Bush: I’ll rein in D.C.’s bloated culture
Fifiscal Touting Florida record, he calls for balanced budget, lobbyist curbs.
TALLAHASSEE — Jeb Bush vowed that as president he would bring to Washington the strict oversight of dollars and budget-balancing that he said marked his eight years as Florida governor, in a Monday speech at Florida State Universit y.
Declaring war on what he called “Mount Washington,” Bush cited his accom- plishments in Tallahassee and called for tougher lobbyist regulations for the federal government, as well as a balanced budget amendment and lineitem veto authority for the president.
“The next president of the United States has got to con-
front the spending culture of Washington, and I promise you I will do it,” Bush told a crowd of almost 400 people, including several lobbyists and public officials who got their start during his 1999-2007 tenure as governor.
But the freewheeling spending he cited as proof of Washington’s “incompetence” has some parallels in his two terms as governor, and the Democratic-leaning American Bridge Political Action Committee was quick to dismiss the ex-governor’s criticism.
“Jeb Bush in a nutshell: Recycled ideas from his failed governorship that left Florida worse off,” the PAC said in a statement.
In his speech, Bush said that while he was governor, the state’s economy grew by more than 4 percent a year, faster than the national average, whereas government spending as a percentage of the economy declined.
Recalling that he earned the nickname “Veto Corleone” — a sort of Godfather with a budget pen — he noted that he vetoed $2 billion worth of spending proposals by lawmakers.
However, he also oversaw a state government that added almost $8 billion in debt while the state budget soared by 52 percent, from $48.6 billion in 1999 to $73.9 billion in 2006, with much of the growth stemming from the hot real estate market.
Bush’s use of Florida’s executive and legislative branches to prolong the life of Terri Schiavo, the brain-damaged woman who became the centerpiece of a national rightto-die battle, also has been criticized by many groups as government overreach.
One of 15 Republican presidential candidates, Bush drew his attack on “Mount Washington” from a term he introduced as governor, when he vowed to rip the inertia of “Mount Tallahassee.”
Although his father and brother both served as president, Bush singled out President Barack Obama and former Democratic President Jimmy Carter as causing much of Washington’s problems with overspending and entrenched government.
Bush’s half-hour speech drew modest applause from a generally subdued audience.
While he offered a wide-ranging menu of proposed fixes to the “whole culture in our nation’s capital,” he garnered his best response with a line that relied on weekend headlines.
Bush got loud applause when he called U.S. Sen. John McCain “a real hero,” defending the Arizona senator’s Vietnam War service against criticism by Republican rival Donald Trump.
Bush said he supports legislation McCain is sponsoring that would tighten military procurement regulations.
The former governor also took a subtle swipe at the four Republican presidential rivals serving in the U.S. Senate, who include longtime pal U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio. He said the changes he’s proposing demand more than simple legislation.
“This is something that requires leadership, not filing an amendment and calling it a success, like some in the Senate would do,” Bush said.
Bush also homed in on Congress for reform. Again citing Florida’s giftban law and lobbyist disclosure requirements, enacted while he was governor, Bush said he would push Congress to approve a six-year ban on its members becoming lobbyists after they leave office.
Members of Congress also would be required to report on their websites when they meet with a lobbyist. They could be docked pay for missing votes, under another proposal by Bush.
Rubio, whom Bush mentored as a state legislator, is among those who have missed a relatively high percentage of roll call votes, according to govtrack.us, which follows congressional voting.
“A bill to dock the pay of absentee members might not pass the House or Senate,” Bush said. “But at least it would get them all there for a vote. If we can’t always get them on the job, let’s at least get them on the record.”