Voters get glimpse of a Clinton-Bush sequel
FORT LAUDERDALE — Slowly but surely, voters are bracing for the possibility of a historic sequel.
Clinton vs. Bush.
Some of the voters who saw both Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton at a National Urban League conference Friday said they are intrigued by the prospect of a dynastic battle between two of history's most prominent political families.
Others are bothered by the idea that two families seem to want to pass the presidency back and forth, calling it a poor commentary on the nature of an open democracy.
"I just don't want to see another Bush or Clinton in the White House," said Audrey Peterman, 63, owner of an environmental consulting company in Fort Lauderdale. "Why are we repeating the monarchy here? Why do we have these entitled families?"
Keietta Givens, 41, an educator from Dade County, Fla., said she believes people would get excited about another Clinton-Bush matchup in 2016, a full 24 years after Bill Clinton defeated incumbent President George H. W. Bush.
"They would be feisty," she said of the prospective nominees.
There's still a long way to go — especially for Bush, locked in a crowded field of Republicans — but many National Urban League members see another Clinton-Bush battle in their future.
"That seems to be what looms, right?" said retiree Al Calloway, a columnist for the South Florida Times.
Clinton, the favorite for the Democratic nomination, certainly seems to be acting as if she'll be facing Bush in the fall of 2016.
In her speech to the National Urban League, the former secretary of State, New York senator, and first lady mocked Bush's campaign slogan "Right to Rise," saying the Republican's plans for Medicare, health care and education will wind up keeping people down.
"People can't rise if they can't afford health care," Clinton told the largely African-American crowd. "They can't rise if the minimum wage is too low to live on."
Bush aides, many of whom believe they will wind up facing Clinton in next year's general election, said the attacks reflect her worries about the former Florida governor.
"Could Hillary get any smaller on her trip through Florida?" tweeted Tim Miller, Bush's communications director. "She's one step away from putting a trolling comment on Jeb's Facebook page."
Marc Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League, said many voters see Clinton and Bush as the front-runners, but neither should simply "pack up" and start preparing their nomination acceptance speeches just yet.
That seems especially true of Bush. Although he is a well-funded establishment favorite, Bush is currently running third in some Republican polls, trailing both billionaire businessman Donald Trump and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. Many GOP voters have criticized the idea of a third Bush candidacy within the past three decades.
Clinton, while still the favorite in the Democratic contest, is being pushed by independent Sen. Bernie Sanders in the early-contest states of Iowa and New Hampshire. She is also under attack over questions about her handling of emails while at the State Department.
In the meantime, both candidates are chasing history.
Clinton is seeking to be the nation's first female president and is already the first presidential spouse to pursue the Oval Office.
The Bushes are looking to be the first family to put a third member in the White House.
After defeating the elder Bush in 1992, Bill Clinton went on to serve two terms in the White House. After that, his predecessor's son — George W. Bush — won the presidency in 2000, and served another eight years.
In other words, the Clinton and Bush families have held the White House for 20 of the past 26½ years. If one of them wins in 2016 and beyond, it could wind up being 28 out of 36 years.
Morial, a former mayor of New Orleans, said voters are likely to have conflicting views when considering Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush.
"Brand identity, brand recognition, names you know" are assets in American politics, Morial said. Some voters, however, have a strong sense that "they want a new face, they want a new look."
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