Friday, July 10, 2015

First Read: Jeb Bush's Very Good Month

First Read is a morning briefing from Meet the Press and the NBC Political Unit on the day's most important political stories and why they matter.

Jeb Bush's strong past month

Exactly a month ago, Jeb Bush was in a rough spot, especially in the aftermath of how he handled that Iraq war question. Indeed, we were writing back then that Jeb was clinging to any kind of frontrunner status. But since that time, he's had a strong last 30 days. It started with his European trip. It carried over to his presidential announcement in Miami. It was evident in how he handled his taxes release. And it was hammered home yesterday, when his campaign and Super PAC reported raising a combined $114 million. 

The biggest takeaway from the last month is that he's the aircraft carrier in the GOP field; he isn't going to sink by a single strike. He still has his vulnerabilities (that Iraq war question and even his recent "people need to work longer hours" line are two examples). Money, as our colleague Perry Bacon writes, isn't everything. And it's still possible he won't be his party's nominee -- all that's needed is for a Scott Walker or Marco Rubio to truly take off. But when you have the durability and resources that Jeb Bush has, he isn't going away easily. 

Full article available here: First Read

Source: NBC News 

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