal conduct.
"[Mrs. Bush was] ... charged and jailed in the city ..."
She was *fined*, not jailed.
Governor Explains Wife's Lie to Customs
By RICK BRAGG
Published: June 23, 1999
http://www.nytimes.com/1999/06/23/us/governor-explains-wife-s-lie-to-cus...
She was *fined*, not jailed.
Governor Explains Wife's Lie to Customs
By RICK BRAGG
Published: June 23, 1999
http://www.nytimes.com/1999/06/23/us/governor-explains-wife-s-lie-to-cus...
How mean-spirited, to refer to a recovering addict as a 'druggie.' Miss Bush's problems were well-known in Florida, and she faced some consequences for her law-breaking.
She is lucky that her family could afford rehab, and let's hope that these efforts freed her from addiction. In any event, it is none of our business.
Pejorative name-calling enhances stigma, and serves no purpose. Many families face issues with drug and alcohol abuse. That has no bearing on political aspirations.
She is lucky that her family could afford rehab, and let's hope that these efforts freed her from addiction. In any event, it is none of our business.
Pejorative name-calling enhances stigma, and serves no purpose. Many families face issues with drug and alcohol abuse. That has no bearing on political aspirations.
2
She would be a perfect link to the Latino communities everywhere...and a perfect foil to the Clintons...one can hardly fault here for a $19k spending spree using her own money when Hillary, Inc. demands $300,000 per speech and 100% private jets...plus, unlike women degrading "Slick Willy" (and sometime rapist...check Juanita Broadrick's compelling testimony) Jeb and Columba are constant, loving companions...while Hillary has been a lifelong enabler and power seeker. Jeb and his wife would be a perfect bridge uniting whites and Latinos in the White House.
6
Not biased my big toe - It wasn't the amount of money spent it was the fact that she lied and tried to commit fraud that was a problem.
I have no idea why anyone would pay HRC that kind of money but they do and they do so willingly. They paid Romney money to speak as well and Republicans thought that made him a smart business person.
I have no idea why anyone would pay HRC that kind of money but they do and they do so willingly. They paid Romney money to speak as well and Republicans thought that made him a smart business person.
6
It's not whether or not she used her own money, it's that she did not declare the goods and even hid them from customs agents. That's a Federal crime with jail time. How much time did she serve?
7
Maybe a similar article on Warren's spouse?
8
If you are referring to Elizabeth Warren, she is not running for President.:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/us/politics/2016-presidential-ca...
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/us/politics/2016-presidential-ca...
2
Warren is not running for president.
3
Warren is not running.
2
"As long as Jeb promised to spend time every week with her and the family". That should not be difficult if Jeb follows in the footsteps of W. W never spent time at the White House. In fact W did little except turn the presidency over to Cheney and companions.
18
Not so. See "Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House" by Peter Baker.
1
I remember a column by Maureen Dowd trashing Judith Steinberg for not being a compliant enough wife to Howard Dean when he was running for president. I also remember how the vicious campaign that was about to be launched against Monica Lewinsky before Bill Clinton's semen stain was found on her dress.
Obviously one doesn't know who Columba is. But she appears quite vulnerable to whatever racist and misogynist fantasies and attacks Republicans and Democrats are likely to be thrown her way
Obviously one doesn't know who Columba is. But she appears quite vulnerable to whatever racist and misogynist fantasies and attacks Republicans and Democrats are likely to be thrown her way
5
It will be interesting to see whether Rudy Giuliani and Donald Trump declare that Mrs Bush does not love America in the same way that the Walkers and Clinton's do. How will the Republicans reconcile Mrs Bush to their history of creating Otherness?
12
Mass at the Governor's mansion. No, no, no.
Everyone with an AARP card should be very worried about the Schavio history. Endless suffering even if you are not Catholic. How offensive.
Everyone with an AARP card should be very worried about the Schavio history. Endless suffering even if you are not Catholic. How offensive.
17
I totally like this woman.
9
Before everyone starts taking verbal stabs at Columba Bush, they should remember "some of the controversy" surrounding Mrs. Clinton in the firing of the Travel Agency personnel. It also speaks to character.
8
Imagine if Jeb Bush was a Dem. The Bush bashers here would be falling all over themselves with fawning adoration over the possibility of the nations first Latina FLOTUS. Her rise from poverty, work with the poor, artistic talent etc. would be lauded to the stars. It never ceases to amaze me how hateful these people can be.
13
Not true…couldn't care less about her. She's in the paper so I read it. I don't like any of the candidates too much on the left or the right. They are all beholden to somebody and it isn't the American people. But the Bush's and the Clinton clans take the cake. Of the two, the Bush's win hands down for interconnected and downright treasonous entitlement at the expense of the American people like few other families, their cronies included, which is a pretty vast network. American Dynasty by Republican Kevin Phillips is extemely enlightening. Read it. I agree people are hateful. I just wish someone would run that had the interests of the American people at heart. Maybe Bernie Sanders does. Who knows? Otherwise, all I can see is hatefulness.
10
You don't know any Democrats do you? It takes a lot more than gender or ethnicity to impress Democrats.
If you read the comments quite a few Democrats here have praised Mrs. Bush.
If you read the comments quite a few Democrats here have praised Mrs. Bush.
2
Her "rise from poverty" was marrying into the Bush family. "If Jeb Bush was a Dem?" - he'd be a different man. It's the policies Tom, not the ethnicity. Case in point: Herman Cain and Marco Rubio.
5
I do hope his daughter will smile when Jeb pardons the turkey. Remember how the Obama girls were criticized for being sullen and acting like teenagers when their father performed that ritual. I am assuming that his children will be subjected to the same scrutiny in all their activities. Oh wait, that might be a problem.
8
Interesting profile of "Mrs. Bush," wife of Jeb. If her husband is elected president, she would be the first Latina First Lady. She and her brood of "little brown ones" would undoubtedly pull in Hispanic votes, something the mostly white and uptight GOP must be considering.
3
What utter nonsense. No Floridian following the life of this couple would find any truth in the many soppy adjectives describing this woman. Simple, modest, submissive, etc.? Hobnobber with Mexican thugocrats, more like. Of course, Carlos Slim pays the bills here, thus the snow job. You people have no journalistic ethics, and no ordinary shame.
29
"... Carlos Slim pays the bills here ..."
What "bills"? Please be specific and cite sources.
What "bills"? Please be specific and cite sources.
1
Steve, Carlos Slim became the largest New York Times stockholder a short time ago.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/01/14/us-new-york-times-warrants-car...
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/01/14/us-new-york-times-warrants-car...
3
Enough is enough. Time for a change after almost three decades of the Bushes and Clintons as the same old ideas seemed to be recycled. This is a democracy, not a dynastic form of government where people from the same political dynasties keep on governing with a grip for more power, and getting richer. Time for something fresh. Time for someone new. Time for Elizabeth Warren to stand up and be counted as the next President of the United States of America.
35
So, in her "search for ordinariness" she finds time not only for "quiet lunches by herself," dining on "simple Latin fare" at no-frills restaurants," but she also paints "in the studio of a friend," spends "hours touring women’s shelters;" she speaks "to" (rather than "with") "abuse victims yet she still finds time to go on spending sprees in Paris and then lie about it.
Give me a break...
Give me a break...
37
This story surely originated with the Bush campaign, who passed it on to the reporter.
2
She is pretty shady herself. She had some ethical issues when she was our First Lady down here.
Don't assume she is above the "family business" as they say.
Don't assume she is above the "family business" as they say.
34
Drug treatment was good for the Bush daughter……..but under Jeb Bush all other Floridians caught with the same amount of drugs served prison time.
68
are we allowed to ask why so many in the bush clan have substance abuse problems?
4
Jeb Bush has not formally announced his decision. Please keep him and his family off the front page until he decides one way or another. Until then, the only way I want to see his name on the front page is if TPTB finally try George W. Bush for war crimes and put towards the middle or end of the article Jeb's role in handing him the presidency.
27
What was "Jeb's role in handing him the presidency"?
On the other hand, please keep those articles about Hillary, and other liberals who have not yet announced, coming...
1
Yep, meet the new Bush Wife, same as the old Bush wife.
Heard this about Barbara, heard this about Laura.
When will people ever learn that as soon as a Bush man runs into any political trouble, he throws his "reluctant" spouse into the camera's eye?
Since Jeb is doing the same Bush Family Inc. song and dance, I guess invading Iraq again will be happening in 2017......reluctantly.....again
Heard this about Barbara, heard this about Laura.
When will people ever learn that as soon as a Bush man runs into any political trouble, he throws his "reluctant" spouse into the camera's eye?
Since Jeb is doing the same Bush Family Inc. song and dance, I guess invading Iraq again will be happening in 2017......reluctantly.....again
19
Obama already sending troops back there
2
Columba, we too are feeling dread.
38
It's outrageous that the NYT blandly refers to Columba Bush as having "endured weeks of bad press for a European shopping spree." It was not so much her capacity for luxury-shopping that caused her bad press, it was her criminal smuggling of the goods into the the country, lying about their value in order to avoid paying customs duties, a legal obligation she evidently felt didn't apply to her. Mrs. Bush is Imelda Marcos combined with Leona Helmsley--a toxic mixture.
30
So it's OK to criminally smuggle illegals into the USA but not fib on unnecessary federal taxes on some purchases overseas...what a double standard ! Less taxes = more freedom. Less illegals = more jobs for blacks and legal Hispanics in this terrible economy
3
“My husband always said that if the public knew her, they would love her,” said Peggy Sapp, who worked with Mrs. Bush.......
No, not all the public. Sorry. Another poor assumption from "The World According to Bush".
No, not all the public. Sorry. Another poor assumption from "The World According to Bush".
18
Back in the 70s when she first arrived in Washington, it was said that Columba was from a fine, old and very wealthy Mexican family. How The Times has changed....perhaps the father-as-a farm-worker story is a campaign ploy? Or perhaps the father-as-a-very-wealthy-Mexican was another "campaign ploy, aimed at the Senior Bushs.
4
One of Mrs. Bush's problems -- bigger than that of lying when crossing the border and re-entering the country after a shopping spree -- might be the soap operas.
3
... But then Bill Clinton IS a soap opera; so maybe Mrs. Bush won't be derided too much for watching them.
6
I think this is working for me! Here we have a woman of distinct integrity, who really doesn't like the spotlight cast upon her. She would prefer to be by herself and paint.
Well it's not a sharp-focus thing: I have underreported to Customs before too - not for that much money, but still? And Laura Bush was a librarian?
But the pressure of politics now is horrific -- you can sure understand when candidates' wives are less than thrilled about their potential future. Think of Kitty Dukakis, or Teresa Heinz Kerry. You could see them up there on the platform, and it was clear: they did not want to be there.
Columba Bush doesn't want to be up there either. And that's why this works for me -- It's a big deal to be a First Lady, so if you have a woman who doesn't want that job, that will work against her husband's chances of being elected. I am sure Michael Dukakis and John Kerry would agree.
All Hail Columba! No one in their right mind wants another Bush in the White House! Columba is our secret weapon!
Well it's not a sharp-focus thing: I have underreported to Customs before too - not for that much money, but still? And Laura Bush was a librarian?
But the pressure of politics now is horrific -- you can sure understand when candidates' wives are less than thrilled about their potential future. Think of Kitty Dukakis, or Teresa Heinz Kerry. You could see them up there on the platform, and it was clear: they did not want to be there.
Columba Bush doesn't want to be up there either. And that's why this works for me -- It's a big deal to be a First Lady, so if you have a woman who doesn't want that job, that will work against her husband's chances of being elected. I am sure Michael Dukakis and John Kerry would agree.
All Hail Columba! No one in their right mind wants another Bush in the White House! Columba is our secret weapon!
5
Columba Bush is a faithful wife. She is always with her husband. She did not pull away from him in 2000, when Jeb Bush was involved in rigging the results of voting in Florida in 2000. After that George W. Bush has become a president.
And she will not desert him now, when рhe is busy to become our president. She knows his skeletons in the closet.
Jeb's mother, Barbara Bush said in an interview April 25, 2013: «We've had enough Bushes». Even if the mother is against, what can we say about ordinary American citizen.
And she will not desert him now, when рhe is busy to become our president. She knows his skeletons in the closet.
Jeb's mother, Barbara Bush said in an interview April 25, 2013: «We've had enough Bushes». Even if the mother is against, what can we say about ordinary American citizen.
6
All of us share her dread at the idea of another Bush in the White House.
32
"eating simple Latin fare like jamón serrano". What kind of world do the authors live in ???
In the interest of more down-to-the-ground reporting research, I invite the authors to poll a good cross-section of "Latino" immigrants in the US and ask if they regularly purchase this (Spanish) product to consume at home or when eating out.
Then, when you get that answer report back your your analysis on whether "Colu" or the spin machine behind her husband would be wise to advertise her consumption of this product (or European trips to spend $19k on clothing and jewelry, for that matter)
In the interest of more down-to-the-ground reporting research, I invite the authors to poll a good cross-section of "Latino" immigrants in the US and ask if they regularly purchase this (Spanish) product to consume at home or when eating out.
Then, when you get that answer report back your your analysis on whether "Colu" or the spin machine behind her husband would be wise to advertise her consumption of this product (or European trips to spend $19k on clothing and jewelry, for that matter)
27
Jamón Serrano de Bellota, $47.95 for 3 ounces at La Tienda.com.
6
I may be guilty of eating "rich" foods, but nothing ever that expensive!
Well hopefully, for our sake and hers, we'll be spared another Bush presidency, or any of these other Republican jokers, frankly. Then Mrs. Bush won't have anything to worry about...
20
I don't feel sorry for Columba (by the way, it is pronounced coh-loo, not coo-loo). I am proud of her. She might not be a "political animal" and might not like the limelight but, if her husband becomes candidate/president, I am sure she will be up to the challenge, and become a wonderful first lady. Her story reminds me a little bit (emphasis on a little bit) of the Angeles Mastretta's novel "Arrancame la vida" (Tear This Heart Out).
3
She probably has less "sense of dread" than all of us who have lived at one time in a Florida under Jeb's control.
36
As usual a year before the next presidential election all the newspapers and media are handicapping. So tiresome to hear about these losers in unsparing detail, when one knows from the outset that Jeb Bush or his porcine majesty Christie have no chance of getting a GOP nomination...gotta sell papers, I guess.
7
Your basic premise is kind of offensive to me. Making the role of a wife being different than for a husband... where he can have his own opinion and objectives, but she will be judged for her difference of opinion with her spouse.
She seems a nice enough person and one can understand her seeming lack of enthusiasm for the political game.
She hit the jackpot by marrying Jeb, greatly improving her station in life and has benefited greatly from that and as her trips to Europe, $19,000 shopping spree, and probably some of her other activities which fit in the top 1% lifestyle. But except for the customs violation I don't think any of that makes her worse than many plain folks.
So far there hasn't been much if any information about her and her families educations, history and social position. Migrant worker can mean a lot of things.
It does seem clear that the relationship had a very positive influence on Jeb.
Many would be curious about the psycho-dynamics of that and their relationship and how they came to interact. The bit about not meeting her in-laws until shortly before marriage makes one wonder about that and how Jeb's relations with his parents fits in. It is interesting that Jeb cooks and she doesn't. Maybe paid help does a lot of the cooking?
For better or worse their marriage seems a bit more on the pre- 1960's model of wife staying home and appearing at first glance to be less independent than many today.
All this is relevant in that it helps for understanding Jeb and where he's coming from, how his family interactions might affect his politics and decisions, etc. It also shows he lives more extravagantly than most of us.
She hit the jackpot by marrying Jeb, greatly improving her station in life and has benefited greatly from that and as her trips to Europe, $19,000 shopping spree, and probably some of her other activities which fit in the top 1% lifestyle. But except for the customs violation I don't think any of that makes her worse than many plain folks.
So far there hasn't been much if any information about her and her families educations, history and social position. Migrant worker can mean a lot of things.
It does seem clear that the relationship had a very positive influence on Jeb.
Many would be curious about the psycho-dynamics of that and their relationship and how they came to interact. The bit about not meeting her in-laws until shortly before marriage makes one wonder about that and how Jeb's relations with his parents fits in. It is interesting that Jeb cooks and she doesn't. Maybe paid help does a lot of the cooking?
For better or worse their marriage seems a bit more on the pre- 1960's model of wife staying home and appearing at first glance to be less independent than many today.
All this is relevant in that it helps for understanding Jeb and where he's coming from, how his family interactions might affect his politics and decisions, etc. It also shows he lives more extravagantly than most of us.
4
Mrs. Columba Bush appears from this piece to be a lovely, caring human being. She participates the art world, appreciates the glories of the Mexican culture from which she springs, reaches out to abused women and to other under-served communities, and is a private, sensitive person, who loves and supports her family. She doesn't deserve the abuse that will come with being the spouse of a candidate for the US presidency. And, she will be handicapped by the shyness of her nature. However, frequently people who would resist taking on grand challenges end up doing them quite well. She may actually surprise everyone by evolving into an important American, in a historical sense. And, while I will never cast a vote for her husband, that in no way prevents me from admiring her humanity.
8
And like mrs Mugabe and her monthly trips to Paris to shop, a good shopping trip.
1
Nothing is her fault. The evil press and "politics" are to blame for her mistakes and problems. Spoken like a true Bush.
17
Let's not forget young George P. Bush, son of Jeb & Columba, waits in the wings. He is following the familiar pattern for members of the Bush family preparing for a political career. He is 38, a businessman, lawyer and reserve naval officer, and recently assumed the office of Texas Land Commissioner - which gives him the power to negotiate and enforce leases for mineral rights on state lands. He raised more than $3 million to win this office, little of which he had to spend, as he faced a weak opponent. George P. is the first Bush to win his first election.
He is the deputy finance chairman of the Texas state Republican party, and a director of a PAC called Hispanic Republicans of Texas. As Land Commissioner, he has gained influence and contacts throughout the Texas oil and mining industries.
George P. has a young son named - what else? - Prescott.
It never stops with this family. The Kennedys lasted 3 generations as a political dynasty. The Bushes are now into their 4th. Enough, already.
He is the deputy finance chairman of the Texas state Republican party, and a director of a PAC called Hispanic Republicans of Texas. As Land Commissioner, he has gained influence and contacts throughout the Texas oil and mining industries.
George P. has a young son named - what else? - Prescott.
It never stops with this family. The Kennedys lasted 3 generations as a political dynasty. The Bushes are now into their 4th. Enough, already.
20
She seems like a lovely person. But the article is strangely silent about how a poor girl from Leon made her way to the U.S. Time to blow the dust off of her immigration file -- assuming that it still exists.
21
The article could have been more clear on this point, but it says Mr. Bush was an "exchange student". That appears to mean that he was an exchange student in León, Mexico.
1
Um, I'm pretty sure she became a naturalized citizen the LEGAL way.
2
Columbia the daughter of migrant Mexican workers was not the Bush family choice for Jeb. But he fell in love. Columbia does alot of working with drug recovery since her daughter got addicted and she looks to help with alcohol issues as it is a family problem. Now she was called to get immigrant votes for her brother-in-law twice. Now is America ready for a Mexican First Lady as it will make history as every First Lady has been American. But Republican-Tea Party has attacked the President, First Lady even the teen girls with such racial hate. Now will this group welcome a Mexican First Lady?. Likely Jeb wont win with his call for WW3 and bringing Cheney back.
5
"... as it will make history as every First Lady has been American."
Louisa Adams was born in London, England.[1] And, to be pedantic, several First Ladies were *British* subjects born in America.[2]
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisa_Adams
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_First_Ladies_of_the_United_States
Louisa Adams was born in London, England.[1] And, to be pedantic, several First Ladies were *British* subjects born in America.[2]
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisa_Adams
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_First_Ladies_of_the_United_States
1
Poor Columba. She'll have to endure even further scrutiny when her son George P. bellies up to claim his entitlement to the White House, too.
16
I'm sorry, but the basic premise of this article: "Would she support her husband, Jeb Bush, if he decided to run for president?" is ridiculous. Does anyone seriously - seriously - believe she really has a say in it? If Jeb and the Bush family wants him to run, there is no way she would have veto power over the decision. Why does the New York Times pretend otherwise?
11
Of course she does!
All she has to do is walk away....right?
and what would that entail?
All she has to do is walk away....right?
and what would that entail?
I would be wary, too, if my in laws referred to my kids as "little brown ones", as if they were somehow, shockingly not white. They'll never get the brown spot out of their heads.
19
I'm sure there's a reason the NYT's printed that statement. No matter how it was meant out of love or racism we are going to be left with the feeling of racism. They are certainly going to and did play the daughter in laws origins up when they want to and down when they want to. It was the NYT's that coined the original calling of Zimmerman a white Hispanic. Took three weeks for it to catch up with the rest of the world but they managed it. The media spreads hate and racism through print very well don't they?
2
Our hispanic compatriots beware of a Bush culture that looks over, to not say down upon "our little brown ones", it does not appear Mrs Bush is a willing activist for their cause and it would be foolish to believe GOP policy will turn about considering the weight of the red states and the white conservative dread of becoming a minority within this century.
I also don't see Mrs Bush toe the line on family business (oil) management out of the White House, all the more as we hear some of the neocon crowd like Wolfowitz and corporate cultures like Walmart (perhaps we see the logic behind their new wage policy) creeping out of the woodwork. The type of crowd that supported his brother in effecting the greatest disservice to this country in terms of image, finance and in plain moral terms.
I hope W will have been the last of the dynasty lest we forget why we had a revolution. I sometimes say the French carry a chip on their shoulder for chopping the head of their king, thus elevating their presidents to quasi regal status, they learned to hate Sarkozy who descended from the throne to man the barricades, to which my dutch spouse retorts saying we claim our own royalty from lineages of dynastic wealth often ill attained.
I also don't see Mrs Bush toe the line on family business (oil) management out of the White House, all the more as we hear some of the neocon crowd like Wolfowitz and corporate cultures like Walmart (perhaps we see the logic behind their new wage policy) creeping out of the woodwork. The type of crowd that supported his brother in effecting the greatest disservice to this country in terms of image, finance and in plain moral terms.
I hope W will have been the last of the dynasty lest we forget why we had a revolution. I sometimes say the French carry a chip on their shoulder for chopping the head of their king, thus elevating their presidents to quasi regal status, they learned to hate Sarkozy who descended from the throne to man the barricades, to which my dutch spouse retorts saying we claim our own royalty from lineages of dynastic wealth often ill attained.
9
Hey New York Times, remember you are journalists. Mrs Bush didn't tell a little white lie about her big spending spree in Europe to not upset her husband. She made a knowingly false statement to the U.S. government (to avoid paying import duty.) That is a felony for most people and some people even go to jail for false statements on an import form. And her spokesman's explanation is rubbish. How does Jeb get to see what is on the customs form unless she shows it to him? He is only going to find out if he looks at credit card statements or bank records. I realize that people who didn't earn their money but had it handed to them don't necessarily look at that stuff but the explanation is pure fiction. I think the two of them should hold a Geraldine Ferraro like press conference if they honestly believe this tall tale. But not even the NY Times will ask any questions if it is a Republican.
Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice shame on you. Fool me three times: Jeb Bush for President.
Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice shame on you. Fool me three times: Jeb Bush for President.
73
Good catch. The reporter should have looked into this incredibly flimsy explanation and ask an expert why she should be shielded from criminal prosecution for this falsehood. Which government official exercised the discretion not to prosecute her?
3
In an ideal world, this article would not have been written. Give the families of candidates and elected officials privacy. Focus on the views, positions, past actions and, if relevant, purchases of the one on the ballot.
The harsh spotlight burns families, pushing them to seek the shade of private life. Politicians do care about their families, and most will choose another path if they feel their loved ones will suffer and be maltreated in the contest. The focus on the private discourages good people from running from office.
The harsh spotlight burns families, pushing them to seek the shade of private life. Politicians do care about their families, and most will choose another path if they feel their loved ones will suffer and be maltreated in the contest. The focus on the private discourages good people from running from office.
28
Yes, it does discourage good people from running. That's why we've had three of the Family Bush run...America's crime family.
2
It's obvious to me that Jeb Bush is more interested in adding to the Bush "dynasty", than considering the feelings of his wife.
4
Sorry, but I think this is a great article. I learn a lot about politicians by knowing something about their spouses.
1
As the price for Columba's consent to his running for president, Jeb had to agree to spend more time with her and their family?
What's wrong with this picture? Some men actually LIKE spending time with their wives and children, and do it without anyone holding their feet to the fire.
What's wrong with this picture? Some men actually LIKE spending time with their wives and children, and do it without anyone holding their feet to the fire.
28
You don;t think a Presidential spouse - any spouse - might have a feeling that he or she was apart from the President more often than he or she might desire.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with this picture, except that some are looking for something wrong with this picture.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with this picture, except that some are looking for something wrong with this picture.
1
At the moment Jeb is a private citizen, Rick. That's what's wrong with this picture.
1
An Hispanic wife will appeal greatly to Hispanic voters, who are in some ways swing voters. Even more compelling is the fact that Jeb has children that are part Hispanic. Obviously he would be much more sensitive than most to the plight of Hispanic children and young people. A real curve ball from the party that is supposed to be anti-immigrant. It should give Democrats pause.
4
Color me cynical but, I get the feeling these two are together because her faith won't allow a divorce and his political aspirations would be better served without one.
26
Are you equally cynical about Bill and Hillary's marriage?
Well I'm not thinking about what sort of First Lady she will be. Rather, I'm thinking about what sort of First Husband BILL will be!
10
Let's hope we don't have to make THAT choice.
I'm not a fan of the Clinton's but I have to admit that Bill did some good and I think he'd be great as first husband.
1
FHOTUS...funny acronym...but what an introduction it would be..." The President of the United States, and Former President of the United States Mr. ..." Eventually retiring as Mr. & Mrs. Former POTUS...
1
Columba, a reticent spouse? Hardly! She loves the 'perks' ( multiple shopping sprees in Europe )of being a politicians wife but does not like the baggage that comes with it. One cannot have it both ways. Too bad this Bush is also an underachiever. Must run in the family. Too bad for the Republicans. Besides Scott Walker ( a college drop-out) they have Jeb now to reckon with.
11
You are aware that two of the presidents on Mount Rushmore never had a college degree, right? And numerous presidents since then. Or, did you not study history?
1
"“Jeb is a natural-born politician, but I’m not a political person,” she told The Miami Herald....."
I tire of political wives proclaiming their apathy to politics.
I tire of political wives proclaiming their apathy to politics.
10
Let's get real. I very much doubt that this Mrs. Bush would have stopped Jeb's ambitions. They have a perceived sense that 3 Bush presidents are destined. Heaven help us all.
23
She was horrible first lady in Florida and there is no way she can handle being FLOTUS. This article is a whitewash. Everything this woman does is for the Hispanic community. She simply doesn't care about anyone else.
14
The only Hispanic community she serves is the right-wing anti-Castro extremists.
3
and this is why she worries about having to run.
2
Don't most people pick a cause near and dear to their hearts and stick with it? I don't think it's bad to do that.
Lying to customs however is tacky and inexcusable.
Lying to customs however is tacky and inexcusable.
Don't worry, Columba. Hillary beats Jeb by ten points in every poll.
21
At this point in the process, Hillary was beating Obama too, so its a bit early to count your chickens.
What's the batting average of polls taken this far ahead of an election?
Good grief, Mrs. Bush didn't endure bad press "for a European shopping spree" -- she was caught trying to sneak $19,000 worth of clothes and perfume through Customs without having to pay duty.
That's why she got "bad press" -- not just for her shopping spree.
The Customs agents asked her twice if she had declared everything, and she replied that she had. She lied to Federal Customs officials, which is serious.
Jeb Bush claimed his wife had just "misled" Customs officials.
No, misleading with the intent to deceive is lying.
That's why she got "bad press" -- not just for her shopping spree.
The Customs agents asked her twice if she had declared everything, and she replied that she had. She lied to Federal Customs officials, which is serious.
Jeb Bush claimed his wife had just "misled" Customs officials.
No, misleading with the intent to deceive is lying.
52
It is a criminal offense. But not if you are a member of the bush family, apparently.
5
Jeb Bush will be demeaned by both the RINO Tea Party Republicans and the liberal wing of the Democrats. The swing voters, in play, will be Latinos. Many of these Latino voters will vote for Jeb Bush and probably swing the elections to Bush over the cattle trading wizard, Hillary Clinton.
5
One successful futures position does not define a "trading wizard." If it does, then we should be ruling the world by now.
1
Imagine the field day that Republican hacks and Fox News blowhards would have had if it had been a Democrat's wife who was "briefly detained" after lying on a customs declaration form in order to evade duties on $19,000 worth of contraband that she smuggled into the country.
But Republicans and Fox News have such a strong sense of entitlement for themselves. And a double standard for everyone else.
Columba Bush should have been arrested, convicted and sent to prison.
Or are taxes and criminal penalties only for the "little people?"
But Republicans and Fox News have such a strong sense of entitlement for themselves. And a double standard for everyone else.
Columba Bush should have been arrested, convicted and sent to prison.
Or are taxes and criminal penalties only for the "little people?"
37
Yes. Little brown people.
2
The Times left out a very pertinent aspect while mentioning Mr. Tower and Ave Maria University, both creations of the owner of the Dominos pizza chain, both militantly right wing catholic and all discriminatory. The owner of Dominos, Tom Monahan, created a housing development limited to extremist Catholics like himself and Ave Maria follows the same well worn path of discrimination against gays, women and non Catholics. The secretive ultra extremist, sadomasochistic order, Opus Dei, is well entrenched here, with forced chastity and condemnation and expulsion of those who disagree. As these are the kind of people the bushes run with it is only fair to say so. Read more below:
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2007/03/hail-mary
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2007/03/hail-mary
28
Do not, do not under estimate a Bush. Big money makes no noise.
8
The Paris shopping spree is disturbing on a couple of levels. As a member of the middle class, I've never had enough access to money to spend that much on a vacation, let alone the shopping did on that vacation. Second, lying when she came through customs. She could spend that amount on frivolous purchases (I don't think the purchases were groceries or medicines or some such), but coudn't pay the tax? Maybe she should've bought one dress less... Finally, being scared to tell her husband. Does she lack backbone, is he a control freak, or does the poor girl who married into money have spending problems? The Bush dynasty has a black mark thanks to GWB; nothing in what I've read about her makes me think she's bringing anything uplifting to this Bush.
So, she likes the arts. Who doesn't? The arts are meant to bring joy to humanity. Try liking the poor and dispossed, they can't do much for your personal networking...at least not as much as Carlos Slim can.
So, she likes the arts. Who doesn't? The arts are meant to bring joy to humanity. Try liking the poor and dispossed, they can't do much for your personal networking...at least not as much as Carlos Slim can.
24
I'm going to respectfully disagree when it comes to shopping in places like Paris. There's nothing wrong with money honestly earned and fairly spent and if someone has the means to do so then fine.
On everything other point, I'm in complete agreement with you.
On everything other point, I'm in complete agreement with you.
The article states: "She said she had spent only $500.."
Perhaps that was what she believed the real value of the purchased goods to be, after subtracting the typical outrageous foreign markups.
Perhaps that was what she believed the real value of the purchased goods to be, after subtracting the typical outrageous foreign markups.
To speak candidly if unkindly, the prospect of a first lady speaking "heavily accented English" is not one I think would appeal to a lot of voters. Add to that her lie to Customs about what she'd spent on a European trip because she didn't want her husband to know how much--not good omens for a Bush candidicy.
15
Hispanic Americans are the nation’s largest minority group and English spoken with a Spanish accent doesn’t bother them. The prospect of having a Hispanic family in the White House would appeal to voters in our three most populous states--California and Texas—where Hispanics outnumber non-Hispanic whites and in Florida, where Hispanics deliver the crucial swing vote.
1
How can the GOP keep up its demonizing of Hispanics if we have a wives of Hispanic origin in the White House and the Texas Governor's mansion? It's an odd immigration policy, marriage. Maybe instead of encouraging self deportation, the GOP should set up a dating service.
8
Dutiful wife should encourage him to retire to a ranch like his brother. Unfortunately mud will be slung because of the Bush name and because of their daughters unfortunate run in with drugs. I assume that the Republicans must think having a wife with Mexican heritage is a big asset. Too bad love has to enter politics. If Jeb was smart he would not run particularly if he cares about his relationship with his wife and family. She already has acknowledged the toll being governor took on them.
16
hang it up ! no one will 'trust' a president's wife named Columba... !!! gasp !!! they may think she is Columbian !!!
2
Her name is Coo-loo, Italian word for derrierre
you mean the jeb that was implicated in the 2000 election fraud scandal in florida has the nerve to run for president?!!!...keep him and his people away from the ballot boxes and voting booths or he will win!...
31
Or, do you mean how Al Gore tried to steal the election after numerous recounts STILL showed GW Bush winning?
So she called her mother-in-law "Mrs. Bush" for years--what does that say about relationships? All these dynasties who want to run our country make me think of a scene from that awful movie "Mommy Dearest," where Joan Crawford keeps pulling a dinner out of the refrigerator that her daughter refuses to eat.
I feel like that daughter; I have no desire to choose amongst the leftovers of the Clinton or Bush families!
I feel like that daughter; I have no desire to choose amongst the leftovers of the Clinton or Bush families!
13
This article focuses on Columba, and her role as mother is paramount to her identity. Daughter Noelle and her personal difficulties with drugs are mentioned, though briefly. Unless I missed it entirely, where is any account here of son George P. and his charges for stalking a woman? These two children of Jeb's have encountered their problems. Columba herself acknowledges that Jeb's intense political life contributed to Noelle's addiction, yet the critical information of how their father's involvement in politics may have affected George P. has been omitted.
George P. was only caught stalking his ex-girlfriend but breaking into her bedroom window, then managed to escape. He then drove his car through the family's property and caused damage to nearly 100 feet of their lawn. The family, oddly enough, refused to press charges against him even though he had engaged in dangerous behavior against their daughter and their family. So much of the Bush family background has been sanitized and cherry picked. This is just one more piece of their dark history that got swept under the rug.
George P. was only caught stalking his ex-girlfriend but breaking into her bedroom window, then managed to escape. He then drove his car through the family's property and caused damage to nearly 100 feet of their lawn. The family, oddly enough, refused to press charges against him even though he had engaged in dangerous behavior against their daughter and their family. So much of the Bush family background has been sanitized and cherry picked. This is just one more piece of their dark history that got swept under the rug.
24
I hadn't heard of this. Do you have sources for this story?
Just what we need as a figure head for our country and children: someone who lied in order to avoid taxes on $20,000 of clothes and jewelry she bought in a week!, who has decided to watch Mexican soap operas rather than cook dinner for her family, has raised an addict, and apparently thinks her life is difficult. And still doesn't speak fluent Englsh. Seriously?
28
I won't defend her other actions but the article doesn't say she doesn't speak English fluently, just that she apeaks with an accent. That's a big difference.
Her husband was the cook in the house. I'm sure if she'd been the cook of the house and all of a sudden was busy with politics everyone would have had sympathy for the man of the house being the cook. Jeez, women can't win!
Her husband was the cook in the house. I'm sure if she'd been the cook of the house and all of a sudden was busy with politics everyone would have had sympathy for the man of the house being the cook. Jeez, women can't win!
1
This newspaper is giving Jeb Bush much more print than he deserves. They're practically shoving Jeb down our throats. No detail too small for a front page headline.
It appears the establishment newspaper prefers one of the two establishment families running this country.
It appears the establishment newspaper prefers one of the two establishment families running this country.
127
In all fairness to the reporting, I think the effort might be to prepare folks
for the real possibility of a Republican president in the form of another
Bush. And that's in great part due to the big bucks he is garnering from the
billionaires who will do the electing.
That said, Jeb's speech in Chicago this week had to be disappointing
for the GOP hopeful because it was hardly dynamic. In addition (and of
some comfort to those hoping for leadership geared to the new century!),
a lot of Americans in the last moment in the voting booth are going to
find it very hard too choose the name Bush.
The GOP 'paid selection' nominating process should be a spectacle
of political sport, not, yet again, in the interest of the democracy.
for the real possibility of a Republican president in the form of another
Bush. And that's in great part due to the big bucks he is garnering from the
billionaires who will do the electing.
That said, Jeb's speech in Chicago this week had to be disappointing
for the GOP hopeful because it was hardly dynamic. In addition (and of
some comfort to those hoping for leadership geared to the new century!),
a lot of Americans in the last moment in the voting booth are going to
find it very hard too choose the name Bush.
The GOP 'paid selection' nominating process should be a spectacle
of political sport, not, yet again, in the interest of the democracy.
1
That's an absurd, unsupportable reduction.
The man may run for president. Don't you want to know everything there is to know about him? If he gets elected, the lament will be we didn't know more about him.
3
I'll bet she's wary. Look how exposed her materialism and lies would be.
62
You've got to be kidding...compared to Hillary's obvious greed ?!?
1
@ really biased - Why is it that Hillary is called greedy but Romney is called successful?
1
DR - maybe it has to do with the fact that Romney gave away the money inherited from his family, then made his own fortune, while Hillary made her money by trading on her husband's political fame
The ambivalence is understandable, somewhat akin to that of the Kay Adams Corleone character, Michael's wife, in "The Godfather" movies. Maybe she should channel Diane Keaton.
27
Very interesting comparison. I can easily imagine a argument similar to the one Kay and Michael had in which he informs her to never ask about his business again. If Laura Bush was a rather shy and private First Lady for the most part, Columba would be eaten up by Washington and the demands of the position. Not fitting in with Tallahassee's permanent culture compared to Washington's would feel like elementary school vs. the "mean girls" of high school..
2
I don't know how this Mrs. Bush can be a practicing Catholic and anti immigration.
29
Practice, practice, practice.........
4
One cannot be a Catholic and believe in the rule of law? Besides no one is against immigration. They are against uncontrolled assaults on a country's borders though.
1
I don't understand. The article says she and her husband support immigration reform. Are Catholics not supposed to support the law of the land? Religious belief shouldn't be a basis for disregarding legal statutes.
What does Bernie Sanders' spouse think about his possible candidacy?
64
Same thing my wife thinks about mine: highly unlikely.
As Cousin Eddie from the movie Christmas Vacation would say…The Bush Family…it's the gift that keeps on giving.
27
Isn't that nice how you did a little puff piece about how his wife backs him. Will you now do a piece on how ice is cold?
78
Presumably, they do a piece like this as a condition for getting access and the tougher reporting will come later on. However, lying to customs officials to the tune of $18,500 does not strike me as a small matter, I have to say. In the early part of the article, the reporter's language made it sound as though it was just a fuss about a self-indulgent European shopping spree.
3
She seems like a nice lady. Sounds sensible. With her and their good looking son campaigning in Florida and California Jeb would clean Hillary's clock. Democrats better get someone better than Hillary. She's the Edsel of politicians.
16
and the bushes have nothing to hide?
8
Wow, that's pretty shallow. You'd be willing to hand over the most important job in the country to someone who has a nice wife and a good looking kid?
2
Yes. Good-looking always trumps smart and competent in GOP-world.
Fortunately, not so often in the reality-based universe the rest of us live in.
Fortunately, not so often in the reality-based universe the rest of us live in.
1
If Jeb's name was John Ellis rather than John Ellis Bush, he would be a "Nobody".
And he expects us to vote for him? How about getting "Nobody" to vote for him?
And he expects us to vote for him? How about getting "Nobody" to vote for him?
54
And if Hillary had not been married to Clinton, she would be a nobody as well.
1
I doubt that very much. I don't think Bill would have gotten as far as he did without his wife's ambition propelling him.
4
Both Clinton and Bush have too much baggage that Americans have had it with these two megalomaniac families. I don't want to see either of these families back in the WH again.
58
Agree, but given Clinton and Bush, Clinton is more likely to win. Bush would get the old white men vote and maybe a few minorities but that's not enough to win. Clinton would get women, most young people and most minorities.
1
Yes indeed. My plan is to vote for anyone rather than a Bush or a Clinton, next election. I will write it in, I don't care. I don't expect "my candidate" to win, of course, but I've finally learned that it matters little who wins. Once they are "in" they stop representing the people who put them there and go off on their own agenda, like Obama did and so many others before him.
4
Geesh, Zack, I sure hope we don't somehow end up with both Clinton AND Bush! Either one would be bad enough, but both of them would be a nightmare.
1
The "little brown ones?"
45
Much ado about nothing. Look at picture of George P. He is dark. My (southern) Italian grandmother made a similar remark on seeing video of a family reunion. One of my aunts who married into the family is Swedish and her kids look like her. Grandmother sometimes refers to my cousins as "the blonds" instead saying all four of their names.
It's horrible for a wife of a republican candidate. I saw what was done to John McCain's wife, especially the NYT. They called her a drug addict, etc. Any sane person would never run for the republican nomination. They will never win the White House.
8
Yes, Mamie Eisenhower, Pat Nixon, Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush, and Laura Bush would agree.
Campaigning for president is horrible for the spouses of either party.
1
This is an old Republican trick--accuse your adversaries of saying something they never did. The NYT's never called Cindy McCain a drug addict. If Columba Bush's attempt to evade paying duties on thousands of dollars of French clothing is brought up in the campaign then personal responsibility needs to kick in. Had she not attempted to grossly underestimate the dollar amount on her customs form, it would be a non-issue.
5
Why am I getting a vision of Imelda Marcos?
62
Probably because you are a Democrat and want to dislike her.
Non sense! If you travel to Europe and go shopping, rest assured that $15,000 buys you there what $3,000 buys you here. Prices are astronomical in many cities. Why do you think Europeans come here just to shop?
Understandable, but I think Imelda Marcos was ALOT more intelligent. No intelligence comes across about Mrs. Bush in this article at all.
1
Alas and alack - there is no way any of the other GOP candidates for the Presidency (a thundering herd now) can produce a Latino, Mexican-born spouse, the likes of "Cooloo" Bush, Jeb's sweetheart and the mother of his "little brown ones" (as President #41 GHW Bush called Jeb's and Columba's first two children). If a Latino First Lady doesn't ring the bell for the voters in 2016 (and who else could get that nomination anyway, notwithstanding Jeb being the 3rd Bush to run for the White House), no other candidate's wife has a chance at the FLOTUS gold ring. It is just a question of a decade or so before John Ellis and Columba Bush's son, George Prescott Bush, runs for Governor of Texas or VP of the US. This Mrs. Bush is a nice and private woman who has battled demons and accommodated herself to life in the Bush Family. One wonders if she really wants to be the first Latino First Lady of the United States of America?
10
Wow! Wife supports husband in bid for office. What an amazing scoop! This changes the entire landscape for the 2016 presidential run.
52
She couldn't be more of a liability than Michelle Obama was for Barack.
6
How precisely was Mrs. Obama a liability. She seems to me to have been an incredible asset and an excellent mother and first lady.
12
@Amy: "She couldn't be more of a liability than Michelle Obama...." Are you kidding me? Michelle is one of the best FLOTUS's ever. She's a great first lady, a great mother and wife. You have no facts to back up a claim that she is a liability for her husband.
8
A liability? A bright, educated woman with a good career, genuine warmth and great public speaking skills. Right, there's nothing worse than that kind of spouse.
5
This article is about Columba Bush not Jeb, however, the usual suspects are here spewing the usual anit-Bush swill. It's so refreshing and original.
9
Just getting started...
3
I am not worried about Columba Bush, but I am very worried what her husband would do if, heaven forbid, he were elected President in 2016.
NYT: Check out and give us some investigative reporting on Jeb Bush's crony capitalism dealings while in office, and what he did to public education while FL governor as he not only aided charter schools but made it possible for FL to have for-profit charter schools.
Do a pressing Interview with him and ask him how he would handle the Terri Schiavo case today, and since he made FL the first state to institute stand your ground gun laws, how he would handle gun safety in the US in general and in urban areas in particular. Press him on how he would actually try to deal with climate change, and if he doesn't like the ACA (a.k.a. Obamacare, which was really a Heritage Foundation plan), what would he replace the ACA with? Ask him what he believes the role of the public sector is in this country, and if he supports Paul Ryan's Ayn Randian "economics" and the plans of those in his party to do away with Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.
NYT: Check out and give us some investigative reporting on Jeb Bush's crony capitalism dealings while in office, and what he did to public education while FL governor as he not only aided charter schools but made it possible for FL to have for-profit charter schools.
Do a pressing Interview with him and ask him how he would handle the Terri Schiavo case today, and since he made FL the first state to institute stand your ground gun laws, how he would handle gun safety in the US in general and in urban areas in particular. Press him on how he would actually try to deal with climate change, and if he doesn't like the ACA (a.k.a. Obamacare, which was really a Heritage Foundation plan), what would he replace the ACA with? Ask him what he believes the role of the public sector is in this country, and if he supports Paul Ryan's Ayn Randian "economics" and the plans of those in his party to do away with Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.
258
Yes! We would again have a President who believes in the rule of law and the restrictions placed on his office by the Constitution. How unique!
1
And his connection and support for Fracking as being reported in today's Miami Herald.
5
Yes, NYT, PLESAE, PLEASE, PLEASE give us more substantive reporting!!!! I want to know more about ALL the prospective candidates, not just about the entitled, underachieving Bushes of this pilitical world!!
3
Let's tell the truth. She's in a horrible moral dilemma. She obviously loves her husband and may not have known exactly what kind of family she was getting into when she was 17.
If Mrs. JebBush is a professed Catholic, how does she feel about her brother-in law's sadistic criminal torture program?
How does she feel about all the warmongering, war profiteering that has been perpetrated by generations of the Bush family starting with Prescott Bush, Jeb's grandfather?
If Mrs. JebBush is a professed Catholic, how does she feel about her brother-in law's sadistic criminal torture program?
How does she feel about all the warmongering, war profiteering that has been perpetrated by generations of the Bush family starting with Prescott Bush, Jeb's grandfather?
125
@Einstein, the Catholic church is hardly the moral high ground when it comes to just about everything. But I take your point.
5
Who cares what she thinks? She's not running.
2
It strikes me that, under different circumstances, Columba Bush would be a natural Democrat! She seems to have little in common with either Jeb's politics or the Republican brand in general. What a dilemma for the Bush image!
4
Haven't they (the bush family) done enough harm to the US?
214
Mike Luckovich nailed it in his cartoon with Jeb on TV saying "Despite Iraq and the economic collapse, the Bush brand's primed for a comeback…" and a woman watching this on her sofa saying "...like the measles..."
7
'Parently not.
I guess not. He's taking the same bunch that brought us mideast war one and two as his advisers. That tells me all I need to know about him claiming to be his own man. Not!
2
Judge someone for not being entirely honest with her husband regarding howmuch she spent on a shopping spree? I suspect that would result in judging at least half the married women in these great United States, and not judging them nicely, if these comments are any indication.
24
She lied on a customs voucher. That is a violation of the law. No excuse acceptable.
Oh, and she was evidently as comfortable with the prospect of lying to her husband as she was in falsifying a legal document. Sounds just right for
an ideal prospective FIrst Lady.
Oh, and she was evidently as comfortable with the prospect of lying to her husband as she was in falsifying a legal document. Sounds just right for
an ideal prospective FIrst Lady.
12
It is a criminal offense to lie on declaration forms. The question is why wasn't she charged? Bush spank.
12
Excuse me? She lied to Customs Officials. That is a crime!
12
Mrs. Bush has plenty of reason to be worried. Look no further than the smear campaign and ugliness of the GOP and right wing media toward our current First Lady.
116
Right on- any target of opportunity! Here's hoping we will leverage their playbook to deny them power. Won't happen though- that's the fundamental difference between us and them. Republicans lost their soul a long time ago.
1
If Bush and Clinton end up running against each other, it would be interesting to see who Clinton chooses as a VP. Julian Castro would be my choice.
21
That would be a game-changer, Bernadette & Fidel all in the family (But what's in a name). Jeb the hubby of the daughter of the 'illegal', the mother of a crack addict hardly trumps the Bush family Botch. In that case we definitely should run Warren. Peace, justice & the rule of law may stand a chance. Just leave out the Hillary part please, nobody who voted yes on Iraq gets to be president.
3
Nah, Raul or Fidel.
Right....and Jeb can pander by picking Marco Rubio, the paper-thin Florida poster child for brainless politics........
3
Interesting. Not Jeb but Columba....and what was the path and backstory that brought them together
5
Pretty straightforward case of wanderlust on Jeb's part, and attraction to a foreign guest of her native country on Columba's part.
5
One very religious, the other very conservative. That sounds like similarity in values. There is more than that to any marriage, but people should keep their opinion to themselves.
3
Well this is the sweetest story! A fake pause to reflect and weigh the alternatives before agreeing to what she has always wanted. The Bush family has lived in their deluded paradise so long that they believe ordinary Americans will buy into the fiction.
We've now arrived at a point where voters would be better off auctioning policy decisions to the highest bidders. We could pay an auction house a modest commission and dispense with public-servants-on-the-make and the billion-dollar campaigns required by the current method of dispensing taxpayer dollars.
We've now arrived at a point where voters would be better off auctioning policy decisions to the highest bidders. We could pay an auction house a modest commission and dispense with public-servants-on-the-make and the billion-dollar campaigns required by the current method of dispensing taxpayer dollars.
46
I am neither a Bush supporter nor a republican but I believe you are wrong about Columbia Bush..She has never craved or wanted the political spotlight and always seemed to most to be ambivalent regarding her place in her husbands political endeavors..If she has come to a place where she believes she can cope with his potential candidacy, I think she has come to this very recently..
2
Even if he were a truly viable candidate, without 110% support from his wife, he's dead in the water. Howard Dean's wife had no interest in being a full time First Lady, and that right there made him less than credible. It's a family business, not just the husband's (and maybe someday the wife's).
29
Wife of a powerful politician has been equally powerful throughout the world. She believes she has equal power as that of her husband. But here we have a lady, Mrs.Bush, who wish to remain herself and lead a simple and humble life. Kudos to you Madam, for your belief that you first a human being and then, wife of a politician.
24
Goes on regular shopping spree trips to Europe. Rarely cooks. Hmm. Some simple and humble life it be.
12
I wouldn't call a $19,000 European shopping spree a characteristic of "a simple and humble life."
14
She is a good republican who believes only little people pay import duty's. I mean, it's only $19,000.
4
Jeb apparently loves the idea of being president more than he values his wife. She obviously is not entirely on board, if at all. Yet he forges ahead, despite the fact that her life will be upended, whether he wins or loses. Republican "family values."
94
Shouldn't Hillary be more than just pleased to be a loving grandmother?
1
leo l. Castillo - Would you say that about a man who is a grandfather?
1
Jeb,
Do your wife and the nation a favor: DON'T RUN.
As an American, I am depressed that 2016 is destined to be a low turnout election because people will be given the choice between two dynastic evils.
As a student of history, I always had trouble understanding why most civilizations that had anything resembling a representative form of government ended up as empires/kingdoms with succession based on blood not election.
The way the 2016 is shaping and the fact that George P Bush and Chelsea Clinton are flirting with politics gives an insight how the US could abolish the mechanism of election of president to hand it to a couple of families. The Bushes are destined to become America's Windsor while the Clintons will become America's Bourbons. It doesn't look pretty for the future of the country.
Do your wife and the nation a favor: DON'T RUN.
As an American, I am depressed that 2016 is destined to be a low turnout election because people will be given the choice between two dynastic evils.
As a student of history, I always had trouble understanding why most civilizations that had anything resembling a representative form of government ended up as empires/kingdoms with succession based on blood not election.
The way the 2016 is shaping and the fact that George P Bush and Chelsea Clinton are flirting with politics gives an insight how the US could abolish the mechanism of election of president to hand it to a couple of families. The Bushes are destined to become America's Windsor while the Clintons will become America's Bourbons. It doesn't look pretty for the future of the country.
32
Because the power of the people, when given to representatives, can be bought and sold, through the representatives. I suggest that representative government is, as Rousseau (not my favorite person, by the way) representative aristocracy.
9
A prime reason for repeal of the 17th Amendment.Before it we had a Senate that represented the states and didn't have to spend time selling itself like the House of Representatives.
Hopefully, this lady can talk her husband out of this foolhardy escapade. As if we've forgotten the last Bush. Enough.
107
Wouldn't it be amazing to have a real family, with real problems. in the White House. Immediately brings to mind the complexity of the life of Mr. Lincoln.
8
Wouldn't that be great, substance abuse and fraud. Just what we want the free leader of the world distracted by.
79
Hpw can you explain Hillary's money without mentioning the same?
1
Even the nuance of comparing him to Lincoln is a gross slur on that great man.
11
So if it comes down the ethics of Mrs. Bush or Mr. Clinton, I will take Mrs. Bush any day of the week.
18
You mean, a family with no compunction about stealing elections? That's what you call ethical?
13
In what possible situation would it come down to that? And for all of Mr. Clinton's personal failings, let's not forget how much of a better place this country was at the time he left office.
8
An informative and even-handed profile, thank you.
On balance, I think Columba Bush will help make Jeb a formidable candidate in 2016, adding elements to his appeal that otherwise would have been lacking.
That's neither an endorsement nor indication I'm happy about it.
On the contrary, I would prefer Jeb Bush to be cast in the same vein as his brother—it's just that the Democrats had better beware of how election demographics shift with Jeb Bush's image softened, and with the Republican Party made more palatable to broader groups of voters, deservedly or not.
Put differently, I shudder at what is in store for our country if another he-can't-be-that-bad Bush is elected, even one who has shown moments of genuine compassion on certain immigration issues, particularly involving children. Columba Bush may very well be a key part of this coming about.
@ricfouad
On balance, I think Columba Bush will help make Jeb a formidable candidate in 2016, adding elements to his appeal that otherwise would have been lacking.
That's neither an endorsement nor indication I'm happy about it.
On the contrary, I would prefer Jeb Bush to be cast in the same vein as his brother—it's just that the Democrats had better beware of how election demographics shift with Jeb Bush's image softened, and with the Republican Party made more palatable to broader groups of voters, deservedly or not.
Put differently, I shudder at what is in store for our country if another he-can't-be-that-bad Bush is elected, even one who has shown moments of genuine compassion on certain immigration issues, particularly involving children. Columba Bush may very well be a key part of this coming about.
@ricfouad
12
If you believe rigging a presidential election and interfering in family decisions like the schiavos, then he is your man.
16
It should be pretty clear that spouses/partners mutually influence and shape each other over the course of a relationship. In most open and sound relationships, what a partner thinks is important in the decision making process; and what a partner does is a good indication of what is tolerated in the relationship.
I would be suspicious of a pretense at a relationship where the partner doesn't matter to the citizen's who are electing a key person who will influence not only America's future, but the world's. A weak partner, or a weak relationship do not bode well.
For the record, another Bush would be a disaster -- especially this arrogant and self-centered one.
I would be suspicious of a pretense at a relationship where the partner doesn't matter to the citizen's who are electing a key person who will influence not only America's future, but the world's. A weak partner, or a weak relationship do not bode well.
For the record, another Bush would be a disaster -- especially this arrogant and self-centered one.
88
Jeb Bush strikes me as somebody who is detached from life in the United States and frankly not all that interested in the country at large. His political ambitions appear driven by a very unhealthy "older brother" complex rooted in the belief that his trajectory to the White House was thrown off course by George's victory in the Texas governor's election of 1994 while Jeb lost in Florida that year in his first bid to become governor. With re-election as Texas governor in 1998, George W. effectively set himself up as the GOP's presidential nominee in 2000 (just as Clinton's scandal-plagued second term was ending), and the rest is history.
The Bush family has reportedly purchased huge tracts of aquifer-rich land in Paraguay that sit on some of the largest underground water reserves in the world. This is par for the course among hyper-elites who are preparing for the so-called "water wars" of this century. It sounds to me like Jeb and Columba Bush would be happier and more comfortable just leaving America altogether and moving to Paraguay, where they can speak Spanish to each other everyday and everywhere and not feel out of place.
The Bush family has reportedly purchased huge tracts of aquifer-rich land in Paraguay that sit on some of the largest underground water reserves in the world. This is par for the course among hyper-elites who are preparing for the so-called "water wars" of this century. It sounds to me like Jeb and Columba Bush would be happier and more comfortable just leaving America altogether and moving to Paraguay, where they can speak Spanish to each other everyday and everywhere and not feel out of place.
70
I too own land, on a lake, with a aquifer, very clean water, and lots of it. And if that time ever comes that water is so scarce, and that this aquifer percolating underneath this land that I own becomes so valuable, and needed by others, well, I think perhaps my situation as a landowner would become almost moot. And if this is true that the Bush family owning huge tracts of "aquifer-rich land", well, they will need a private army to protect that land, and themselves. Which of course would be a war that they would be defeated by the native peoples, very quickly.
1
She married Jeb in 1974 but did not become a citizen until 1988.
Can't wait to here how Rudy feels about her love of America.
Can't wait to here how Rudy feels about her love of America.
322
I can't think of anything worse than another Bush in the White House. So Columba is totally irrelevant.
169
Another Clinton.
This country fought a revolution to end dynastic rule. I'd like to see new blood put forth by both parties.
This country fought a revolution to end dynastic rule. I'd like to see new blood put forth by both parties.
6
After what his brother did to the country how could anyone vote for a Bush. The war he started by invading another country is still going on.
161
So JEB is George? They are so alike that electing one is like releecting the other? I have three brothers and we're no where near alike and I doubt the Bush boys are either. Off the op of your head can you name the other brother and what he does for a living?
NYHuguenot - You really should trying reading the news. Look at Jeb's advisors and his track record in office.
2
gee Nicole was charged with a felony and served stints in jail for crack cocaine? A pity all the young black males and females who were charged are still languishing in jail. Her daddy was not even sympathetic to imprisoned drug users as he sought to sign a bill refusing to implement rehabilitation programs in the prison system. Ironically on the day he was supposed to sign that bill his daughter was once again caught peddling forged prescriptions for narcotic pills. She was sent to a high class, swanky and expensive drug rehab while others languished in prison.
Yeah I know life isn't fair, but I thought the law was supposed to apply equally to everyone. Well I was naïve enough to believe that once!!
Yeah I know life isn't fair, but I thought the law was supposed to apply equally to everyone. Well I was naïve enough to believe that once!!
124
This is spot on. Bush has the patina of a moderate, tolerant Republican because he clearly married down with Columba (you KNOW his family wondered what on earth he was doing when he brought her home). But, his record on social issues other than immigration (guess he can't take the tea party tack based on his wife's and her family's immigration history) is anything but compassionate or consistent with principles if fairness, equity or social uplift for all.
46
And while his family is a mess, he has the nerve to judge gay families. Are gay people even allowed to adopt children in Florida yet? Jeb should pick Anita Bryant as his running mate. Now that would be a fine American duo.
Jeb is your typical Republican hypocrite.
Jeb is your typical Republican hypocrite.
34
I never liked or disliked senior Mr Bush President. I was so offended as I heard and saw President Bush refer to Mrs Columba Bush and her children as the brown ones for their sake. I was aghast. I am glad this story brings that up. This darn term is inappropriate for anyone anyone whether of Hispanic descent or one of the proud indian races or white Hispanics or other. I wish the First President Bush and I wish him well and his wife will offer them an apology a public apology while they can.
15
If it ends up to be Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush as their party's' nominees then, as always, the spouses will be in the spotlight, like it or not.
Bill Clinton, if used correctly, can be an extremely effective campaigner. Reading this article, Mrs. Bush has neither the stomach for it or the political acumen. As every vote counts, clear advantage Ms. Clinton.
Bill Clinton, if used correctly, can be an extremely effective campaigner. Reading this article, Mrs. Bush has neither the stomach for it or the political acumen. As every vote counts, clear advantage Ms. Clinton.
27
There are many voters who do not want a "co-president".
11
Sorry, but you are wrong, totally. When Univision interviews Columba and the Latinos hear her Latino accent, Hillary will loose.
@Joe: "an extremely effective campaigner" and a "co-president" are two completely different entities. Check terms.
1
This family is a colossal mess including a complex, insecure wife and drug additicted children of complex mixed heritage and religion. Jeb is likewise a jumbled mess of complex cross-cultural marriage commingled with a shifting religion aggravated by screwed up children with lengthly drug and criminal records. He is better off staying home hoping that his wife will not fly off into outer space on another shopping spree and worse, ultimately, hate her husband for running to become the leader of the free world. His family would be eaten alive by the process and he will show his disregard by moving ahead with this thoughtless idea. The daughter is a bonified case of drug addiction, wired tight and fragile. Maybe he might replay the indignities of the Obama family and accusations of being a Muslim born elsewhere tied to a hate filled minister in a thicket and neighborhood of communists. How many times must his daughter's drugged mug shots be displayed before his unqualified campaign bites the dust. Maybe Jeb and his wife do not watch Fox News or hang out with the conservative base in Alabama and Georgia. My God, Mayor Rudy just accused President Obama of not loving America and Jeb wants to be President with an uncontrolled messed up family.
38
No attacks will transpire because Democrats are not mean campaigners. You'll never see a D politician attack another politician for their race or for family problems.
If Jeb were a Democrat, then, yes, his family would be put through the Republican stump grinder.
If Jeb were a Democrat, then, yes, his family would be put through the Republican stump grinder.
14
What does "mixed heritage" have to do with anything?
7
terry: If you are "horrified" at the (relatively calm and even handed, even boring) Bush family, how can you even begin to look at the Kennedys? (Kids, born on both sides of the sheets/ none of them work, but live off the family trust / murders / suicides / drug usage / cheating / and they brag about one mayor, one ambassador, one president, and two senators.
The Bush family has a senator, two presidents, a representative, a vice president, two governors, numerous ambassadors, head of the RNC, head of the CIA, and they are just getting started.
Not to mention that "old Joe" brought his mistress to live in his home and dine at the family dinner table with Rose as her hostess. Then there is the Marilyn Monroe aspect. The cheesiness of Peter Lawford, and Frank Sinatra. Have you checked to see what Caroline is up to?
The Bush family has a senator, two presidents, a representative, a vice president, two governors, numerous ambassadors, head of the RNC, head of the CIA, and they are just getting started.
Not to mention that "old Joe" brought his mistress to live in his home and dine at the family dinner table with Rose as her hostess. Then there is the Marilyn Monroe aspect. The cheesiness of Peter Lawford, and Frank Sinatra. Have you checked to see what Caroline is up to?
3
Having not fully examined every case, I would venture that very few men who have become American presidents would have been able to do so without the full moral, emotional and philosophical support of their wives. Bill Clinton, as one fairly recent example, gathered strength and wisdom from his wife the way a thirsty camel does from a desert oasis. Overall, there simply is no match for having someone you deeply trust whose judgment you have come to know over many years and being able to consult with that person in times good and bad.
Michele Obama was said to have opposed her husband's run prior to his announcement. In forcing him to seek her support and, even, permission, it seems to me she made a short leash for him, one which she doesn't hesitate to yank when the occasion arises. Mr. Obama has even made public reference to answering to his wife on some issues. It also seemed selfish to me that she would try to restrict such a talented man, but then relationships between couples are based on the internal dynamics, not necessarily the ambitions of either party.
From this story, it seems Jeb Bush is starting out in terms of his family relations in an unfortunate position. Obviously, he and she believe she can rise to the occasion, but picking a spouse is probably the single most important decision a future president can make. Most who have their eyes on that prize at a young age make the pick with complimentary features and skills in mind.
http://terryreport.com
Michele Obama was said to have opposed her husband's run prior to his announcement. In forcing him to seek her support and, even, permission, it seems to me she made a short leash for him, one which she doesn't hesitate to yank when the occasion arises. Mr. Obama has even made public reference to answering to his wife on some issues. It also seemed selfish to me that she would try to restrict such a talented man, but then relationships between couples are based on the internal dynamics, not necessarily the ambitions of either party.
From this story, it seems Jeb Bush is starting out in terms of his family relations in an unfortunate position. Obviously, he and she believe she can rise to the occasion, but picking a spouse is probably the single most important decision a future president can make. Most who have their eyes on that prize at a young age make the pick with complimentary features and skills in mind.
http://terryreport.com
3
He probably did make the best choice.
It shows courage to follow his heart in love.
It shows courage to follow his heart in love.
10
Republicans skewer Michelle Obama regularly. I wonder what they will say or think about the prospect of Columba Bush as First Lady, given that she is of Mexican origin, her father entered the country illegally, she was probably illegal at some point herself, her lack of education, the drug problems of her daughter Noelle (crack and prescription drugs) and the foreign shopping/customs fiasco. Can you imagine the field day that Republican politicians, media and citizenry would have had if this comprised Michelle Obama's resume? Yet, Jeb is right in the hunt for 2016. And folks have the audacity to say that racism is dead and the playing field is even in our beloved country?
146
Republicans will do and say anything to destroy a competitor's reputation regardless of color. Democrats take the higher road for sure.
35
Not true. All politicians on both sides are despicable. All for sale.
5
You must not read The Salon and other Leftist media. Let's not forget all the things said about Ronald Reagan and George H Bush that were not factual and just plain mean for meaness's sake.
Jeb's wife is going to be one very unhappy woman during the course of a campaign and more unhappy in the unlikely event he's elected president.
I don't think there's any way to sugar coat this.
I don't think there's any way to sugar coat this.
58
This is going to be interesting. A major GOP candidate with a Mexican immigrant wife moving in a milieu in which "nativist, prejudiced, vicious, and disgusting" are not too strong to describe the standard GOP approach to immigrants. Yes, it will be very interesting indeed, especially during her campaign appearances in the Confederacy.
103
I feel that this person is ill-suited to a presidential campaign. And if she's afraid of telling her husband how much she bought in Europe....what does that say about him?
Bill Clinton will have fun as First Spouse (probably too much fun, which could be a problem). Columba? Not so much. It will be a struggle for her. Jeb and his destiny should go in some other direction and spare us all the trauma of another Bush in the White House.
Bill Clinton will have fun as First Spouse (probably too much fun, which could be a problem). Columba? Not so much. It will be a struggle for her. Jeb and his destiny should go in some other direction and spare us all the trauma of another Bush in the White House.
75
and what, more importantly does it say about her.,
14
I'm fairly certain Bill won't be happy with all the extra scrutiny over who he hangs out with and where he goes. When was the last time you saw him and Hilary together? I expect he will spend more time out of the White House than there.
$19,000 shopping spree? How many people live on less than that a year? And that's the spree we know about. That would put a lot of food on the table for a lot of hungry kids.
3
She seems as if she would be a better candidate than him. At least she would have have some familiarity with middle class issues by virtue of her background.
What she has been doing with the likes of him is anybody's guess. What he has been doing with her is truly mysterious. Is his long range vision that good that he could predict she might come in handy one day in his political career? I doubt he has any vision politically whatsoever.
Like his brother before him, They will find some clowns to direct him in their quest to break the middle class. Hang on to your ss checks for now.
What she has been doing with the likes of him is anybody's guess. What he has been doing with her is truly mysterious. Is his long range vision that good that he could predict she might come in handy one day in his political career? I doubt he has any vision politically whatsoever.
Like his brother before him, They will find some clowns to direct him in their quest to break the middle class. Hang on to your ss checks for now.
43
...and steal another election...because the Rs are not able to legitimately win a national political race.
17
She forgot that long ago, she's as entitled as they come now. She just doesn't want her laundry aired in public where a defense would have to be mounted.
Jeb just wants to validate he's smarter than George.
Jeb just wants to validate he's smarter than George.
2
If Jeb is a typical Republican, Columba has no say in the matter and knows her place. At least that is the way it works for politicians out here in the heartland.
44
Examples please? Don't speak for the entire midwest,
1
All of my Republican senators and representatives from my district to the state legislature stick to this model (no, I don't live in Iowa). I can't recall hearing anything from or even seeing their spouses other than the obligatory backdrop when they win the election.
2
Cheri Daniels refused to let Mitch run for the presidency.
Mrs. Bush sounds like a nice lady, but spending her time in Tallahassee "trying to prevent drug abuse" while her daughter was becoming an addict doesn't sound like a winning story. Neither is the part about watching Mexican soap operas while her husband made dinner.
134
I guess I'll have to tell the wife she can't watch her race today and make her cook dinner instead. Do I have to re-chain her to the kitchen sink?
Jeb made dinner... how frequently?
It would be a welcome change for a candidate to run without dragging the family into it. Let her be herself, let him stand on his own.
8
She seems very likeable. Why must we drag her into the spotlight when the country could use spolight on more needy issues and people. Or did I miss it, and our country is run by dynastic royalty whose royal virtue must be forever paraded in front of us?
11
$19,000 she spent on clothes and jewelry? And she lied? And she's going to live in The White House? And I'm going to pay for it?
As Melville's Bartleby said, "I would prefer not to."
As Melville's Bartleby said, "I would prefer not to."
100
Would you prefer to pay for Hillary Clinton's opulent spending habits?
10
I would love to see all future families in White House have a budget for all their travel, and having a slice of humble pie once in awhile. But no, tired of the Bush family, will not support them ever again.
22
RGV - I'm no Hillary fan but I'll point out that she earns her own money. Something Republicans are supposedly in favor of.
21
I don't blame her for being wary. My favorite non-candidate for a while has been Mitch Daniels, but, apparently (at least it was so reported) his wife and daughters did not want to deal with the insanity of the campaign. I can't blame anyone for feeling that way. If she wants to protect her family, she will need a thick skin and to stay out of policy and governing, while getting good at smiling and waving to the public.
5
Daniels and his wife divorced for several years in one of the nastiest divorces in Indiana history. None wanted that sordid story to be rehashed.
Columba truly sounds like an outsider in Bush world. Probably the one Bush who is truly worth knowing.
20
We've had enough of Bush and Clinton families. It's past time for them to fade away. We need new blood!
51
Like, er, Christie, de Blasio, Ian Watanabe?
3
I agree with others that she seems to be a good person, but do we really need "dynasties" in American politics? It might be Bush vs Clinton in 2016 and despite the good qualities of both individuals, I do not look forward to a dynasty vs dynasty campaign :-( Of course, the political "conventional wisdom" does not have all that good a track record in terms of predictions.
14
Why are Americans so obsessed with the spouse of (given our history, usually the wife of) a political candidate? What do we seek there? I'm sure that it's possible to discern something about a candidate's character by looking at the spouse (in a long-term marriage, anyway), but that doesn't account for all the personal interest. I definitely would not vote for anyone who is a serial monogamist--someone marrying, say, four times. I was divorced once, and anyone who would go through that repeatedly is not sufficiently stable to be a political leader. But that's quite different from harboring a specific interest in the spouse.
Why do we insist on getting a couple rather than the candidate? We've lost very good candidates in the past because the spouse couldn't cope. Why do we have all these expectations? Were I married to a man with political aspirations, I'd say fine and dandy, but I wouldn't feel as though I had to be involved. In fact, I would deeply resent any involvement. Why is this "elect a candidate but get a couple" such an American thing? This seems to say more about Americans than about our candidates--or their spouses.
Why do we insist on getting a couple rather than the candidate? We've lost very good candidates in the past because the spouse couldn't cope. Why do we have all these expectations? Were I married to a man with political aspirations, I'd say fine and dandy, but I wouldn't feel as though I had to be involved. In fact, I would deeply resent any involvement. Why is this "elect a candidate but get a couple" such an American thing? This seems to say more about Americans than about our candidates--or their spouses.
23
Michelle , need we say more?
1
Please. As if Nancy Reagan wasn't very influential on the inside. Former Treasury Secretary Donald Regan was fired largely because of her opposition to him. People in the Reagan White House knew she was a force and was able to touch him as no one else could. Even their son commented "there were two houses, ours and theirs". Do your homework and remember your history before you issue cheap and unwarranted shots at Michelle Obama...
6
If you ever decide to research your family history, run for public office. The press will do the research for you w/out any dent to your wallet.
Not to worry Mrs Bush, that father will be found by someone and they'll stick a microphone in his mouth for a comment.
I actually like what I've read about Mrs Jeb Bush but I surely won't be voting for her husband.
Not to worry Mrs Bush, that father will be found by someone and they'll stick a microphone in his mouth for a comment.
I actually like what I've read about Mrs Jeb Bush but I surely won't be voting for her husband.
27
She's too right-wing Catholic for my tastes. Though she appears warm and compassionate -- and I feel compassion for her having to live amongst the Bush-wacks -- I doubt she is tolerant of or has compassion for all.
19
It's clear that a third Bush presidency (which I devoutly hope will NOT happen) will be a solo act. Mrs. Bush seems like a nice, traditional woman but her limitations are clear. She will not be an asset to the campaign in any sense other than symbolic, as a token of her husband's supposed tolerance and connection to Hispanic voters. I feel sorry for her -- she grew up in an abusive home and is not an equal partner in her own marriage, even though it appears to be a loving one. She has subordinated her entire life to Jeb Bush's ambitions since she was a teenager and is completely dependent on him for her identity as well as her support. No wonder she was afraid of his anger when she went on the Paris shopping spree.
49
This is neither intended as a negative or a plus in regard to your comment, but President Kennedy also had problems with the shopping habits of his wife, Jackie. He was often known to complain that she was going to bankrupt him. She was well known to spend tens of thousands of dollars shopping in New York and then to go back in a few weeks to do it again. Of course, one wonders whether she knew about his extramarital habits and considered big spending a just recompense for putting up with it all.
From what I have heard, rich husbands and wives often have such problems. Many wealthy people, having been raised around piles of money, don't like to spend it. There seems to be some sort of primal fear built in of running out or perhaps they just pick up the habits and mindset of their fathers.
From what I have heard, rich husbands and wives often have such problems. Many wealthy people, having been raised around piles of money, don't like to spend it. There seems to be some sort of primal fear built in of running out or perhaps they just pick up the habits and mindset of their fathers.
15
Jackie Kennedy Onassis was from a wealthy family -- the Bouviers.
5
Jacqueline Kennedy was an enormously popular First Lady and was an immense help to John Kennedy politically.
The money she spent was hers, it was not taken from anyone.
And, Mrs. Kennedy did not try to slip her overseas purchases through Customs without paying proper duty on them.
Big difference.
I think it was the Bush advisors' recommend cover story that she was afraid to have her husband know what she had spent. I think it is much more likely she just thought that as the wife of the Florida Governor, it wouldn't be a major problem for her -- and it wasn't.
She did not pay a heavy penalty for lying to the Customs official, just a little extra fine.
She lied to Federal Customs officials, twice. That is serious.
Different rules for the Bushes than for the rest of us, I guess.
The money she spent was hers, it was not taken from anyone.
And, Mrs. Kennedy did not try to slip her overseas purchases through Customs without paying proper duty on them.
Big difference.
I think it was the Bush advisors' recommend cover story that she was afraid to have her husband know what she had spent. I think it is much more likely she just thought that as the wife of the Florida Governor, it wouldn't be a major problem for her -- and it wasn't.
She did not pay a heavy penalty for lying to the Customs official, just a little extra fine.
She lied to Federal Customs officials, twice. That is serious.
Different rules for the Bushes than for the rest of us, I guess.
8
I live in FL. I didn't vote for his daddy, or his brother, and after 8 years of Jeb as governor, I won't be voting for him either. Many people here remain appalled at his behavior regarding Terry Schiavo. He even pursued domestic abuse charges against Terry's husband after she had died. He's heartless on so many issues, as Repubs tend to be.
359
I second that and in addition would like to add how he ruined the education system in Florida. I will never get over the Terry Schiavo
affair and wonder why he thought he was God in behaving in that manner.
The man is no better than any other politicians in his family.
affair and wonder why he thought he was God in behaving in that manner.
The man is no better than any other politicians in his family.
96
The "God" factor runs in his bloodline. Oddly his brother asTexas Guv boasted of the Texas Death Chair Express line that no innocent prisoners had ever been executed on his watch. Duh? God would know!
He also tried to get France's Chirac to sign on to invading Iraq with his Gog and Magog ideas.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/andrewbrown/2009/aug/10/religio...
And Jeb's wife in this article states her husband has a calling. This is similar to a young Hillary saying her husband would be president someday and becoming furious when that person snickered. God works in mysterious ways for the rich and powerful doesn't he?
He also tried to get France's Chirac to sign on to invading Iraq with his Gog and Magog ideas.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/andrewbrown/2009/aug/10/religio...
And Jeb's wife in this article states her husband has a calling. This is similar to a young Hillary saying her husband would be president someday and becoming furious when that person snickered. God works in mysterious ways for the rich and powerful doesn't he?
14
Bill and Hillary are the Bonnie and Clyde of show business. Give me Columba any day.
2
To the poster who claimed that Jeb Bush is without "scandal," in addition to
1) the shenanigans in Florida around the 2000 election of his brother for the presidency,
2) his 2002 approval, as 1 of 3 trustees for the Florida pension funds, of $325 million in Enron stock,
3) his gig consulting in 2007 for Lehman Brothers after it had reputedly sold Florida $800 million in worthless securities, and
4) the Terry Schiavo debacle,
reporter Ryan Grim records yet another,
5) involving Bush's lobbying on behalf of fugitive Miguel Recarey Jr., who allegedly defrauded Medicare to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/20/jeb-bush-miguel-recarey_n_67071...
There are other options, American voters, including among the Republican candidates. Please let's not forget this.
1) the shenanigans in Florida around the 2000 election of his brother for the presidency,
2) his 2002 approval, as 1 of 3 trustees for the Florida pension funds, of $325 million in Enron stock,
3) his gig consulting in 2007 for Lehman Brothers after it had reputedly sold Florida $800 million in worthless securities, and
4) the Terry Schiavo debacle,
reporter Ryan Grim records yet another,
5) involving Bush's lobbying on behalf of fugitive Miguel Recarey Jr., who allegedly defrauded Medicare to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/20/jeb-bush-miguel-recarey_n_67071...
There are other options, American voters, including among the Republican candidates. Please let's not forget this.
118
Jeb Bush's handful of scandals hardly compare to the countless scandals that Hillary and her husband have been involved in.
9
Don't forget Elian Gonzales.
17
That only matters if that's the standard you are setting for your candidate.
1
Columba Bush sounds like a decent person. I'm sorry she is being dragged back into the political mire by her husband, though it sounds like dealing him and his family hasn't been the greatest experience ("little brown ones"--who could ever forget that moment?) either.
Seriously, we've already had two Bushes in the presidency, with disastrous results (far worse the second time, too), so let's not bank on "Third Time's a Charm."
Seriously, we've already had two Bushes in the presidency, with disastrous results (far worse the second time, too), so let's not bank on "Third Time's a Charm."
99
She would be a wonderful, albeit reluctant, First Lady.
The Hispanic/Latino community would understand her reticence, and love her even more.
She would bridge the gap between various groups of our electorate.
I would hail the day she became our First Lady! :-)
The Hispanic/Latino community would understand her reticence, and love her even more.
She would bridge the gap between various groups of our electorate.
I would hail the day she became our First Lady! :-)
15
Hispanics and Latinos from different countries don't trust each other. They are not as united as you might think. She does seem like a nice lady though, but don't count on them coming together. They did not even support Rubio entirely when he was for Amnesty.
13
You mean just like the Latino community was supposed to love George W. because he spoke Spanish? Latino voters can see through window dressing.
6
Yea, but would mean Jeb is President :(
2
There is absolutely no way that Jeb Bush, given his stance on the issue of mass immigration, could win the GOP nomination. The idea that his wife's ethnicity would some win support of Hispanic voters (8 or 9% of the electoriate) is questionable at best. Even if you pick up say 10% of the Hispanic vote, if you lose 2% of the white vote or your base just stays home, you lose even with that Hispanic uptick. It is sad testament to our modern age that voting is becoming little more than an ethnic headcount.
45
This is absolutely right.
4
Fear not, Mrs. Bush, your husband will never be president.
1. His surname is "Bush".
2. He is a big "open borders" guy. And
3. He is a big Common Core crony-capitalist who has invested in businesses that profit off of this phony scheme.
1. His surname is "Bush".
2. He is a big "open borders" guy. And
3. He is a big Common Core crony-capitalist who has invested in businesses that profit off of this phony scheme.
73
Common Core is basically a way to tell kids from non-wealthy families, "If you aren't learning what the best students are learning and at the same rate (like those in prep schools) you are a loser." I can't imagine any other plan that would set back American education faster and more completely than forcing people into this square box and then testing them constantly. Well, there was "No Child Left Behind", which has done its share of damage, too.
The idea of a common set of information, ideas and subjects that all students have the opportunity to encounter is not inherently a bad one. Forcing all types of students to rush through subject matter, whether they have learned it or not, is a very unfortunate concept. It is my prediction that this Bush can never be president as long as he sticks with Common Core, because the revolt against it is being led by the right wingers, those who should form a major part of his support.
http://terryreport.com
The idea of a common set of information, ideas and subjects that all students have the opportunity to encounter is not inherently a bad one. Forcing all types of students to rush through subject matter, whether they have learned it or not, is a very unfortunate concept. It is my prediction that this Bush can never be president as long as he sticks with Common Core, because the revolt against it is being led by the right wingers, those who should form a major part of his support.
http://terryreport.com
3
You can bet that their children aren't being taught that way, which has always been my objections No Child Left Behind and the Common Core. They channel students into lower level thinking and professions where at best they're middle management drones doing what they're told, leaving the products of the elite to more easily occupy upper level colleges and universities where critical thinking and writing are expected in preparation for their leadership roles in the years ahead.
1
Thanks for the input, Columba. We'll take it from here.
In the Terri Schiavo case, Jeb Bush showed us that he is willing to follow his religious beliefs to supersede existing law, violating the rights of a husband who had already suffered for a decade.
In the stolen 2000 election, he showed us that he has no scruples and will do whatever is necessary to obtain power.
I shall not be voting for Jeb Bush.
In the Terri Schiavo case, Jeb Bush showed us that he is willing to follow his religious beliefs to supersede existing law, violating the rights of a husband who had already suffered for a decade.
In the stolen 2000 election, he showed us that he has no scruples and will do whatever is necessary to obtain power.
I shall not be voting for Jeb Bush.
530
You convinced me. I forgot about that.
19
"In the Terri Schiavo case, Jeb Bush showed us that he is willing to follow his religious beliefs to supersede existing law" Three things come to mind, a one man death panel, listening to God instead of the constituents and executive orders. I wonder how Jeb would use them if he became president. On the other hand, look at the alternatives in the Republican party. What a choice.
35
Jeb brings up his conversion to the Catholic Church whenever he wants to impress a Hispanic listener, but in the Schiavo matter he was not following the Church's teachings. Despite what a few fanatics like Priests for Life say, the Church permits the cessation of extraordinary measures to prolong life when there is no hope that the patient will recover. Since Terri Schiavo was so brain-damaged that she could not even eat or drink on her own, Michael Schiavo was totally within his rights to remove her feeding tube.
Jeb's real religious belief is: never miss an opportunity to pander to the evangelicals who form the base of the Republican Party. Just like his brother.
Jeb's real religious belief is: never miss an opportunity to pander to the evangelicals who form the base of the Republican Party. Just like his brother.
12
I doubt Columba Bush can survive a modern-day presidential campaign without considerable damage to her mental health and marriage. I urge Jeb to consider his wife's well-being and immediately drop his bid for president.
82
If I was his wife...I would tell him that it wasn't worth it just to be like his brother & father, that the country wants to go in a different direction than he would take us.
6
She doesn't have to participate in the conventional manner. Her handicap is her strength. She doesn't know how to be phony. Quite refreshing if you ask me.
2
You're missing the point. Today's press and Permanent Washington would eat her and her family alive...
2
This is yet another sign of weakness from the Jeb Bush campaign front. U.S. Presidential politics is still a family affair in 2015. This may change in the future, but for now, Americans want to know who you are married to, or romantic with, and what they are like as a person. If Jeb Bush's wife is still reluctant for him to become President, this is not a good sign for him.
If you doubt what I am saying, look at the hurt Hillary Clinton brought to the first several years of the first Bill Clinton administration with her disastrous, overly-controlling approach to making a national health care program. Then contrast that with how much Michele Clinton has helped out her sometimes aloof, cool husband during his first and second administrations.
I don't have the percentages, but I believe Michele has consistently polled more favorably than President Obama for all of his 6 years. The fact that she is a black fashion maven, sharp, yet understated, and has two lovely daughters, only adds to their favorable family portrait. Heck, I'd vote for Michele to be President. She's that good.
Like it or not, U.S. national politics is a family affair.
28
Rob why are you a racist? Can't Mrs. Obama just be a fashion maven? Why do you have to attach race to it?
7
@Joe; Rob is from South Carolina....it goes with the territory. Still fighting the"War of Northern Aggression!" to say nothing of their reticence at removing the Confederate flag from the State flag!
1
@ upstater
If you'll notice Joe's other posts, he has just played the card for "the enemy of my enemy is my friend." Don't be fooled.
If you'll notice Joe's other posts, he has just played the card for "the enemy of my enemy is my friend." Don't be fooled.
1
I have to say even as a Democrat Columba Bush seems like a very likable person. Spending her time as the first lady of Florida focused on increasing exposure to Latin American culture, domestic violence, and drug addiction, seem really positive to me. Maybe Hillary can appoint her to something when she becomes President!
22
I think we need to count lying to customs officials as a mark against her, but otherwise I agree that this article presents her as a likeable person.
33
I am not really that concern about her customs issue (and maybe I should be, because I would think it would take a lot of guts to lie to an immigration agent), but I am very concerned about her influence on her husband regarding Amnesty. He did stated Amnesty=Love.
Bill Clinton lied under oath.
1
The Jeb and Columba Bush marriage dynamic during this election cycle will be interesting to watch and read. If he wins the nomination, it will be even more interesting since in the late 20th Century and early 21 Century the nominee's wives are also on stage and play a more critical part in the campaign than it appears that Columba wants. And if Jeb Bush wins the election, her life as a private person is over and their children to a lesser extent.
With this in mind and what this article tells me is that Jeb Bush's ambition to be president overrides his sensibilities and duty as a husband. He knows that she is an introvert and doesn't like the full contact sport of politics so why put her through it. If Jeb Bush wins the election, she will have to experience the asymmetric lifestyle of a president's wife along with the at times captious media of the first family.
In the end, Columba Bush married a Bush and she knew that the Bushes are a political family. I for one think that she hoped he would go into business instead of politics. Didn't she discuss her and Jeb's ambitions when they were dating?
With this in mind and what this article tells me is that Jeb Bush's ambition to be president overrides his sensibilities and duty as a husband. He knows that she is an introvert and doesn't like the full contact sport of politics so why put her through it. If Jeb Bush wins the election, she will have to experience the asymmetric lifestyle of a president's wife along with the at times captious media of the first family.
In the end, Columba Bush married a Bush and she knew that the Bushes are a political family. I for one think that she hoped he would go into business instead of politics. Didn't she discuss her and Jeb's ambitions when they were dating?
83
Did Columba and Jeb discuss his ambitions before they married? Whatever their agreements were, hopes are floated. Promises are made. Trajectories are recalculated. Denials run deep. Oaths are broken. Family blood loyalties to a patriarch can thwart even the best laid plans of mice and scions. . .
16
Exactly how old was Columba when she married this man? If she is 61 now and has a 38 year old son, you do the math. Very young. Very vulnerable. I can only imagine how she was greeted by the senior Bushes. The fact that she called her mother-in-law, Mrs. Bush, until recently, gives you an inkling. I wonder if they called her "the brown one".
She has my sympathy and if Jeb cared about her and his children, he would not do this to them.
She has my sympathy and if Jeb cared about her and his children, he would not do this to them.
4
There are 4000 families in this country with buried sons and daughters. They are a product of a war this guy's brother lied us into. Now we are expected to give him another chance. Why? Aren't there any other families in the United States that have members qualified to be president.
1500 characters are not enough to list the many reasons that this family has caused turmoil and destruction to average americans who only want to live in a free society. GDP doubles and NOTHING goes to the people. Please get this guy off your front page. He has done nothing to deserve it.
1500 characters are not enough to list the many reasons that this family has caused turmoil and destruction to average americans who only want to live in a free society. GDP doubles and NOTHING goes to the people. Please get this guy off your front page. He has done nothing to deserve it.
372
Uhm. The corporations control who gets to be president. They have to give us one of 2 choices. They are picking Bush and Clinton this upcoming election. Ill be doing a write in vote. My candidate will not win. But I will feel good. Is not that what it is all about...in this country?
8
Any possible campaign by Jeb Bush will give us an idea of what sort or advisors he is likely to surround himself with. The people a candidate chooses to use as aides and advisors is important. Bush Jr. chose to surround himself with retreads from the Bush Sr. administration, many of whom had personal axes to grind. This did not work out well for America :-(
16
You forgot to mention the thousands of families who are caring for those who were injured in those wars.
33
This woman does not deserve this. She hates politics. John Ellis Bush should stay in business and forget this nonsense.
33
Here we go with the Bush billions filling the media with Bush dynasty stories they believe will be favorable to a continuation of the Bush League misjudgments of the clan. If a Jeb Bush candidacy can be fashioned from drowning us in billions of media publicity, we could have the opportunity to suffer through several more years of wars and favors for Wall Street and the Bush family princes. But unless the Bush's once again can profit from the chad confusion they took advantage of last time with Supreme Court aid, most of us have had enough of the Bushes for all time.
99
Is this the best the Republicans can do, surely there is someone else out there who has a more moral fabric to fall back on. Drug addicted daughter, customs lying wife come on now. Where the hell is Mitt.
37
And the Bushes call Mexicans, "little brown ones." That will win over the Hispanic vote? Plus, the Bushes, with Jeb's help, stole the 2000 election that led to Iraq for which the Bushes and Cheney and Rummy and Condi are responsible for killing countless humans including American soldiers and spending trillions in our treasure. And creating Isis along the way by de-stabilizing the mid-East.
14
Frankly, I don't give a hoot about her; no more Sons of Bushes.
225
We don't need another subpar dynasty, Bush or Clinton. Besides, Jeb has no foreign policy experience whatsoever.
49
It's as if James Buchanan's brother had run for president right after the Civil War promising to clean up the mess Lincoln made.
114
I just can't do it...I can't read any article that considers a Jeb Bush presidency. I refuse to believe we are collectively so stupid we would elect another Bush. Should it happen we the People have either lost our minds or lost our voice.
599
no bushes or clintons-need to amend constitution to bar spouses/brothers/sons-daughters of presidents from holding the office
25
Hillary will have a tough time beating Jeb. He will carry the Hispanic vote Obama so desperately pandered to. And Blacks don't think much of Hillary
1
Memo to Shoshanna: Hillary Clinton will trounce Little Jeb. The Hispanics just have to look at the Republican Congress and the blacks will vote over 90% for Hlllary!
6
Surely the New York Times can resist the temptation to circle the drain that is celebrity-driven politics. Political leadership in our society is a serious business, or should be. Please, New York Times editors, start to focus on the candidates above the shoulders' capacities, and not this ridiculous nonsense.
120
One thing common among all the First Ladies, maybe Mrs. Clinton is an exception, is that none of them wanted to have their families drag into politics, no matter if the candidate is a Democrat or a Republican, and yes, that includes Mrs. Obama as well.
It has to be very hard on the families, and these days the campaign is non-stop and over a long period of time, from the straw polls to the primaries to the funding campaigns to the final election.
It has to be very hard on the families, and these days the campaign is non-stop and over a long period of time, from the straw polls to the primaries to the funding campaigns to the final election.
17
Mrs.Clinton was and is an exception but not in a positive way. Columba Bush would be an asset not only to her husband but to our country, hopefully when Jeb Bush is elected as our next President. It couldn't get better than that.
13
If Jeb wins, there will be at least one positive change in the White House. Born in Mexico, and being exposed to the experience of "being American", the new first lady will certainly hold an appreciation for the greatness of this country.
11
You have a very optimistic view. Judging by the GOP's treatment of Michelle Obama - an American, born in this country, like the President - it is hard to believe that Fox News would permit a naturalized citizen a moment's peace as First Lady. First of all, that organization would force her to make her birth certificate and naturalization papers public, and perhaps her report cards from school too. Then they would ignore these, and claim that they were fake, and insist that she is not an American, and therefore has no place in the White House. They would keep this up for years, and encourage unhappy voters to stand outside local post offices, with photos of her making her look like Hitler, to encourage more hatespeak against, her. Then they would hunt for her relatives, and see if there is more dirt to stir up about them, heaven help us if any of them are illegal aliens. We know that all of this will happen because this is what they did to the Obamas, and NOT to do this would mean that Fox News is racist, so having done it to them, they will have to do it to Columba Bush. She is right to stay out of it, and to insist that no Bush tries again for the White House.
31
It will certainly be an interesting campaign. I can't wait to hear what Rudy Giuliani has to say about this family.
163
We know from experience that the Bush family cares about the rich and the Saudis and nothing else.
88
Plus their questionable ownership, and how they got the oil wells in Bahrain and Saudia!This should strip them of American citizenship. Preet Bharara, what are you waiting for?
5
I can't imagine her being an "outsider" in a family headed by Ms. Bush. Impossible. Now is she a different person of course and that is the point.
5
I would imagine there is quite an ongoing clash between Barbara Bush and Columba Bush, since Barbara is notorious for her caustic remarks and hypercritical appraisals of people other than Bushes. So her remarks about and to Columba must cut the woman to the bone.
The saddest part of what Jeb is doing to his reticient wife is that the racist, nativist Republican base will undoubtedly eat her alive. How do you suppose she feels about all the demands being made to declare the U.S. an English-only country? What about the rants about multilingual signs? Or all the people of color mooching off welfare and gaming the system? Living in the U.S. must be very difficult to what apparently is a very decent, sensitive woman. It's such a shame she is being dragged into this!
The saddest part of what Jeb is doing to his reticient wife is that the racist, nativist Republican base will undoubtedly eat her alive. How do you suppose she feels about all the demands being made to declare the U.S. an English-only country? What about the rants about multilingual signs? Or all the people of color mooching off welfare and gaming the system? Living in the U.S. must be very difficult to what apparently is a very decent, sensitive woman. It's such a shame she is being dragged into this!
24
I know people who have had a personal relationship with Barbara Bush for decades and while she may have a quick wit and says what she thinks, she's truly lovely person and would never be ugly to her son's wife. To say this is appalling and unfair to both of them.
Give the Republicans a little credit. We're really not all horrid racists who are also isolationists. In fact, I don't know ANY who are.
I do think any campaign is hard on a spouse and his/her family. Every single personal aspect of their life is put under the microscope whether or not it has any relevancy to the candidate. But I don't think Jeb Bush would be proceeding if he didn't have his wife's blessing on this. She may end up putting the First Lady back where she belongs, just being the wife of the President.
I do fear for the stability of their troubled daughter.
Give the Republicans a little credit. We're really not all horrid racists who are also isolationists. In fact, I don't know ANY who are.
I do think any campaign is hard on a spouse and his/her family. Every single personal aspect of their life is put under the microscope whether or not it has any relevancy to the candidate. But I don't think Jeb Bush would be proceeding if he didn't have his wife's blessing on this. She may end up putting the First Lady back where she belongs, just being the wife of the President.
I do fear for the stability of their troubled daughter.
5
You may not know any Republicans who are racists, but I know plenty who are.
4
I have yet to hear a reason why this man is running for president other than that he's able to get vast amounts of money from very rich people and have a campaign warchest that intimidates other candidates.
His father and brother did so much damage to the Republican Party, the nation and the world. We all know about his brother but his father was just as bad or worse. The first Gulf War left us bombing Iraq for 25 years now and imposing sanctions that killed half a million Iraqis and left US troops in Saudi Arabia, two of the three reasons Osama bin Laden turned against the west. It was after Bush the Elder that the Republican Party became non-competitive in California; surely theres a link between Bush establishment politics and the loss of political competitiveness in the largest state.
Why is he running? Why are these big donors giving him so much money? The only plausible answer is that they believe he will enrich them with more cheap labor and war profiteering. They are also investing in Hillary Clinton so that the profits are a sure thing.
His father and brother did so much damage to the Republican Party, the nation and the world. We all know about his brother but his father was just as bad or worse. The first Gulf War left us bombing Iraq for 25 years now and imposing sanctions that killed half a million Iraqis and left US troops in Saudi Arabia, two of the three reasons Osama bin Laden turned against the west. It was after Bush the Elder that the Republican Party became non-competitive in California; surely theres a link between Bush establishment politics and the loss of political competitiveness in the largest state.
Why is he running? Why are these big donors giving him so much money? The only plausible answer is that they believe he will enrich them with more cheap labor and war profiteering. They are also investing in Hillary Clinton so that the profits are a sure thing.
183
To Ginger who wonders why Jeb Bush is running and seems mainly to point to his family. There is a long history in this nation of polarizing (GWB), Presidents, Presidents with relatives of dubious character (Billy Carter) and those with mistresses (Clinton, Harding). Fortunately most Americans examine the qualification of the candidates and their chances of winning. Hillary and Jeb are both worthy candidates with experience. In the case of Jeb he was a two term Governor of one of our most populous states and had two successful terms. He has lived outside the country (Venezuela), is married to a woman who was born in Mexico and has traveled widely to the Middle East and Asia. He has no taint of scandal and would be (as it appears now) a formidable candidate (as per David Axelrod on CNN today). All candidates for public office seek the financial backing of wealthy individuals (Soros and Buffett supported Obama for example). He's also not Cruz or Rand Paul.
8
He has no taint of scandal? He had no role in the 2000 Presidential election Florida vote? That dastardly debacle was all someone else's doing?
97
In lived in Florida when Jeb Bush was Governor, and I would hardly characterize Jeb's tenure as successful! In fact, some of the stunts he pulled were positively shameful. No thanks! Not again!
11
Upon reading about Columba's heritage; her independent less than political nature; and the Bush daughter's previous drug problem, the first conditioned thought that popped up in my mind was: "the Republican's, as usual, are going to make hay with these facts." The second thought: "No they aren't, her husband is a Republican."
37
They'll turn these things into a badge of honor, as they did with Sarah Palin and her pregnant unmarried daughter.
12
This is all such a bad idea. I can't believe that the country is sleepwalking into this. This man, Jeb Bush, is the man who disinfranchised black voters as the governor of Florida, handing the presidency to his brother, who did not win the election I believe subsequent counts showed. That man, Bush II, then ignored the advice of the national security holdovers as being "alarmist" Democrats, and so we got 9/11, and then two unfunded wars with a never-ending cost (and never-ending wars), which busted the balanced budget he was handed. And no one cares? No one thinks this is odd that we're even talking about this Bush? No one thinks this Jeb Bush is blameworthy?
The only reason he's getting any play now is because of rich backers. This is the first step in buying yourself a president -- get the public (and the media) comfy with the idea, make it a fait accompli.
There should be no media coverage of potential spouses or presidents.
Let's hear about Bernie Sanders, please.
The only reason he's getting any play now is because of rich backers. This is the first step in buying yourself a president -- get the public (and the media) comfy with the idea, make it a fait accompli.
There should be no media coverage of potential spouses or presidents.
Let's hear about Bernie Sanders, please.
413
Very good point. The American people need to know Senator Sanders' ideas about how to govern. Why give undeserving people with money greater exposure, so that the weak willed, herd mentality vote for them and against their best interest.
I believe that it's a bad idea to have a third Bush in White House, in such a successive sequence. I do not wish to see the formation of a dynasty in America, something that is contrary to our founding principles. Almost all elected presidents in so-called democratic republics have literally tuned their presidency into a hereditary position, which slowly turns into absolute dictatorships. It is not likely to happen in the US at this moment. We should not set the stage for it.
43
yes, a very bad idea to have a third Bush in the White House... are you OK with "seeing the formation of a dynasty" named Clinton ?... if so, why is that different ?... are there no other families in America that can produce Presidents ?
13
Jeb Bush gives a number of Americans a deep sense of dread.
479
That number is large, very large...
16
That one gaff in his so-called foreign policy speech wantonly exaggerating ISIS military complement by a factor of 10 was enough for me. Jeb Bush doesn't have the temperament, class, and as evidenced from this gaff, the intelligence to ever be president. He's not a leader. He's a rank charlatan and a naked opportunist. His mother had it right, we've had enough Bushes.
263
Didn't know much about her -- I wish her the best with the rabid dogs of the right. For all Jeb's efforts, he's in for a mauling from all sides - Common Core, immigration, W, supply side, voter suppression in Florida in 2000 and more.
27
Columbia Bush need not worry about becoming First Lady.
78
Fingers crossed.
14
MONEY TALKS. The tea party crowd makes noise with their car full of clowns, but in the end, MONEY TALKS. I feel sorry for this woman. Reminds me of a bad Dallas episode. I have nothing against Jeb/but just wondering why he thinks he needs to be the POTUS.
11
walker will be the nominee and the next President
2
Sounds like she and Howard Dean's wife have a lot in common: two women who would be absolutely miserable on the campaign trail. Why would Jeb put her through this?
23
Let her sit on the sidelines and show her independence. Why does he need her to campaign for him? Break the stupid mold of trooping the family around in the election madness.
7
Unbridled egotism and narcissism, and a woefully overblown sense of entitlement.
16
She sounds like a nice person. I hope the Democrats will be less vicious to her than her husband's party was to John Kerry's wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry who was also foreign-born and married well.
21
Theresa Heinz Kerry brought money INTO her marriage with John Kerry. It could be said that it was he who married well.
9
Columba Bush is about the best thing I've read about any of the political candidates, Democrat or Republican. NOT a political animal, likes to work behind the scenes, art lover. How refreshing!
114
Who the heck lies to customs to the tune of only claiming about 3% of the swag they're actually dragging in? Makes me wonder about what she hasn't gotten caught doing.
35
Really? This is Mrs Bush. The rules that apply to the rest of us don't apply to her. I see no breath of fresh here. Just the same old privileged few!
"June 22, 1999
TALLAHASSEE -- Gov. Jeb Bush said Monday that his wife misled U.S. Customs officials about $19,000 in new clothing and jewelry she brought into the country because she didn't want him to know how much she had spent on her five-day Paris shopping trip."
"June 22, 1999
TALLAHASSEE -- Gov. Jeb Bush said Monday that his wife misled U.S. Customs officials about $19,000 in new clothing and jewelry she brought into the country because she didn't want him to know how much she had spent on her five-day Paris shopping trip."
28
I hate to break it to you, but people lie to customs all the time, and they are usually wealthy and could easily pay the duty. In some circles, it is a "sport" to see what can be gotten past customs officers.
What she did was wrong and I'm sure she has paid a very high price for this mistake. But can any of us say we've NEVER broken a rule or done something wrong? I don't believe her excuse as clearly, he would see the credit card bills, unless she has a very large private allowance given to her by her husband.
What she did was wrong and I'm sure she has paid a very high price for this mistake. But can any of us say we've NEVER broken a rule or done something wrong? I don't believe her excuse as clearly, he would see the credit card bills, unless she has a very large private allowance given to her by her husband.
5
i agree with Jeb Bush! I would much rather talk about the unblemished future than the well documented past!
19
Well, as yet unblemished. But not for long.
3
Did Columba ever pay that federal fine for being caught arriving in Miami on a flight from South America when she tried to smuggle in tens of thousands of jewelry? Just wondering . . .
67
Either that or she would have had to surrender the merchandise to Customs.
5
I don't think Columba Bush or Bill Clinton are up to sharing cookie recipes with the voting public.
6
Congress ought to pass a law banning all media coverage of Presidential spouses and their children. Severe penalties ought to be attached to any publicity concerning how they dress and their dogs.
22
Yes, our freedom of speech should be curtailed in the interests of pampering these wonderful and noble people.
14
Oh, no, c'mon - not another one of those Bushes. I heard U.S. is a democracy. But the list of presidency applicants reads like medieval european monarchies: always the same tribes. Does the U.S. not have to offer more (able) personal. Or does the community of lobbyists agree on this very limited choice? Or is it, that the American voters are the problem: they cannot learn new names.
The "elder" Bush was, well mediocre at best. The younger Bush was one of the worst presidents ever - and that against a really dreadful competition, think of Gen. Grant (not as a military, but as a president!). There should be some effect of learning: if this family failed to do a decent job twice - why should the U.S. population risk a third try - against all odds? Please, do the world a favour and pick someone decent and promising to run for president. Please!
The "elder" Bush was, well mediocre at best. The younger Bush was one of the worst presidents ever - and that against a really dreadful competition, think of Gen. Grant (not as a military, but as a president!). There should be some effect of learning: if this family failed to do a decent job twice - why should the U.S. population risk a third try - against all odds? Please, do the world a favour and pick someone decent and promising to run for president. Please!
132
"But the list of presidency applicants reads like medieval european monarchies: always the same tribes."
What list are you looking at? The list[1] published by the Times shows several possible candidates who are not members of a dynasty.
"Please, do the world a favour and pick someone decent and promising to run for president."
Who would meet your criteria?
[1] Who Is Running for President (or Not)?
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/us/politics/2016-presidential-ca...
What list are you looking at? The list[1] published by the Times shows several possible candidates who are not members of a dynasty.
"Please, do the world a favour and pick someone decent and promising to run for president."
Who would meet your criteria?
[1] Who Is Running for President (or Not)?
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/us/politics/2016-presidential-ca...
The problem is that the job of president is so poorly paid while in office (millions to be made out of office with books and speaking fees, but not while in office) and the fact that the stress of the job ages the person so severely. So real leaders prefer corporate CEO jobs, where they can rake in millions each year, privately. There has to be an element of service to humanity in the person to want the job - at least on the Democrat ticket. On the GOP side, we have yet to find a candidate who is running for the average American - that bunch runs for their cronies, and for the money paid by the oil cartels to get what THEY want. So people of the world, pray hard that more Democrats turn out to vote in November 2016 - we know that the GOP only took seats in November 2014 due to low voter turnout - and that we don't have any more illegal moves like when Jeb Bush put valid votes in trucks and ran those trucks all over the highways in Florida so that they could NOT be counted, handing the state of Florida to his brother in the election, despite the fact that the TV networks had already called the state for the man who was legitimately elected, Al Gore. Think of how wonderful a world we would have had if the results of our election had been honored, and our democratic system had worked in 2000!
3
"She said she had spent only $500, but receipts were found for $19,000 in clothes and jewelry. A spokesman for Mr. Bush said at the time that she had underreported the goods because she did not want Mr. Bush to know how much she had spent. (Mr. Bush is known among his friends as frugal with his own clothing, at least.)"
Is this some Saturday Night Special thing. Flying all the way to Paris (First Class obviously) and then spending a fortune on cloths and then blaming her husband for her smuggling violation because "he is frugal." Jeb married the wrong woman.
Is this some Saturday Night Special thing. Flying all the way to Paris (First Class obviously) and then spending a fortune on cloths and then blaming her husband for her smuggling violation because "he is frugal." Jeb married the wrong woman.
64
Columba should seek financial advice from Hillary, who is able to turn 1000 into 100000 in cattle futures in less than a year.
21
He is indeed an artist of a certain type, but not a very good one.
15
I want like crazy never to hear from these people again. After the disaster that was W, the last thing I want to see is anyone named "Bush" anywhere near DC, or the White House, much less someone with an acronym for a first name.
428
Or even on the front pages of our dear New York Times!
6
Please! Please! Mrs. Columba Bush,
Please save our country and us from another Bush Presidency.
We have recovered somewhat. We really, really do not want to go back to the early 2000s.
Thank you.
Please save our country and us from another Bush Presidency.
We have recovered somewhat. We really, really do not want to go back to the early 2000s.
Thank you.
160
She's only doing it to maintain good relations with her mother-in-law.
5
Her mother-in-law is crumbling before our eyes, and no longer relevant.
8
Her mother-in-law is an elderly woman with an elderly husband in very poor health. Haven't they earned their privacy?
5
The only reason to vote for Hillary is we get Bill Clinton in the deal. Jeb and Columba are simply not equipped to take on the challenges that face us today. Jeb's time passed in 2001 when George W. Bush started to run us off the road. Even his mother agrees. He would have honestly beaten Al Gore if he had run instead of crazy George. History tells us Jeb helped rig the Florida election results for his brother and he wants to run for president now?
http://www.hiddenmysteries.org/conspiracy/conspiracy/bushcocaine.html
http://www.hiddenmysteries.org/conspiracy/conspiracy/bushcocaine.html
64
Whether the candidates like it or not, their spouses are very much part of what the public looks at when deciding who to vote for.
Look at the grilling Michele Obama got from the hate press. Teresa Heinz Kerry's outspokenness certainly didn't help John Kerry when he ran.
The fact that she speaks heavily accented English will hurt Bush among a lot of the bigots who vote R because they think it's the white peoples party.
As a D myself, that's fine with me.
Look at the grilling Michele Obama got from the hate press. Teresa Heinz Kerry's outspokenness certainly didn't help John Kerry when he ran.
The fact that she speaks heavily accented English will hurt Bush among a lot of the bigots who vote R because they think it's the white peoples party.
As a D myself, that's fine with me.
39
What's going to hurt Bush in gaining the Republican nomination is that he will not be able to parrot the Tea Party line on immigration - deport them all - unless, of course, he's prepared to endure a major dope slap when he returns home to the wife.
11
she may be off to a bad start when she went through customs and failed to declare expensive items she bought abroad.
38
What about the home furnishings I read that the Clintons took with them from the White House?
@Diana Moses: Nope. The Clintons were attacked because friends paid for some of the furnishings for their post-White House residence. The Reagans' friends had purchased and fully furnished a mansion in California for them, but oh, well.
3
Ellen Berent,
Then we read different accounts of what happened.
Then we read different accounts of what happened.
Since when is Bible study part of being a Catholic? Episcopalianism is often referred to as 'Catholic Lite' since it was born fully formed from the Church of Rome. Not a whole lot of daylight between them.
13
Like most career politicians, the Bush family will make this poor woman road kill in pursuit of their ego-driven goals.
Democrat and Republican alike--
Democrat and Republican alike--
12
Is this the same spouse who thought she wasn't required to follow the laws regarding declarations regarding the importation of goods? Well, if he becomes President she can just put them in a diplomatic pouch. Just what we we need another member of the privileged Bush dynasty with their friends the Saudis trailing behind or is that the Bushs trailing behind.
124
Not a fan of the Bush family or former President George W. But I hope Mrs. Columba Bush, who seems like a very interesting, genuine and good-hearted person, does not get savagely treated during the campaign. In general I think we should focus on the candidates and their policies, and back off on the microscopic inspection of their spouses and children.
13
It will be interesting to see whether Jeb Bush can stay in a political arena that his wife is so reluctant to enter. She appears to be a private person who does not share her husband's love of the political limelight. That probably won't resonate real well with voters. Nor will her devout Catholicism play well in the world of Christian Fundamentalists who make up so much of the Republican "base". This lovely lady may turn out to be more of a liability than an asset to her husband's political ambitions. What does that say about our society?
16
the Evangelicals backed Santorum last time-as Catholic as they get....
3
If these people weren't driven by hubris and ego, they'd be honest with themselves and admit that it's time for this country to move past the Bushes in the White House (unless perhaps a female Bush). As a good wife to her husband, this might be the best advice she could give him.
33
You feel the same about the Clintons, right?
11
I think Jeb's greatest asset is his Mexican-American family, his welcoming stance towards immigrants and his fluency in Spanish. I can't think of a national candidate in my lifetime who was better positioned to reach out to Hispanic voters. Nevada, Florida and Colorado are ranked 5th, 6th and 7th for states with the largest the percentage of Hispanic voters (44 total electoral votes). They're all crucial swing states and Jeb, with his tremendous Hispanic appeal, could pull a hat trick and sweet all three.
7
But he can't get the Republican nomination because of his "welcoming stance towards immigrants." The Mexican wife won't help, either.
4
I think Jeb Bush would be the best of the Bush's to hold office. I also think Hillary Clinton would make a fine President as well. However, I will vote for neither and encourage everyone I know to do so as well.
Do we really want 28 of the last 50 years to be ruled by just two families? Of the 320 million Americans, are the Bush's and Clinton's the only families capable of running our country? If this doesn't say America has become an oligarchy then I don't know what will.
Our country deserves a more diverse perspective in the executive office.
Do we really want 28 of the last 50 years to be ruled by just two families? Of the 320 million Americans, are the Bush's and Clinton's the only families capable of running our country? If this doesn't say America has become an oligarchy then I don't know what will.
Our country deserves a more diverse perspective in the executive office.
31
"Best of the Bushes" is not a very high bar to get over. Our country can do better, and it needs better.
54
We do have a "diverse perspective in the executive office." His name is Barack Obama, and his wife's is Michelle Obama. And Jeb Bush's Republican Party and many Americans just don't seem capable of accepting them or treating them with the respect due a President and First Lady.
97
So if Jeb is not the nominee you will vote Republican no matter who the nominee is if Hillary Clinton is the Democrat nominee or vica-versa?
Presidential elections are about choices. If Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton run for president against each other in 2016 and you don't vote for either one you are abdicating your citizenship and your right to vote. You ought to make a choice. It is your duty if you want to be a participating citizen. If you don't vote you shouldn't complain then about the state of affairs at the executive level.
I do agree with your sentiment that if Bush and Clinton are the two candidates that it doesn't reflect well but in American politics family dynasties are somewhat common, for example, the Adamses, the Roosevelts, the Kennedys, the Tafts, the Bushes and the Clintons.
Since the High Court decided for plutocracy and kleptocracy regarding Citizen United and other decisions, abdicating one of the tenets of citizenship such as voting only amplifies the wrongheadedness of the decision. To be sure, apathy leads a form of government that is not representative, therefore only the connected and wealthy win.
Presidential elections are about choices. If Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton run for president against each other in 2016 and you don't vote for either one you are abdicating your citizenship and your right to vote. You ought to make a choice. It is your duty if you want to be a participating citizen. If you don't vote you shouldn't complain then about the state of affairs at the executive level.
I do agree with your sentiment that if Bush and Clinton are the two candidates that it doesn't reflect well but in American politics family dynasties are somewhat common, for example, the Adamses, the Roosevelts, the Kennedys, the Tafts, the Bushes and the Clintons.
Since the High Court decided for plutocracy and kleptocracy regarding Citizen United and other decisions, abdicating one of the tenets of citizenship such as voting only amplifies the wrongheadedness of the decision. To be sure, apathy leads a form of government that is not representative, therefore only the connected and wealthy win.
10
Amazing. She lies - to the extent of $18,500 - to a federal agent when going through customs and isn't charged with a federal offense? How sweet is that? Helps to be married to a politician I guess. And her hubby wasn't going to notice the $19,000 splurge - are we supposed to believe that? And what is the supposedly simple soul doing spending that type of money on clothes and jewelry anyway? Something smells decidedly off here. To me, she sounds more like an Ann Romney type - wealthy and shielded from the real world. I hope she and her husband rapidly retreat into the shadows. The last thing we need is another under-achiever in chief with a materialistic, dishonest spouse.
490
Maybe what we need is another Ivy League "smartest in the room" intellectual whose wife vacations separately on the taxpayers' dime (I mean $ millions) while inserting her nose in places she has no business.
17
There is no 'federal offense' for false declarations in this type of circumstance. The penalty is a fine or seizure of the goods in question. The typical fine is a multiple of the duty that was owed. Bush paid a fine of several thousand dollars for her offense.
The behavior was crass and dishonest but that's not the sort of thing our government needs to bring criminal charges over.
The behavior was crass and dishonest but that's not the sort of thing our government needs to bring criminal charges over.
17
All this is being exposed now, so by the time elections come around, we all will forget and forgive! Don't forget old man Bush was a CIA head, and he still thinks and plans like CIA does.
5
This portrait of Columba Bush hides one of her main burdens in euphemisms like "traditional" Tallahassee. Jeb Bush is a Republican and given Republican bigoted attitudes toward Latinos in "traditional" Tallahassee, it was no doubt a relief for Columba to return to Miami. The article beats around the bush about it but Jeb Bush moved his family from Texas to Miami so his wife and children would have a chance of a normal life and not be treated like second-class citizens because of their ethnic heritage. Columba's curse, bless her heart and give her strength in the months to come, is to be married a man who pledges allegiance to a political party which would banish his own wife and children from their "traditionalist" tribe.
205
Agree in essence it seems Jeb regardless of who he is or politics loves his wife and who could not appreciate how much biased she may have not faced in Texas or Tallahassee. Unmitigated perhaps had Mrs Columba Bush had been the heiress of some super wealthy Mexican or other Latin American tycoon.
1
After residing in three other states my husband and I relocated to the Houston area twenty five years ago for business reasons. I am Latina, originally came to this country to go to college, married my Anglo husband and had children now grown up and in the professions. I have spent the last 54 years in the US, and looking back to my life here I can honestly say that in Texas I have never felt like a second class citizen. We are not Republicans, my husband and I still consider ourselves McGovern Democrats, but our neighbors are friendly and helpful, the favorite food around here is Mexican, and the Proud To Be Tejano slogan is common on clothing. (Not on topic but we love Bernie Sanders).
13
MGN - Great post. I've been to Dallas and San Antonio but not Houston and have always been curious about it.
If you don't mind my asking..... Doesn't having money help the way you're treated in Texas? I have family in Texas and I often hear about the poor treatment Hispanic people are subjected to.
If you don't mind my asking..... Doesn't having money help the way you're treated in Texas? I have family in Texas and I often hear about the poor treatment Hispanic people are subjected to.
2
This is thin gruel, hampered by Columba's habitual refusal to be interviewed. That isn't going to hold up if Jeb runs for the President of the United States. Perhaps it works for India or Saudi Arabia where wives are invisible, but in my life time (since Truman) the potential First Lady is part and parcel of the program and in the last 30 years these wives have been inspected openly and in exhaustive detail. Her life in Mexico, how she met Bush, how it was she never met the Bushes for 3 years, her parents (especially her father), her naturalization, the who, what, when, where, how, and why of every detail will and must be examined. It is excellent to say that she worked on domestic abuse but someone will count how many days and how many hours she was there.
Their children will be closely looked at and though they should have no bearing on today (they are all adults, long gone) the police reports will be gone over with a microscope. As I said, this is all thin gruel but that could have been dealt with over this last decade with a more openness on her part. No, a "Southern Belle" isn't demanded, but neither is a biography that focuses on watching "Mexican soap operas".
This does not bode well that she again refused to be interviewed and I fault Jeb Bush for not dealing with this long ago. Let's hope it improves.
Their children will be closely looked at and though they should have no bearing on today (they are all adults, long gone) the police reports will be gone over with a microscope. As I said, this is all thin gruel but that could have been dealt with over this last decade with a more openness on her part. No, a "Southern Belle" isn't demanded, but neither is a biography that focuses on watching "Mexican soap operas".
This does not bode well that she again refused to be interviewed and I fault Jeb Bush for not dealing with this long ago. Let's hope it improves.
35
If she was visiting shelters etc. while he was governor of FL, it was invisible. I lived there in Florida during those years and do not EVER recall reading or seeing anything that suggested she did anything other than hole up in Miami and work on her "art."
56
It won't improve until he drops out of the running.
16
You don't have to be a Sherlock Holmes to figure out that her background and his fluency in Spanish would give the Republicans something positive to market. My problem with this story is I can't see how Jeb gets nominated when the tea party faction will scream like panthers if presented with yet another "establishment" nominee. Bush was quoted how he wished he could run for President without going through the primaries. How's that going to happen?
30
I feel sorrow and sympathy for Columba Bush as her husband seeks the Republican presidential nomination. The picture of her painted by Healy and Stolberg is diametrically opposed to the mythological America sought by so many Republicans. At some point, Ms. Bush will have to confront publicly, the GOP's platform with all of its racially tinged rhetoric.
47
Gee, and they think I repeat myself too often. How many times did this article mention her involvement in domestic violence issues, and Latin American culture?! I wish Columba well, but do we need to have had a holy trinity of Bushes, having served in the White House?!!!
36
Seems like a lovely woman who would make a really good first lady. I like her a lot, but I think the profile is instructive for another reason because it provides a lens with which to view Jeb and the choices he's made that are at the core of who he is. The article is not just about Columba, but is also a window into how Jeb Bush differs from his brother and the many generic Republicans running for President.
10
What sad state of affairs the US has become. You've got a dynasty of two families potentially running the country for 24 out of 32 years (1992-2024).
It's starting to reflect the corrupt politics of Asia and Africa where the Presidency is contested by one or two wealthy and politically influential families.
US citizens should be asking themselves whether this is good for the country, and more importantly whether it's in their best interests. A choice between a right wing conservative and a right of center agenda.
Who's representing the poor and the working people of the US?
It's starting to reflect the corrupt politics of Asia and Africa where the Presidency is contested by one or two wealthy and politically influential families.
US citizens should be asking themselves whether this is good for the country, and more importantly whether it's in their best interests. A choice between a right wing conservative and a right of center agenda.
Who's representing the poor and the working people of the US?
169
No one is representing the poor and the working people of the U.S., except, perhaps, the Occupy movement, which is unable to attract any particular useful media attention. No Occupy adherents are currently running for office.
9
Actually, President Bush the Elder became President in 1988. So that makes 28 years out of 36!
5
"Who's representing the poor and the working people of the US?"
You are really asking where is the candidate who promises to confiscate wealth from hard working people to give to the unmotivated and uneducated.
You are really asking where is the candidate who promises to confiscate wealth from hard working people to give to the unmotivated and uneducated.
7
I feel sorry for Columba. It doesn't sound as if she is thrilled about any of this, nor having her privacy dragged out in full force, which is inevitable in this personality driven age.
But I also wonder if somehow, she is being asked to do more than she can. If she married young, is private and shy and has had trouble "fitting in" with the boisterous Bush clan, hers doesn't sound like a very happy life.
It also tells me a lot about Jeb and his determination to run, despite his wife's very clear reluctance. For her sake, let's hope he hasn't run roughshod over her desires and instincts, since he is going to need her a lot more than she needs to be First Lady.
But I also wonder if somehow, she is being asked to do more than she can. If she married young, is private and shy and has had trouble "fitting in" with the boisterous Bush clan, hers doesn't sound like a very happy life.
It also tells me a lot about Jeb and his determination to run, despite his wife's very clear reluctance. For her sake, let's hope he hasn't run roughshod over her desires and instincts, since he is going to need her a lot more than she needs to be First Lady.
288
I remember that George W. Bush's twin daughters did not want their father to run for President, knowing full well what that prominence would mean for any sense of privacy. Columba Bush has seen three Presidential terms served by family, so she can also hold no illusions about that life. Even assuming that Jeb would not win, campaigning itself would take a heavy toll. Please, Jeb, follow the Republican creed of putting family first, and don't put them through something they aren't onboard with.
126
I've never noticed Republicans, the ones I've known personally, to put family first. Ideology always comes first, even in my immediate family.
30
Family first by the republicans is an oxymoron.
3
NM: Surely you jest. The Republican creed of putting family first in practice is quite different than the "creed" itself!
2
With my politics being somewhat to the left of center, my preference would be for a Democratic candidate. That said, of all of the Republican contenders, Jeb appeals somewhat to me as being more pragmatic and thoughtful, those two positive traits being likely due to his wife's influence. I do not look at the other Republican contenders in the same way.
I don't envy the road she must travel between now and Election Day. She will navigate that road with grace, but internally, it has to be a wrenching experience. The media would be well-advised to leave her alone is that is what she wants.
Privately, I would bet she would rather not have another Bush running for the White House, but doesn't want another Clinton either.
I get that. American voters may very well be tired of the influence of two political families.
I don't envy the road she must travel between now and Election Day. She will navigate that road with grace, but internally, it has to be a wrenching experience. The media would be well-advised to leave her alone is that is what she wants.
Privately, I would bet she would rather not have another Bush running for the White House, but doesn't want another Clinton either.
I get that. American voters may very well be tired of the influence of two political families.
5
You might want to pay more attention to what Jeb has done over the years, including the Stand Your Ground Laws in Florida.
10
Mrs. Bush seems like a very shy person, so it's hard to understand why her husband would want to push her under the harsh lights of the presidential election. Oops, I almost forgot. It's his "destiny." Yes, folks, it's just another way of saying that God wants him to be president. This is one very indecisive deity, because on the one hand "he" wants Mitt Romney to be president, on the other hand he wants Mike Huckabee to be president, and now he has preordained that Bush 3 will be president. I once heard that the only problem with being the center of the universe is that it's very crowded. How true.
It's a very, very pitiful state of affairs that we Americans may well have to endure another Bush v. Clinton election season that will dominate all formats of news for 2 years. It's like a recurring nightmare. Cannot either one see that they have risen to power on the coattails of others, that this is a democracy with hundreds if not thousands of great potential presidential candidates out there, and that we are so very tired of dynastic succession?
It's a very, very pitiful state of affairs that we Americans may well have to endure another Bush v. Clinton election season that will dominate all formats of news for 2 years. It's like a recurring nightmare. Cannot either one see that they have risen to power on the coattails of others, that this is a democracy with hundreds if not thousands of great potential presidential candidates out there, and that we are so very tired of dynastic succession?
74
Silent, political spouses have long proven an irresistible draw to the news media, particularly the partners of presidential candidates. We saw this twelve years ago with Dr. Judith Steinberg; the idea that a wife (or increasingly, a husband) can remain outside the exceptionally public business the other partner has chosen is still seen in this modern age as a fallacy. It is very sad that if we don't see the perpetually smiling, adoring wife, looking at her husband on the trail the way Nancy did, we think something is off or that his wife is not 100% behind his campaign (the implication being if she is not, how can we be?). Columba Bush will likely try to remain away from the fray for as long as possible and that is her right as a non-political animal, even in this 24/7/365 modern news cycle where we feel we have to know everything about anyone even remotely related to the candidate or the campaign. Some will say this article is not newsworthy, but I felt it had a very respectful tone toward Mrs. Bush. She may choose to set a new protocol for a non-political wife of a politician (even a presidential one) and we'll see if we're ready for that. We should be; we're long past the point of understanding and accepting that spouses of political candidates have their own lives. Mrs. Bush will be given every opportunity to make her views known, particularly on immigration, but she is under no obligation from us to ever answer or engage on the topic. She is not running herself.
92
Agree. I found it respectful to Mrs Bush of whom little has ever been known.
2
Actually, I still hold against the New York Times the sexist hatchet job they did on Dr. Steinberg for being "dowdy." It was the first time there was anyone in the family of a prominent contender for the major party presidential nomination who didn't get him/herself overhauled by make up artists and beauticians -- she actually looked like a normal human being. And the NYT ridiculed her for it. Disgusting.
3
She has no choice.
Unfortunately, neither do we. Jeb vs Hilary is no choice.
Unfortunately, neither do we. Jeb vs Hilary is no choice.
62
Rubbish. The Clinton Presidency was far better than the Bush Presidency.
51
You do not have to be Einstein to realise that Jeb v Hilary is no choice. Two corrupt and murderous candidates from two dynasties that really represent two wings of the same rotten bird. You Americans sure are in a similar circumstance to us Australians. A corporate fascist takeover has been effected in both countries and constitutes part of the same awful agenda. How did we let it come to this?
30
You are quite right about the corporate, fascist takeover. It seems to have happened in Canada as well. Few will say such words as it still seems hyperbolic, remote, unreal, of another time, but if you look at it head-on, that is what it is.
If you read Henry Wallace's definition of a fascist in 1944, in this paper, you can see how we got here. Much of it is due to distortion (and lies) in the media, for which we can thank your countryman Rupert Murdoch (now ours) and the Kochs who fund such organizations as the Cato Institute, whose analysts are treated with respect by the mainstream media -- who will still, on such important issues as climate change -- try to achieve "balance" (by listening to the other side, the fascist side).
If you read Henry Wallace's definition of a fascist in 1944, in this paper, you can see how we got here. Much of it is due to distortion (and lies) in the media, for which we can thank your countryman Rupert Murdoch (now ours) and the Kochs who fund such organizations as the Cato Institute, whose analysts are treated with respect by the mainstream media -- who will still, on such important issues as climate change -- try to achieve "balance" (by listening to the other side, the fascist side).
15
Gee, I like her agenda better than Jeb's: raising money for young people to attend cultural events, promoting the arts, combating domestic violence and trying to prevent drug abuse, hire many more Spanish speakers at shelters.
It's a shame that she is constitutionally barred from the presidency...
It's a shame that she is constitutionally barred from the presidency...
38
Let's be brutally honest about it right now, though: even is Columba was qualified to run for the Presidency, would you vote for her?
If you have been here enough to be a Verified, I think we know the answer already.
If you have been here enough to be a Verified, I think we know the answer already.
2
Dude, kick back with a hot chocolate and have a good weekend!
1
And therein lies the problem with politics today. We have such a paucity of good candidates that anyone who does even the tiniest bit of something that's good is considered qualified to be president.
2
Columba Bush's daughter has had medical issues because of drug use. Would she want government officials to interfere with family decisions made about her child's medical care because they thought they knew better? Her husband certainly (wrongly) thought he knew better than Terri Schiavo's husband when he had the law changed so that he could interfere.
542
The primaries haven't even started, and yet the Times is wasting front-page space on personality and horse-race fluff. If Bush gets the GOP nomination, then there will be plenty of time for articles like this. How about some in-depth reporting (by two reporters, no less) on issues of substance, that is to say, on the decisions and priorities of the country -- issues against which we might judge a potential candidate?
437
I fully agree. We need to know more about this ever so vague (except for bellicose neo-con foreign policy) candidate who professes to want to help the common man while lining up his donors.
19
Well, wasting the editorial space & time might - just might - serve the purpose to generate the (public) opinion to avoid another Bush. And thus the waste of space & time on Bush reporting (and beating-the-Bushes...) might be minimized. Admittedly, with the American media of today a small, almost desparate hope....
13
... issues like his brother's disastrous legacy leaving behind an economy in absolute free fall, the GDP plunging 9% in just one quarter. That's equivalent to THREE years of robust growth literally wiped out in three months! And a US foreign war policy in shambles, and 750,000 jobs being lost each and every month. A 2010 Siena ranking of presidential scholars rated Bush as one of the nation's five worst presidents. A similar 2009 C-SPAN ranking put him in the bottom eight. Just saying, lest we forget.
8
Seems to me that Jeb Bush has a family that does not fit well with the Republican base. It is likely what he practices at home will not match the values he will be obliged to express on the campaign trail. He will also have to contend with his family legacy, which may be at odds with how he will behave as President. With three different points of view, deciding who the real Jeb Bush is may weaken his chances of becoming the Republican candidate.
61
Jeb is a moderate on immigration compared to other Republicans. That's already a big strike against him. During the presidential primary season, when his wife opens her mouth and a Latino accent comes out, there goes a huge chunk of the bigoted base.
3
Makes me wish SHE were the candidate….
16
Why? She doesn't have any kind of experience that would make her a good leader.
15
Just a humble little soul who could afford to splurge $19,000 on one shopping spree--half of a couple so wealthy she could conceal that expense from her husband. And she not only doesn’t do politics; she doesn’t cook. And it appears that she's never held a job in her life. Yeah, definitely someone an ordinary, middle-class, working American woman like me could identify with and vote to put in the White House. NOT.
11
No different than Barak Obama, DR.
A person driven by family name and the need to be President, no matter what, is not what we need. We need someone who cares about all the people in our country and its best values, and who has whose compass is not mainly personal and family ambition.
262
"A person driven by family name and the need to be President, no matter what, is not what we need. "
So I take it you're not in favor of a Hillary Clinton presidency either.
So I take it you're not in favor of a Hillary Clinton presidency either.
9
Exactly....and we won't get that from EITHER Bush or Clinton.
10
I am struggling to understand why we would be interested in what kind of first lady she will be. Aren't we voting for the President? Are we now being told that not only do we need to consider the content of the candidate's character, but that we now have to consider whether his or her spouse will be an effective first gentleman or lady?
I'm sure she will do a fine job at it, since that "position" really has no statutory significance, and is pretty irrelevant to what the government does or doesn't do. It's merely a "bully pulpit."
Our obsession with first ladies borders on infantile. The snarky comments aimed at the poor women in these positions, from Pat Nixon to Michelle Obama gets pretty degraded at times, and frankly some of the commentators, from both the right and the left, need to have a little self respect and stop with the nastiness.
I'm sure she will do a fine job at it, since that "position" really has no statutory significance, and is pretty irrelevant to what the government does or doesn't do. It's merely a "bully pulpit."
Our obsession with first ladies borders on infantile. The snarky comments aimed at the poor women in these positions, from Pat Nixon to Michelle Obama gets pretty degraded at times, and frankly some of the commentators, from both the right and the left, need to have a little self respect and stop with the nastiness.
271
I've lived through First Ladies from Eleanor Roosevelt to Michelle Obama, and some of them were fantastic, some like Bess Truman felt her place was not in the front but far in the back (lovely lady) and some like Nancy Reagan who had )
(Wilson's wife for example) to deal with a husband whose health was failing as Reagan certainly was going into Alzheimer's before his last term ended.
What they do is important, but doesn't necessarily affect the rest of the government. However, don't put down what they accomplish in raising interest in areas that are helpful and important.
(Wilson's wife for example) to deal with a husband whose health was failing as Reagan certainly was going into Alzheimer's before his last term ended.
What they do is important, but doesn't necessarily affect the rest of the government. However, don't put down what they accomplish in raising interest in areas that are helpful and important.
3
Well, in some other case, the U.S. electorate & media has learned: You never know, what might become of a First Lady after a while. And - by the way - the interest of the media is not about the rational political analysis and decisions to the best of the country. Far from that. It works like the psychology & marketing of stories about the present-day European monarchies, their families, intrigues, children, cheating, marriage, divorce and, well, clothing...Maybe all the U.S. newspapers should agree to print all reporting about the presidential election on yellow paper ...;-)
2
Because we know that first ladies have a tremendous impact on their husband's decisions. She will be no different. The fact that she is Latina and he has little "brown" children will make people quite interested in her perspective.
1
I would think this cultured, and intelligent woman KNOWS that "buying" a presidency is wrong, and further, that it will harm not only her country, but her marriage, her child, and her husband.
55
Then she must throw herself across the rails of the Bush Presidential Train that is leaving the station.
3
You really need to ask Michelle Obama if buying the general election was worth it. I mean, the $1,070,000,000 wasn't her campaign money, so she would definitely have your answer.
7
In that, she's Clintonesque.
5