I’d rather be wrong

Thirty years ago, I watched helplessly as friends and neighbors fell for the amiable Republican candidate, Ronald Reagan, and his back-to-the-good-old-days message. I was five-months too young to vote. And I knew I would pay an economic price based on his policy proposals. That price? Two percentage points more on my student loans, disqualification for Pell grants, and lower starting wages when I entered the workforce. And I’m still paying as this country labors to shake off the myths of Reaganomics.

I saw it all coming again in 2000 when George W. Bush campaigned for office. It didn’t help that I had 20 more years of experience as a political observer, not to mention experience crafting messages and developing images as a communication and PR practitioner.

Again just as I predicted, W bankrupted our country as he had almost every business he’d run. He had a record, but the press reported on personality instead.

So as we approach the 2012 election, I’m going to make another prediction. With the Republican field currently in disarray, their fundraising numbers abysmal, and a total lack of accomplishment upon which to run, Jeb Bush will swoop in late to save the Republican Party.

Too soon for another Bush you say? Perhaps, but with our current economic crisis and voters’ tendency to blame the incumbent, the Bushes will see an opening. And their old money and corporate ties will line up behind their man. Traditional Conservatives to Tea Partiers will converge to support Jeb in a desperate bid to regain the White House. Like Republicans always do, they will fall in line and award him the nomination.

And Jeb Bush has a real record to run on. He is the one hope for the Republican Party and a real threat to President Obama’s incumbency. But if he wins, average Americans will be left in the cold again. His allegiance will be to the wealth he comes from and to the corporate moguls who fund his campaign.