GOP insider drops the ultimate insult — and compares Trump's 'flailing' campaign to Jeb Bush

On Wednesday, writing for The Washington Post, columnist Henry Olsen panned President Donald Trump's "flailing" campaign — and drew a parallel to the failed presidential run of Jeb Bush.

"The signature moment of comparison came Tuesday at a Trump rally in Johnstown, Pa., where Trump implored suburban women to 'please like me,'" wrote Olsen. "It echoed the sorry moment that epitomized Bush’s campaign, when he asked his audience to 'please clap' during one of his stump speeches."

However, wrote Olsen, that is only the beginning of the similarities.

"Bush started with every possible advantage in the 2016 campaign," wrote Olsen. "He was related to two former Republican presidents, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. He had his own successful career as a two-term governor of Florida, a key swing state. He was the heir to both Bushes’ political networks, which flooded his campaign with unprecedented amounts of money ... Trump upended all of that for one simple reason: He appealed to modern Republican voters, whereas Bush did not."

"Fast-forward to today," wrote Olsen. "Now, it’s Trump who started with a strong cash position and momentum. Before the pandemic hit, Trump had survived everything Democrats had thrown at him and was reaching new heights in job approval (they were still historically low, to be fair, but they were close to the level he needed to win a majority in the electoral college). With the world largely at peace and a record tight domestic labor market, it was easy to see how Trump could gain strength as the year progressed. The pandemic, however, has shown that Trump is as out of touch with voter sentiment as Bush was in his campaign."

"There’s only one thing left for Trump to do to complete the metamorphosis into his foe," concluded Olsen. "Bush’s logo — featuring an exclamatory 'Jeb!' — was a much-derided way to avoid his last name, which carried negative connotations for the party’s hard right. Trump’s campaign is similarly attempting to whip up enthusiasm for his personal brand. It might as well borrow inspiration from Bush, and adopt the logo that highlights the reason for its likely embarrassing defeat: 'Trump!'"

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