I have often posted angry comments about ‘President’s Day.’ I don’t like the holiday. When I was growing up we celebrated Lincoln’s Birthday on February 12^th and Washington’s Birthday on the 22^nd; both deserved to be honored. Our nation has had 44 presidents, and not many of them deserve the honor that ‘President’s Day’ implies.

Born in 1946, I liked Ike, and was a senior in high school when my generation lost JFK who impressed us with his courage, intelligence and wit. Then there was Johnson who escalated an unwinnable war and cost the lives of many of my friends. Nixon was a criminal, and Ford was a coward. Reagan hated the working class. The worst of all was George W. Bush who murdered thousands of our finest young men and women, and hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis using blatant lies and misleading accusations. Then his economic policies forced our nation into a virtual bankruptcy. Why should I feel obligated to praise these failed presidents?

Jeb Bush has stated that he would be a carbon copy of his brother. That alone makes him unelectable. But he has exceeded his brother by displaying not only a lack of intelligence, but an inability to control his emotions. He often speaks before he thinks, and sounds moronic and insensitive.

Although Donald Trump continues to lead in the polls, followed by Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina, none of the three has a single qualification which would allow them to win the general election. That leaves Bush and Marco Rubio, who are just now initiating a battle which will likely result in winning the GOP nomination.

Campaign finance laws in our nation are un-Constitutional at best. Some rules favor certain candidates over others. Bush has the advantage of Super PACS who have raised tens of millions of dollars for his campaign. Rubio is a sitting Senator and is not allowed to invoke the assistance of Super PACS. The estimates are that Bush’s advantage has netted him more than $114 million, while Rubio has amassed approximately a quarter of that number.

Although money is important, Rubio maintains an advantage in the polls over Bush. He has remained neutral regarding the attacks on Trump levied by others who travel in the clown car. He or his advisors have wisely decided to wait as other candidates either remove themselves from contention, or self-destruct due to angry comments and accusations. At present the Senator from Florida is in fourth place.

Trump’s popularity is proof that GOP voters do not want a member of the ‘old guard’ as their candidate in 2016. The Bush family is heavily entrenched not only in politics but also in Wall Street. He has openly stated that he would also have invaded Iraq, and would double down on his brother’s failed ‘trickle down’ economic policy. He has flip-flopped on immigration, and believes in war before diplomacy.

Personally, I was disappointed when Bush began his campaign. I had hoped that he would be a more moderate Republican and more intelligent than his brother; this is not the first time I have been mistaken in my life.

Op-Ed

By James Turnage

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Photo Courtesy of DonkeyHotey