Bush has ignited controversy on the topic of immigration reform. | M.Scott Mahaskey/POLITICO Jeb Bush's 'Bulworth' moment

It was an utterance worthy of “Bulworth,” a moment of straight talk from Jeb Bush that showed why the GOP donor class is so eager for the former Florida governor to run in 2016 – and spurred questions about whether, after 12 years out of office, he’s ready for the rough and tumble of today’s Republican Party.

Speaking at an event honoring his father, former President George H.W. Bush, at the elder Bush’s presidential library in Texas on Sunday, the younger Bush declared that many undocumented immigrants come to America as an “act of love” for their families and aren’t committing a “felony.” And, as if to cut cue up the outrage from the right that would follow, Bush acknowledged that his comment would probably “be on tape and so be it.”


The episode has lit up social media and highlighted the fact that Bush, who last ran for office in 2002, would have to grapple with a party that has become dramatically more conservative since he — and for that matter his brother, former President George W. Bush — last ran a campaign. It was the second time in roughly a year that Bush ignited controversy on the topic of immigration reform.

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“If he was feeling any optimism before that interview, I think it’s gone away after the interview,” said influential conservative writer Charles Krauthammer of Bush’s 2016 prospects. He continued, in an interview on Fox News, “I mean that statement he made about illegal immigrants being an act of love is kind of bizarre. I grant him the complete sincerity and honesty of his view, he’s always had that kind of approach. But that’s leading with your chin.”

In his Sunday comments, which aired on Fox News, Bush argued for a more compassionate approach to understanding why some illegal immigrants come to America.

Individuals who “crossed the border because they had no other means to work, to be able to provide for their family, yes, they broke the law, but it’s not a felony,” he said, adding, “It’s an act of love. It’s an act of commitment to your family. I honestly think that that is a different kind of crime. There should be a price paid, but it shouldn’t rile people up that people are actually coming to this country to provide for their families.”

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Those comments come as Bush has stepped up his political activity. Last month, he spoke at a private gathering in Las Vegas convened by Republican mega-donor Sheldon Adelson. He is also making overtures to evangelicals and next month is slated to meet with Russell Moore, an influential Southern Baptist leader, according to the Washington Post. Bush has long been a favorite of Wall Street types, and as moderate New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has stumbled amid a traffic scandal besieging his administration back home, attention has further turned to Bush as the possible establishment choice. He has also spoken with donors who want him to run.

At least one possible 2016 rival seized on an opportunity to break with Bush in the wake of the immigration comments.

“We’re a nation of immigrants, we need to celebrate that, but at the same time, rule of law matters,” said Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a darling of the tea party, during an interview with CNN.

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House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) echoed that sentiment in a Fox News interview: “I understand what Jeb was saying, but we’re also a nation of laws,” he said, noting that the comment shouldn’t be a deal-breaker for Bush in 2016. “And for those who are here without documents, they are going to have to face the law at some point.”

Rep. Raul Labrador (R-Idaho), a key player in immigration talks in the House, said Tuesday that while he likes Bush — “he seems to be a very nice gentleman” — he views such immigration rhetoric as “pandering.”

“When you trivialize the fact that these people have broken the law, I think your message is a little bit off,” he said at “Conversations with Conservatives,” an event on Capitol Hill hosted by members and in part by the Heritage Foundation. He added, “And what people like Jeb Bush and others are saying is that we also will have no respect for the rule of law, and then we will be turned into the nations that these people are leaving…”

Jim Geraghty at National Review shot back by posting a piece titled “Hey, Jeb, how about an ‘act of love’ for the grassroots?’”

“There are these nagging indicators that he’s either not in touch with the mood of the conservative grassroots, or he’s willfully at odds with the conservative grassroots, and confident he can dissuade the grassroots of their opinion,” the piece read as it also briefly acknowledged that “Bush would bring a lot to the table.”

In the initial interview, Bush said he would make a decision about a presidential bid by the end of the year, but noted that today’s politics are “pretty crazy.” That prompted conservative write Byron York to pen a column in the Washington Examiner titled, “If Jeb Bush fears ‘mudfight,’ he’s not ready for 2016.”

“The bottom line is that, at least right now, Bush just doesn’t seem like a politician in top fighting shape. It’s not even clear he wants the fight at all,” York wrote, also noting that the immigration comment “alone will be sure to start some mudfights on the 2016 trail. And so will the other policy position Bush mentioned, his support of the Common Core education standards initiative, which is wildly unpopular with conservatives.”

Conservative commentator Michelle Malkin put it more bluntly on Twitter: “He’s pro-amnesty, pro-Common Core, pro-Big Business & he wants to be president. #CancelJebBush.”

Bush did get some back-up from former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, who on Tuesday likened his comments to remarks made by Ronald Reagan. The former president and Republican icon used to say, “apply the ‘gates’ test,” Barbour said, which entailed imagining that if every “gate” in the world was opened, many people would “run to America.”

“And that’s what Jeb is saying to me, that this is the place, for good reason,” Barbour said, speaking at the LBJ Presidential Library’s Civil Rights Summit. “And we ought to be proud of it, that when you apply the gates test, that people want to come here.”

Some observers drew parallels between Bush and Texas Gov. Rick Perry, a Republican who during his failed 2012 presidential bid took a hammering from the right when he went to bat for an in-state tuition program for the children of illegal immigrants.

Karl Rove, who served as a close political aide to Bush’s brother, the former president, said Jeb Bush should skip Perry’s tactic of making personal attacks on those who disagree with him (Perry charged that those who didn’t support the education initiative “don’t have a heart.”). But on Tuesday Rove also called Bush’s remarks “inartful” during a Fox News interview.

“He is going to be hit about this,” Rove said, adding that many people would agree that immigrants often come here to provide for the their families. “If he becomes a candidate this is going to be tossed back at him.”

Last March, Bush caused a stir over immigration when he equivocated on whether he supports a pathway to citizenship — something he had backed in the past but stopped short of supporting in his then-new book. He went on to signal that he would support a path to citizenship in keeping with the rule of law.

Some have pointed to Bush as a potential candidate who would have appeal beyond the party’s base, due in part to some of his more moderate views and conciliatory approach to Democrats. But Bill Kristol, the editor of the conservative “Weekly Standard” magazine, argued on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” that there is “no way” there would be a Bush-Hillary Clinton 2016 match-up.

“He’s a good man; he hasn’t been involved in any of the fights of the [President Barack] Obama years,” Kristol said. “Republicans are kind of worked up about Obamacare, about the federal policy failures, that like someone who is either engaged in those fights in Washington or a governor who’s governed successfully in real time. i.e., now.”

The debate over Bush’s viability has spread beyond conservative media and into the mainstream: Ben Smith of BuzzFeed (formerly of POLITICO) penned a lengthy piece laying out why Bush would be “a terrible candidate.”

Seung Min Kim and Lucy McCalmont contributed to this report.