Jeb Bush says the prospect of a Donald Trump presidency is “kind of scary.”
The former Florida governor blasted Trump, saying he doubts the real estate mogul’s readiness for the White House, in an appearance on CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday.
“I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt to see how the campaign unfolded,” Bush said. “But if you listen to him talk, it’s kind of scary to be honest with you, because he’s not a serious candidate.”
“He doesn’t talk about the issues at hand that are of national security importance for our country — to keep us safe is the first priority of the president. And he’s all over the map, misinformed at best and preying on people’s fears at worst,” he added.
Bush has become more critical of Trump in recent days, hitting him for failing to stop attendees at a campaign rally from roughing up a Black Lives Matter protester and over Trump’s claims — which fact-checkers have called false — that Muslim-Americans in New Jersey celebrated the 9/11 attacks.
Bush also criticized Trump’s approach to Syria, saying he has shifted positions repeatedly.
“And the net effect of this is in these really serious times he’s not a serious leader,” he said.
Bush was asked about one of his advisers’ reference to Trump as a fascist — a word also used by an adviser to Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and several other Republicans.
“Look, I just think he’s uninformed. He knows what he’s saying. He’s smart. He’s playing you guys like a fiddle, the press, by saying outrageous things and garnering attention. That’s his strategy, is to dominate the news,” Bush said.
Bush also said “anybody is better than Hillary Clinton” when it comes to the presidency, but, “I’ll let the voters decide about Donald Trump. I’m pretty confident that the more they hear of him the less likely he’s going to get the Republican nomination.”
Ohio Gov. John Kasich, another Republican presidential contender, also criticized Trump, saying on ABC’s “This Week” that Trump “absolutely mocked” a disabled reporter for disputing Trump’s characterization of a 2001 newspaper article about Muslims in New Jersey celebrating 9/11.
“Look, it’s about whether we want to have a leader who unifies the country. I mean, Trump has criticized and insulted women, Hispanics, Muslims and reporters,” Kasich said.