Jeb Bush backtracked Tuesday on remarks he made earlier in the week when he said there are “10 things I would change in the Constitution with a magic wand.”
Bush made the comments to the Washington Post in response to a question about the 14th Amendment and birthright citizenship, specifically a reaction to Donald Trump’s new immigration plan that calls birthright citizenship “the biggest magnet for illegal immigration.”
On Tuesday, Bush clarified to CNN that he meant that changing the Constitution is a lengthy and slow process.
“No, I said that there’s all sorts of amendments, you know, the balanced budget amendment, there’s all sorts of things that people can say as a candidate that you do but the likelihood of those happening is really not a policy. It’s going to take a long, long time. I would love to see a balanced budget amendment.”
Seemingly exasperated, the former governor added, “I mean, is there anyway to actually have a conversation with people where you, you know, the context of the words are clear? I’m glad I got a chance to clarify that, thanks.”
Again he added that he fundamentally disagrees with Trump’s stance on immigration, “To suggest that people born in this country are not United States citizens because they don’t have this in the Constitution I just reject out of hand.”
A new CNN/ORC poll out today shows Bush polling at 13% with Republican voters, trailing 11 points behind Donald Trump.
As Bush slides in the polls, he struggles to keep the narrative on policy and not personality.
When asked about whether or not he thinks that Trump has the policy chops and qualifications to be president, Bush responded by saying, “I’m going to focus on my candidacy and my experience and my views.”