Friendly Competition, For Now: Rubio and Cruz Welcome Bush to the Race

Joe Raedle/Getty Images/AFP
Joe Raedle/Getty Images/AFP
Sarah Rumpf

As former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-FL) prepares to officially launch his presidential campaign in Miami, two of his competitors shared kind words welcoming him into the race. Whether the current mood of friendly competitiveness will be sustainable in this increasingly crowded primary field remains to be seen.

Fellow Floridian Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) has often referred to Bush as a mentor and friend, and the two live very close to each other in Miami. While there have been a few veiled critiques — Bush posted a video Monday morning taking a swing at the “DC crowd” — so far this election cycle, both Bush and Rubio have refused to directly attack each other.

Monday morning, Rubio posted on his Twitter account a tweet welcoming “my friend @JebBush” into the race:

The tweet included a link to the following statement:

“In politics, people throw around the word ‘friend’ so much it often has little real meaning. This is not one of those times. When I call Jeb Bush my friend, I mean he is someone I like, care for and respect. He and I have worked closely together for many years, on issues big and small. He is a passionate advocate for what he believes, and I welcome him to the race.”

Bush replied back with a gracious tweet of his own:

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) also sent out a statement welcoming Bush into the race:

“I’m glad to welcome Jeb Bush to the growing and diverse field of 2016 GOP candidates. Gov. Bush is a good man and was a strong governor in Florida. I look forward to a productive and thoughtful debate on the issues most important to Republican voters as the 2016 GOP primary season gets into full swing. Gov. Bush brings a lifetime of service to this field, and his candidacy ensures our eventual nominee will be all the stronger and equipped to face Hillary Clinton in the general election.”

Cruz has previously sent out similar statements welcoming other Republicans into the race, including Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) and Rubio.

Bush is scheduled to make his announcement at 3:00 pm ET. Breitbart News will continue to follow this story.

Follow Sarah Rumpf on Twitter @rumpfshaker.

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