Jeb Bush says 'people need to work longer hours.' Hillary Clinton pounces.

(Image credit: Kayana Szymczak/Getty Images)

published 9 July 2015

It all began when Jeb Bush surprised audiences Wednesday by saying that "people need to work longer hours" in order for the economy to grow, The Washington Post reports. The comment came during Bush's meeting with the editorial board of the New Hampshire Union Leader and was quickly tackled by the Democratic National Committee, who called his remark "easily one of the most out-of-touch comments we’ve heard so far this cycle." They weren't the only ones to think so:

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Bush additionally clarified in a town hall meeting Wednesday that his comments about people needing to work longer hours were in reference only to people working part time, CNN reports. "You can take it out of context all you want, but high sustained growth means people work 40 hours rather than 30 hours and that by our success they have disposable income for their families to decide how they want to spend it rather than standing in line and being dependent upon government," Bush said.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.

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