It meant little to Donald Trump that he was standing in the heart of Jeb Country when he offered stinging criticism of the former governor.
During a stop in Sarasota on Thursday, Trump blasted Jeb Bush for his “incompetent” answers on how he would have handled Iraq and suggested the country is over electing members of his family.
“Oh, I think it has Bush fatigue,” Trump told reporters just before he went on stage to accept his “Statesman of the Year Award” from the local Republican Party. “I would say it has Bush fatigue.”
Minutes later, after accepting his award at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, Trump went after Bush again, but this time in front of 1,400 people.
He unloaded on Bush for his answers on Iraq again saying he made a “total fool” out of himself by not saying it was a mistake to go to war in Iraq.
“He can’t even answer a simple question,” Trump said.
Even after acknowledging Bush must be popular in Florida because he was governor, Trump criticized Bush for his support of Common Core and for his stances on immigration.
Trump of course is seriously considering running for the White House too in 2016 and is taking aim at a candidate who is considered a potential front-runner if he runs as expected.
Still, where Trump criticized Bush is significant. When Jeb Bush ran for governor in 2002, he won Sarasota County by 26,000 votes — 21,000 more votes than fellow Republican Rick Scott was able to carry the area by in 2014. No Republican candidate for president or governor has won Sarasota by a bigger margin in the past 25 years.
In addition, the Bush family often spends part of the winter on nearby Gasparilla Island and both George W. Bush and Laura Bush have spoken to sold-out audiences at the Van Wezel during the past four years.
Still, Trump made clear that he sees Jeb Bush and the rest of the GOP field similarly: “They’re not getting us to the promised land.”
There is only one candidate who can do that, Trump said.
“If I run and if I win, our country will be great again,” he said.
Trading Spaces?
As state Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, gets closer to running for the Sarasota County Commission, a former county commissioner is getting closer to running for her seat in the Senate.
Former Sarasota County Commissioner Nora Patterson, a Republican, said she is more serious than ever about running for Senate District 28, which includes all of Sarasota County and part of Charlotte.
Patterson, a Sarasota County commissioner for 16 years, could have plenty of company running in a GOP primary for the Senate if Detert leaves to run for the County Commission.
Current state Reps. Ray Pilon and Greg Steube, plus former state Rep. Doug Holder, have all said they are interested in running for the post too.
It all hinges on Detert, who has said she will decide after the Legislature’s June special session if she is going to run for the commission and leave her seat two years before her term expires.
Pilon challenge
Whether he runs for the Senate or re-election to the House, Pilon could be looking at a stiff challenge in 2016.
That is because Edward James III, a political strategist and Democrat, said last week he is seriously considering running for House District 72, the seat Pilon has held since 2010.
James, 25, is no stranger to politics.
In 2012, he was a field organizer for President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign.
And last year, James was a regional field director for U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham’s winning campaign for Congress.
Pilon, a Republican, easily won re-election in 2014, defeating Democrat Greg Para 58 percent to 42 percent.
While it looks like a one-sided defeat, James is undoubtedly looking at how the district performed in 2012 — the last time the contest was on the ballot in the same year as the presidential cycle as it will be in 2016. In presidential cycles, Democrats typically see a boost in turnout that favors their candidates.
In 2012 that boost could be seen in Pilon’s first re-election campaign. Pilon won his re-election over Democrat Liz Alpert 54 percent to 46 percent, but it came at a cost. He spent more than $235,000 to hold the seat, even though Alpert spent just $35,000.
District 72 is mostly north of Clark Road in Sarasota and east of U.S. 301, not including downtown Sarasota.
Pilon has filed to run for re-election, but has left open the possibility of running for the Senate if Detert jumps for the County Commission.
James, a Pineview graduate, has a political science degree from the University of Chicago and is expected to earn his master’s degree from Florida State University later this year.
