Why Jeb Bush is pulling a Bill Clinton on Mitt Romney: 4 theories

The former governor criticizes the GOP for being too extreme, joining the Big Dog as the latest party elder to undercut a presidential candidate's message

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said his father and Republican icon Ronald Reagan would not be conservative enough for today's Republicans.
(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

This week, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush — the brother and son of former presidents, and a potential presidential contender himself — created a headache for his party, arguing that his father and Ronald Reagan would have had a hard time fitting into today's GOP, which eagerly punishes those who go against party orthodoxy. Bush was particularly critical of the GOP's increasingly tough anti-immigration stance and its unyielding refusal to raise taxes — party-line positions that have been wholly embraced by presumptive presidential nominee Mitt Romney. (Bush later insisted that he was criticizing both Democrats and Republicans for being too partisan.) Of course, Bush is not the first member of a political royal family to undercut his candidate's message: Earlier this month, Bill Clinton appeared to stray when he called for a temporary extension of tax cuts for the wealthy, which Obama opposes. Here, four reasons Bush seems to be following Clinton off the reservation:

1. Jeb wants to save the GOP from itself

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