Jeb Bush: Trump’s character, White House chaos has made it hard for him to succeed

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said that President Trump’s character could jeopardize his success in office.

“The character of the guy and the [turnover] and fighting, and just the constant chaos around his presidency that is self-inflicted has made it hard for him,” the Florida Republican told USA Today in an interview published Friday. “I want the president to succeed. I don’t think think he will succeed if he continues on this path.”

The paper quotes Mr. Bush as characterizing certain comments Mr. Trump made as “racist,” but does not make it clear what comments in particular he was referring to.

Mr. Bush said that some of the president’s policy decisions, such as the tax reform plan, could be good for incumbent Republicans looking at the midterm fight this fall. But he said that if the race becomes about Mr. Trump, then those in Congress will have a tough battle ahead of them.

“If the election is nationalized and it’s not about the economy, then we’ll lose,” Mr. Bush said. “If it’s about the economy and it’s driven by state or district interest, incumbents can do well.”

Mr. Bush also knocked Sen. Marco Rubio, his former protege in Florida politics, for his lack of leadership on the immigration debate.

“God forbid you actually took on something that was controversial and paid a political price,” Mr. Bush said. “That’s the attitude in D.C. right now. Certainly Sen. Rubio is no different in that regard. Marco is a talented guy and he understands this issue really well, and maybe behind the scenes he’s working hard. But at some point, his leadership would be really helpful.”