Jeb Bush draws big for education speech

A crowd of roughly 1,000 policy makers and educators greeted former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush Thursday morning, at the potential GOP presidential candidate’s first major speech since barnstorming the country on behalf of Republicans up for reelection in 2014.

In an address to his education think tank, Bush readily distinguished himself from the rest of the likely field of Republicans with White House aspirations, acknowledging that his support for “Common Core” school standards sets him apart.

“Sometimes we reformers fight among ourselves,” Bush said during remarks at the Marriott Wardman in northwest Washington, D.C.
 
“I have some views on these issues and perhaps I might be in the minority some of the time,” he said.

Common Core, a set of nationalized education standards that has been adopted by 43 states, is a controversial flashpoint within his own party.

Among those who oppose Common Core are Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who will speak at the education forum on Thursday night, Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R), who is suing the federal government to block Common Core in his home state.
 
“I respect those who have weighed in all sides, and nobody in this has a bad motive,” Bush said.

Bush, who mostly stayed clear of election politics in his remarks, has been coy about whether he’ll run, though he has the name and reputation to heavily influence the party’s primary if he decides to get in.
 
The GOP presidential field is expected to be crowded, but a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll released Wednesday showed that group lacks name recognition outside of Bush, who is the best known of the potential Republican candidates, by far.

He is also a fundraising behemoth who could tap his family’s long political network for a White House run, and he’s built up deep wells of good will for the work he did on the campaign trail this year.
 
In 2014 he fundraised on behalf of Gov. Terry Branstad (R-Iowa), Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Gov. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), and for former Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.). He’ll be at the National Republican Senatorial Committee’s headquarters in Washington next month to fundraise for Rep. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) ahead of his runoff election against Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.).

While his support for Common Core is not popular among all in the GOP, some of his views on education are a rallying point for Republicans. Bush is a strong advocate for charter schools and school voucher programs. He counts Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) as a strong ally on this.

Bush talked about how the U.S. is failing minorities and the poor, who are less likely to earn high school and college degrees. He name-dropped Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), whose primary issue is financial opportunity for average Americans.
 
“When we fail kids in poverty we fail everyone,” Bush said. “What is in danger here is not public education, but the core idea that defines America — what my friend Paul Ryan calls ‘the right to rise.’ ”
 
Increasing school choice falls in Bush’s wheelhouse, and on Thursday he struck a populist tone by talking about how the matter directly impacts Americans across every race and class.
 
“This is a civil rights issue in every sense of the term,” Bush said.