Jeb Bush’s self-identification problem had the political world scratching its head Monday. After registering as “Hispanic” on his 2009 Florida voter registration form, the presumptive presidential candidate was hard-pressed to explain the error. Instead he tried to poke fun at the mistake, which would have been a savvy move had the entire national press corps not beat him to the punch.
Read a sample of the wall-to-wall coverage of Jeb’s embarrassing flub:
New York Times: Jeb Bush Listed Himself as ‘Hispanic’ on Voter Form – “Mr. Bush, a former Florida governor and likely presidential candidate, was born in Texas and hails from one of America’s most prominent political dynasties. But on at least one occasion, it appears he got carried away with his appeal to Spanish-speaking voters and claimed he actually was Hispanic…A Bush spokeswoman could offer no explanation for the characterization.”
Miami Herald: Jeb Bush is not Hispanic, despite indicating otherwise in Miami-Dade voter form – “‘A person who willfully swears falsely to any oath is guilty of a felony. The question is, was it sloppy or was he trying indeed to pass as a Hispanic?’ Meyer said. ‘It’s at least embarrassing, if not prison-worthy.’”
MSNBC: Andrea Mitchell Reports – “The bottom line is Jeb Bush is a white guy.”
Gawker: Jeb (Pronounced “Heb”) Bush Registered as a Hispanic Voter in 2009 – “There are 14.7 million registered Hispanic voters in the United States—but only one of them is the WASP scion one of our country’s foremost conservative dynasties. Yes: John Ellis ‘Jeb’ Bush, the Connecticut-bred president’s son and president’s brother (and distant relative to the actual British monarchy) is—according to his voter registration form—Hispanic.”
New York Magazine: Even Jeb Bush’s Spokesperson Is Confused About Why He Legally Identified As Hispanic – “Like a Tumblr teenager who believes her true form is a wolf, Jeb Bush believes that despite his whiter-than-white heritage, he is, deep down, Hispanic — at least if his 2009 voter-registration application is to be believed.”
TPM: No Explanation Why Jeb Bush Listed Himself As Hispanic – “The former governor hails from the influential Bush political dynasty which, New York magazine noted, helped settle Plymouth Colony. Bush’s family has been described by Slate’s Jacob Weisberg in his book The Bush Tragedy as ‘New England WASP.'”
MSNBC: Now w/ Alex Wagner – “Jeb Bush has locked down the Hispanic vote; his own.”
International Business Times: Jeb Bush Hispanic? Likely 2016 Presidential Candidate Says So On Voter Registration Form – “While he speaks Spanish and has a Mexican-born wife, potential 2016 candidate and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is not Hispanic. But that didn’t stop him from checking off Hispanic as his race on his 2009 Florida voter registration form obtained by the New York Times and published on Monday. A spokeswoman for the likely 2016 GOP presidential candidate didn’t explain to the Times why Bush marked his voter registration form that way.”
KSL News: News Specialists – “Jeb Bush has a lot of ties to the Hispanic community… but he may have gotten a little carried away.”
Broward Palm Beach New Times: Jeb Bush Said He’s “Hispanic” On Voter Registration Form – “‘Heb’ Bush isn’t just a symbolic Hispanic candidate because he speaks Spanish. He’s also technically a Hispanic — according to his 2009 voter registration form…Jeb isn’t really Hispanic, of course, but his language skills and connections to the Latino community have allowed him to get favorable press from Spanish-language media, something that has already brought up questions about whether his views on issues important to Latinos are getting glossed over because he can properly conjugate ‘ser.'”
Breitbart: Jeb Bush Registered As A Hispanic Voter In 2009 – “Efforts by Breitbart News to contact the Bush team were not successful, as the operation has gone silent. With no explanation for his actions, Bush faces the first big test of his ‘potential’ candidacy as he continues to travel the country to explore a run for president. Ethnic identity ‘confusion’ can be crippling to a political campaign, especially if it can be demonstrated that it was done for political or societal gain.”
WPTV: News Channel 5 at Noon – “A spokeswoman for the former governor couldn’t offer an explanation for why he checked ‘Hispanic.’”
MSNBC: Jeb Bush once accidentally claimed to be Hispanic – “One accidental check mark in the wrong box can be enough to haunt a potential presidential candidate. That’s what former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush found out on Monday.”
Raw Story: Jeb Bush listed himself as ‘Hispanic’ on a 2009 voter form — which might be news to his parents – “While some political analysts have noted Bush’s ties to the Hispanic community in his adopted home state of Florida, it is possible that the slip-up by the Republican may turn off Hispanic voters who already tend to vote heavily for Democrats. There has been no word from a Bush spokesperson on Monday despite many media requests for comment.”
The Hill: Florida Dems: Jeb Bush may have committed felony – “Former Florida Gov. and likely presidential candidate Jeb Bush (R) may have committed a felony when he falsely identified himself as Hispanic on his 2009 voter registration application, Democrats in the state appeared to say Monday.”
FOX News Latino: Jeb Bush declares himself Hispanic on voter registration paperwork: ‘ My mistake!’ he tweets – “Even though he is married to a Latina, has three Latino children and lives in Miami Dade County, where upwards of 60 percent of the area’s residents are Latinos, Bush himself, of course, is not Hispanic.”
Daily Kos: Jeb Bush identified himself as ‘Hispanic’ on voter-registration form – “And why would Bush III do that? Innocent mistake? Pathetic pandering? A Bush spokeswoman could offer no explanation for the characterization. Well, okay then …”
MSNBC: Andrea Mitchell Reports – “That may be trying too hard to appeal to the Latino community.”
For more, check out a round-up of broadcast press on “Hispanic Jeb” yesterday:
Published: Apr 7, 2015