Jeb Bush releases e-mails in 'spirit of transparency'

As promised, Jeb Bush on Tuesday released e-mails from his two terms as Florida governor that he hopes will provide insight into how he makes decisions and inform voters as he prepares to seek the presidency.

The website, jebemails.com, includes the first chapter of a book Bush is writing to explain what's behind eight years of electronic communications. The e-mails, which were already obtained by several news organizations and a Democratic super PAC through open records requests, are organized chronologically starting with Bush's first year in office in 1999.

"I am posting the e-mails of my governorship here. Some are funny; some are serious; some I wrote in frustration. But they're all here so you can read them and make up your own mind," Bush says under the header "in the spirit of transparency."

In a conference call Monday with alumni of his Florida administration, Bush said he believes he has a story to be told about his tenure as governor and that he hopes the e-mails will show that he "stayed true to conservative perspective."

Nicknamed the "eGovernor" for his penchant for e-mails and his attachment to his BlackBerry, Bush writes in the book chapter that he was "energized" by responding to notes from people because it allowed him "to stay connected and get first-hand knowledge." His staff estimated he spent 30 hours a week crafting his responses.

But, at times, Bush said reading and responding to e-mails was a "humbling" experience.

"On some days when I thought I had been just brilliant, I would open up my e-mail and see a number of comments about just how brilliant I had not been," Bush wrote. "I got a lot of advice -- some of it very helpful, and some that I'm still scratching my head trying to figure out what I had said or done to cause such angst. It was always eye opening, and certainly kept me on my toes."

Bush is proceeding with an all-but-announced campaign for president, assembling staff and key operatives and tapping donors for what will be one of the most wide-open races for the Republican nomination in recent years.

He speaks Tuesday afternoon at an educational summit in Florida on a topic that has been one of his signatures in public life. Bush's support for the Common Core educational standards is a sore spot for some conservatives, and has made him the target of potential rivals such as Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal.

Check back later at USATODAY.com for more on Bush's e-mails.