A common sense point so few around here seem willing to acknowledge. I think we can count out Pataki, Graham, Gilmore and a few others...but I don't think we can make much of it in stone at this point. I think Jeb is going nowhere, and have from day one. I think it even more now.
With Trump - the lesson is air traffic control......or the analogy is air traffic control. It's a long long slog, and all it would take is one bad trip up. For ATC, 99.9% is not good enough. Gonna be hard I think to front run for the entire distance.
“gonna be hard to front run for the entire distance”
An excellent point, one not made often enough.
“Running” diminishes most candidates, over the long run. This process is much, MUCH too long, and it works against the people’s interest in self-governance through representative institutions.
An irreverent (and perhaps irrelevant) anecdote that might appeal to you ...
“Poppy Bush came up with the idea that if Jeb would go skydiving, that it would generate some favorable publicity for his dying campaign, so Poppy Bush charters a plane, Jeb gets suited up, and when they reach altitude, Poppy opens the hatch, and says “enjoy the ride!” and pushes him out...
...Jeb is sailing down towards the Earth, picking up speed amd pulls the rip cord, and nothing happens. NOTHING. Alarmed, he pulls the emergency back up chute cord, and once more, NOTHING. No chute. Now he’s scared.
Jeb is picking up speed, and wondering what to do, and suddenly sees a man flying UP rapidly from the Earth in his direction, and as the man gets closer, he sees that it’s Donald Trump! As Trump flies by, he shouts “hey Don?!? You know anything about parachutes?”
Trump calls back down as he continues to ascend, “NOOOO, do you know anything about gas stoves?!?”