Jeb Bush: I would have authorized the invasion of Iraq

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush says he, too, would have authorized the invasion of Iraq but said that once the United States helped remove Saddam Hussein from power there wasn’t enough of a focus on security.

“I would have [authorized the invasion], and so would have Hillary Clinton, just to remind everybody. And so would have almost everybody that was confronted with the intelligence they got,” Mr. Bush told Fox News’ Megyn Kelly in an excerpt of an interview to be aired Monday night.

“In retrospect, the intelligence that everybody saw — that the world saw, not just the United States, was faulty,” he said. “And in retrospect, once we invaded and took out Saddam Hussein, we didn’t focus on security first and the Iraqis, in this incredibly insecure environment, turned on the United States military because there was no security for themselves and their families.”

Mrs. Clinton’s vote to authorize the invasion as a United States senator was a key issue in the 2008 Democratic presidential primary, and she later wrote in her book, “Hard Choices,” that while she thought she made the best decision she could with the information she had, she still “got it wrong. Plain and simple.”

Mr. Bush, who is laying the groundwork for a potential 2016 White House run, said people trying to find daylight between him and his brother, former President George W. Bush, should probably look to another issue.

“By the way, guess who thinks that those mistakes took place as well? George W. Bush,” the former Florida governor said. “So, just for the news flash to the world if they’re trying to find places where there’s big space between me and my brother, this might not be one of those.”