IOWA CAUCUSES

Bush casts himself as pragmatic problem-solver at Soapbox

Jason Noble
jnoble2@dmreg.com

Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush cast himself as a conservative but also a pragmatic problem-solver on The Des Moines Register's Political Soapbox on Friday.

"Put aside your ideology: I hope you want a president that'll roll up their sleeves and fix these broken systems, for cryin' out loud, to make sure that we serve the people," Bush said.

Inadequate care for veterans, hacks of sensitive government information and the glitchy rollout of the Healthcare.gov website all point to systematic failures in the federal government that require more competent leadership, he said.

"Right now we have a president that pushes down anybody that disagrees with him, and he elevates himself with this sophisticated nuanced view," Bush said, referring to Democratic President Barack Obama, "and the net result is nothing gets done."

Turning to foreign policy, Bush argued that Obama and leading Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton have been too timid on the subject and allowed enemies and rivals of the U.S. too much latitude — including the Islamic State known as ISIS, Russia, North Korea and China.

"When you pull back, voids are filled. And sadly today, we have a void that has been filled, a caliphate the size — larger than Iowa," Bush said.

Bush took questions from the soapbox stage and fielded several regarding conflicts in the Middle East and the war in Iraq that began during the presidency of his brother, George W. Bush.

One questioner challenged Bush on the agreement between the U.S. and Iraq that led to the drawdown of American forces in 2011. That agreement was initially brokered by George W. Bush, but continued under Obama.

"We didn't have to get out in 2011," Bush said.

"Your brother signed the deal!" the questioner shot back from the crowd.

"It could've been modified, and that was the expectation," Bush replied. "Everybody in Iraq and everybody in Washington knew that this deal could've been expanded."

In the wide-ranging question-and-answer session, Bush also took questions on disease prevention efforts abroad and other foreign aid, his views on Common Core education standards, Alzheimer's disease research and more.

He said he supports funding for AIDS, malaria and other disease prevention efforts, and foreign aid more generally, calling it a crucial role for America to play in the world that goes beyond acting as global police force.

Quote: "I was the most conservative governor in the state's history, but I had a reformer's heart," said of his tenure in Florida.

Crowd: The crowd filled the soapbox space and spilled far out onto the Grand Concourse. Many were supporters, but amid the crowd also were activists for AARP, the Alzheimers Association and others.

Other stops at the fair: Bush spent four full hours at the fair, drinking a 10:45-in-the-morning Budweiser at the Bud Tent, flipping pork chops with Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad at the Pork Tent and eating a deep-fried Snickers along the way. At one point, a car arrived along 33rd Street and staffers told Bush it was time to go, but he waived them off and spent another 45 minutes walking the Midway and down the Grand Concourse. At the Fastball game, he threw a pitch 47 miles per hour.

Before his soapbox speech, Bush walked the fair with Iowa U.S. Sens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst, who both clarified that they have not endorsed Bush or any other presidential candidate.

Up next: Bush headed directly from the fair to the airport for a flight out of state.

Paleo diet no hinderance for Bush at far

Jeb Bush managed to find one classic Iowa State Fair food allowed by his tightly restricted paleo diet, but that didn't stop him from sampling less-compliant fare during his four-hour visit on Friday.

"In order to maintain the paleo diet, you have to cheat at least, maybe, once or twice a week," Bush said in an interview with the Register as he toured the fair. "I'm cheating today."

The paleo diet is built around the foods thought to be eaten by prehistoric man, which means no processed foods and generally no dairy and no grains. Given those limitations, what would be OK to eat at the fair?

"Sweetcorn, probably," Bush mused. "Not much to be honest with you."

Bush cheated first with perhaps the most un-paleo foodstuff imagineable: a deep-fried Snickers candy bar. He got back on track with a pork chop from the Pork Tent ("A pork chop on a stick would definitely be paleo-compliant," he said), but fell off the paleo wagon again with a cup of Budweiser.