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Politico: Bush Donors Waiting for 'Family Hall Pass' to Switch Loyalties
Friday, January 15, 2016 07:18 AM
By: Sandy Fitzgerald
Jeb Bush's major donors say they're waiting on what one donor calls a "family hall pass" to switch their loyalty and contributions to another establishment candidate who has a better chance of winning the GOP presidential nomination.
"I'm resigned to it being over, frankly. It's really disappointing," one of the former Florida governor's major Wall Street donors told Politico, which interviewed about two dozen of his supporters.
"I'd urge him to get out after New Hampshire if he doesn't do well, but he probably won't."
Earlier this year, the Bush camp announced a record fundraising period in July, rewarding key donors with a two-day retreat at the Bush family compound in Kennebunkport, Maine and telling them that the $114 million already raised needed to be increased.
At this point, national polls are putting Bush far behind the top of the pack, according to Real Clear Politics. Non-establishment candidates Donald Trump and Ted Cruz are at the top of the overall polls with 34.5 percent and 19.3 percent, respectively, while Bush is at just under five percent.
And with the rise of Trump and Cruz, Bush's campaign commitments are starting to dry up, and rivals are trying to lure away his donor network.
"Donors I've talked to are desperate not to abandon Jeb because of their long bonds and loyalty with the family, but they are also recognizing there is no ROI [return on investment] on this campaign," Rick Wilson, a veteran Florida operative backing Rubio told Politico.
"The sense of these folks is it is so sad. They whisper to each other, 'When will Jeb go?'"
Another Wall Street donor who has been raising money for Bush said he still thinks the political scion is best qualified to be president, and he can't believe Trump will get the nomination. But if Bush leaves the race, the donor said he'll shift to Rubio, and he's not alone.
"Expectations are not super high [for Bush]. But people are giving him room to try and break out in New Hampshire," the donor said. "But if it doesn't happen, pretty much everyone is thinking about the three-way alternative: Trump, Cruz or, gulp, [Hillary] Clinton. There isn't a sense though that Rubio or Christie have got a much better path than Jeb because they are establishment too."
But Bush's campaign is still reaching out to supporters to make the case he still has a chance at the presidential nomination, with spokeswoman Allie Bradenburger saying in an email that he plans to continue to campaign hard and his momentum is still growing.
The campaign is continuing with its fundraising, but the pace seems to be slowing down. At the same time, GOP operatives worry that expectations were too high for Bush.
"All of the major donors to Jeb and initial donors to Jeb who thought he was going to leap to a lead and never lose it are disappointed," said Fred Malek, an appointee in President George H.W. Bush's administration who served as finance co-chair of John McCain's 2008 presidential bid.
