The American Spectator

Okay, why isn’t anybody saying the obvious, which is that Jeb Bush’s failure to recruit anybody to run for U.S. Senate from Florida — even though he has trashed the chances of Rep. Katherine Harris for the same seat — is a tremendous black eye for Jeb and for President Bush. One would think that with all the power of the presidency and the governorship, Florida Republicans should be able to field a formidable candidate. That they haven’t done so is a travesty, and quite simply a failure to fulfill a political responsibility. Right now the only other potential candidate seems to be Rep. Mark Foley, who was going to run several years ago before his father got ill. Jeb should find a way to get Foley to run…or to get Gen. Tommy Franks to run… or to talk Jack Nicklaus into running. ….. Wait a minute; forget all that: Why is there NO clamor for Jeb himself to run? He failed to find an alternative, so why is there no pressure on him to fill the gap? With leadership comes responsibility. Jeb clearly has a chance to win the race; indeed, would probably be considered at least a slight favorite from the minute he enters. If this man ever wants Republicans to consider him for the presidency, he darn well ought to have to deliver a strong Senate candidate in his own home state. His term as governor ends when this year does; so he’s totally free to run. And he bleeping well ought to run. Duty calls. Will he shirk it?