Makes appeal

Bush makes appeal—for less cursing

By Eli Stokols

Jeb Bush may be his “own man,” as he often declares on the stump—but he remains a very much a Bush.

And he does not appreciate all the curse words.

With his 90-year-old mother at his side here Thursday evening emphasizing the family’s values, Bush chided Donald Trump for using profanity on the campaign trail and urged voters who are “tired of the profanity, tired of the vulgarity” to send a message by voting for him in Tuesday’s primary.

He jokingly apologized to his mother for his own coarse language before explaining to the crowd why he’s called Trump “a jerk.”

A day earlier at a town hall in Laconia, Bush also took note of Trump’s language Tuesday night when he twice vowed “to kick [ISIS’s] ass” and riffed on the Canada-born Ted Cruz’s U.S. citizenship: “He gets elected, they’re going to sue his ass off.”

“There are kids listening to this, for crying out loud,” Bush said.

As Bush was complaining about Trump’s language Thursday night, the billionaire was in Portsmouth taking his cursing up a notch. “And you can tell them to go f**k themselves,” Trump said, referencing companies that go overseas to avoid paying taxes.

Just two months ago, voters here saw Bush himself dabbling in profanity, albeit of the most mild variety. Following a disastrous debate performance in which he attacked Marco Rubio but failed to respond to his rival’s strong counter-punch, Bush hit New Hampshire and, needing to convey a semblance of Trumpian vigor, started to drop “damn” everywhere he went.

“We’re Americans, damn it!” Bush said during one appearance. He described the president’s responsibility as having to “roll up their damn sleeves and get to work.” And despite the fact that his debate performance stopped any modest gains his campaign had been making on the ground, Bush promised heartily, “We’re going to win this damn thing.”

Now, with his campaign focused on its plan to survive New Hampshire and advance to what may be a climactic battle in South Carolina, Bush is back to being the son his mother described for voters Thursday night.

“Jeb is the nicest, wisest, most caring, loyal, disciplined…” Barbara Bush said, trailing off. “But he’s not a bragger. We don’t allow that. He’s everything we need in a president.”

Almost as if to prove her point, Bush’s first utterance upon taking the microphone from his mother was a self-deprecating joke.

“Wow, mom. My crowd sizes normally are not this large,” he said. “I wonder why.”