Joe Concha: South Carolina to Prove Whether ‘W’ an Asset or Liability to Jeb

From Joe Concha writing at Mediaite:

Throughout his failing campaign, the undisputed obstacle for Jeb Bush has always been about the brand. And this isn’t in reference to his record as Florida governor, which was stellar if his record on job creation (1.32 million created ), tax-cutting ($19 billion total) and GDP growth (7.2 percent average) during his tenure are any indication. Jeb would leave office after two terms in 2007 with an whopping approval rating of 64 percent.

So with that kind of record and the name recognition that comes with having a father and brother having already served as president, it’s easy to see why the big money was initially on Jeb in a pre-Trump world to waltz away with the nomination. The perspective in this space, conversely, has always been steadfastly bearish on Bush’s chances because of the aforementioned branding problem. Because while Jeb exited with that nearly 2/3rds approval in a purple state (Obama won it twice after going ever-so-barely red in 2000 and again in 2004), his father is the only one-term Republican president elected to office since Herbert Hoover (1933), while W. left office in 2009 under a deep recession and an approval rating of 34 percent (Gallup).

“This is a movement who’s always looking for the next Reagan — and let’s face it, if you’re looking for the next Reagan, why keep picking new Bushes?” asks Pollster and Ted Cruz SuperPAC leader Kellyanne Conway in an interview with The Washington Post.

Read the rest of the story at Mediaite.