Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush will spotlight his family’s experience with drug addiction in a new TV ad set to air in New Hampshire.
The 60-second spot features clips of Bush speaking about his daughter, who has suffered from drug addiction. The ad is part of the governor’s multimillion-dollar advertising buy that runs to next month’s primary.
“I have personal experience in this as a dad,” Bush says in the ad. “My daughter, Noelle, was addicted to drugs. Today, I called her to tell her I was going to talk about her in this public setting. It’s not easy to do. And she said, ‘Go. Do it. I want to help.'”
While several candidates are talking about drug addiction on the stump in New Hampshire, Bush’s ad appears similar to a video of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie that went viral in November. The Huffington Post captured a moment of Christie talking about addiction and treatment, and the video subsequently received millions of views and helped the governor gain momentum in the Granite State.
Bush likely hopes to duplicate his rival’s success, as he trails Christie in RealClearPolitics’ average of New Hampshire polls. Success in New Hampshire is crucial to both governors’ path to the GOP nomination, where the Republican rivals appear to be on a collision course. Christie ranks fifth in the Washington Examiner‘s newest GOP presidential power rankings. Bush ranks sixth.
