OCT. 31, 2015 – In an exclusive interview with “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck Todd, presidential candidate former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-FL) says he “didn’t see” his campaign’s opposition memo detailing why fellow 2016 contender Sen. Marco Rubio wouldn’t be a good nominee for the party.
“I didn’t see it,” said Bush. “Well, I read about it when it was leaked for sure. I didn’t know about the PowerPoint.”
A transcript of this interview excerpt is below, and you can watch it here: http://nbcnews.to/1MoZFLY.
Tune in to “Meet the Press” tomorrow for more from the exclusive interview as well as an interview with newly-elected House Speaker Paul Ryan.
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MANDATORY CREDIT: NBC NEWS’ “MEET THE PRESS” / CHUCK TODD
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CHUCK TODD:
Your campaign, there was a leaked memo, 112-page memo, and there was a big chunk about why Marco Rubio wouldn’t be a good nominee. And you went through sort of all of the opposition research on that. That’s not a hopeful campaign tactic.
JEB BUSH:
I didn’t see it. I’m focused on a hopeful–
CHUCK TODD:
It’s your campaign.
JEB BUSH:
I didn’t see it. I didn’t see it. I don’t know–
CHUCK TODD:
You don’t know this memo? You don’t know this PowerPoint–
JEB BUSH:
No. Well, I read about it when I was leaked for sure. I didn’t know about the PowerPoint. It wasn’t presented–
CHUCK TODD:
Is this something–
JEB BUSH:
–to me.
CHUCK TODD:
–you want your campaign involved with?
JEB BUSH:
I want them to focus on winning New Hampshire, winning South Carolina, winning Iowa, winning Nevada. That’s our first mission. I want to unify the party and I’m focused on that, I’m focused on winning the primary and it’s got to be about me first and foremost.
Look, you’ve been around a long time. You know that comparing and contrasting is part of this. But the basis of my campaign is that we can fix these problems and people can be lifted out of poverty and the great middle can get rising income again. That’s the purpose of my campaign. That’s what I focus on each and every day.
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Olivia Petersen
NBC News
202-885-4159
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MEET THE PRESS
“Meet the Press” is where newsmakers come to make news — setting the political agenda and spotlighting the impact Washington decision-making has on people across the country. “Meet the Press” reaches more than 3 million people every Sunday through its broadcasts and millions more through NBCNews.com, the #TweetThePress interview series, Flipboard, and social media platforms. Chuck Todd is the moderator of “Meet the Press” and John Reiss is the executive producer.
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