Jeb Bush Formally Endorses Romney! Puts damper on brokering at GOP Convention?

March 21, 2012

Jeb Bush gave a formal endorsement to Mitt Romney’s presidential aspirations this morning, on the heels of Romney’s big win in the Illinois primary giving him a substantial lead over nearest challenger Rick Santorum. However, Romney is still quite short of the 1,144 delegate total needed to cinch the nomination before the convention in Tampa, in August.

Demographic data from exit polls in Illinois still show the former Massachusetts governor as primarily appealing to GOP voters that are more moderate, live in and around cities and whose incomes are in the higher earnings brackets. That’s consistent with Romney’s showing weakness in garnering support from the party’s more conservative core as in the results of previously held state primaries and caucuses.

Public comments in recent weeks by prominent GOP members have seemingly continued to show a fractious party. This week, former Mississippi governor and national GOP party chairman, Haley Barbour, who himself was earlier touted as a potential formidable presidential candidate, admitted that he’d voted for New Gingrich in last week’s primary in his state. However, Barbour seemed to imply that his vote was as much out of friendship for Gingrich, and he still hasn’t given anyone his formal endorsement, while saying every candidate still has a chance.

The timing of Jeb Bush’s endorsement, which follows that of his father, former President George H.W. Bush, last December, appears designed to quell dissention within the ranks of the national GOP over satisfaction with Romney as the party’s standard bearer. Even Jeb’s mother, Barbara Bush, endorsed Romney’s candidacy earlier this month, while calling the campaign race “the worst” she’d ever seen. Jeb’s endorsement came in the form of a press release statement that was also tweeted, according to MSNBC-TV, calling for Republican Party unity. (See Jeb Bush’s endorsement statement here.)

The run against the incumbent Democratic Party President, Barack Obama is still uppermost in the minds of party leadership. Former GOP national party chairman, Michael Steele, appearing live on an MSNBC-TV panel at noon, today, bemoaned the fact that actual voting in GOP primaries and caucuses this year is down by over 600,000 compared to four years ago, in a year in which a weakened incumbent president should be ripe for the taking. Bush’s endorsement might help, but whether talk of a brokered convention subsides remains to be seen.

Source: MSNBC-TV, CNN, Fox News