Speed Reads

flint water crisis

Jeb Bush says Rick Snyder has done a heckuva job on the Flint water crisis

Contrary to even Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder's opinion of his own handling of the Flint water crisis, Jeb Bush thinks he's done a pretty good — maybe even a heckuva good — job. "I admire Rick Snyder for stepping up right now," Bush said Sunday on CNN's State of the Union. "He's going through the challenge. And he's fired people and accepted responsibility to fix this."

Just last week, Snyder openly admitted he failed Flint residents after a 2014 cost-cutting measure caused their drinking water to be contaminated with lead. "I'm sorry most of all that I let you down," Snyder said. "You deserve better. You deserve accountability." Though residents began complaining about the drinking water within a month of the switch, the city did not change its water source until October 2015.

While others have called for Snyder to resign, Bush says he thinks that the governor's apology means he's in it for the long haul. "[I]nstead of saying the dog ate my homework, it's someone else's fault, once it became clear, he took — he's taken the lead now," Bush said. "And that's exactly what I think leaders have to do."

Watch the full interview below. Becca Stanek