Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has been away from the grind of politics for too long to attempt a successful modern campaign for a presidential run, a top White House staffer said in an interview released Monday night.
On Dec.16, Bush made a surprise announcement about jumping into the 2016 presidential race.
"Jeb Bush, it's been a long time since he's run for office. Politics has changed dramatically since his last race," said Dan Pfeiffer, senior adviser to President Obama, according to The Huffington Post.
"He may be able to," Pfeiffer said later of Bush mounting a viable campaign, "but politics and technology and communication are changing so fast that all the models we used in our 2008 campaign had to be massively updated just for 2012."
"I think it will be very challenging for someone who has not been in prominent public life in the age of Twitter to go out on the campaign trail," he said.
However earlier this month, Bush had announced plans to release an e-book he has penned along with 250,000 emails from his years as governor of Florida early next year, The Washington Post reported.
"I was digital before digital was cool, I guess," he said, referencing emails from 1999 through 2007, his two terms as governor. "I think part of serving or running, both of them, is transparency-to be totally transparent. So I'll let people make up their mind."
But Pfeiffer seems to think otherwise, comparing Bush to a character from the HBO show "The Wire" who returns to his life as a gang enforcer only to find he no longer has the motivation to do the job, according to The Hill.
"I don't know what kind of candidate Jeb Bush will be, but when I think about Jeb Bush, here's what I think about. I think he's Cutty from The Wire," Pfeiffer said, referring to Dennis "Cutty" Wise, who opens a boxing gym after leaving crime behind. "In his day, big deal. Out of the game for a long time. Gets back in the game. Game's changed."
Meanwhile, the former Florida governor is being touted as an appealing candidate by some Republicans who view him as a centrist alternative to those further right.
Last week, Bush claimed he can "persuade" Republicans to support comprehensive amnesty legislation during a potential 2016 presidential campaign
When it comes to immigration reform, Bush said he will be able to convince conservative voters of his position, according to the second part of his interview with a local Florida television station on Tuesday, the same day he announced that he will "actively explore" a presidential campaign.
"I think there's a compelling case that, if we want to be young and dynamic again, we have to make legal immigration easier than illegal immigration, that we control our borders, enforce the laws, but that we embrace our immigrant heritage and allow our country to take off. You gotta do both," the Republican said, adding that he plans to "listen to people and see if my message can resonate."
"You gotta protect the borders, enforce the law, be respectful of the rule of law, and at the same time be able to encourage young aspirational people to come to our country. It's a win-win. I have no problems advancing that idea," he added.
