Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said Friday that his faith has been a guiding force in his approach to governance and said he is focused on protecting the most vulnerable in society.
“How strange in our time today to hear that our faith and our oral traditions spoken as some sort of backwards or oppressive force, when in fact it is really the moral foundation of our country — the greatest country on the face of the Earth,” Mr. Bush said at the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s “Road to Majority” conference in D.C.
Mr. Bush entered the GOP presidential race Monday near the top of early polls and his appearance at Friday’s convention marked his third stop as a declared candidate.
The 62-year-old touted his pro-life record as Florida governor, highlighting his intervention in the Terri Schiavo case and the tighter regulations he put on abortion clinics.
He also said that religious freedom is under attack, and said he is concerned about the attitude that “when the prevailing government policies runs headlong into the views of the faithful, the faithful must yield.”
“Well in a big diverse country, we have to make sure we protect the right not just of having religious views, but the right of acting on those views,” Mr. Bush said.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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