Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush claims he did not see the 112-page internal memo detailing his presidential campaign strategy before it leaked to the press.
When NBC’s Chuck Todd asked Bush about the 112-page memo that includes attacks on Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, the governor quickly demurred.
“I didn’t see it. I didn’t see it. I don’t know,” Bush said before Todd interrupted.
“You don’t know this memo? You don’t know this PowerPoint?” Todd asked.
“No. Well, I read about it when it was leaked for sure,” Bush answered. “I didn’t know about the PowerPoint.”
The memo Bush said he had not seen criticized Rubio’s lack of accomplishment. The memo noted that the senator would be susceptible to attacks from Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on his record, and negate Rubio’s ability to criticize Clinton’s resume.
Bush told Todd that comparing and contrasting the candidates is part of the campaign process, but that his dispute with Rubio is not personal.
“The basic point with Marco isn’t that he’s not a good person or he’s not a gifted politician; everybody can see that,” Bush said. “It’s that I have proven leadership skills.”
Rubio ranks first in the Washington Examiner‘s presidential power rankings issued after last week’s debate on CNBC. Bush ranks seventh.
