New Hampshire should have been his jam. The "moderate" Jeb! Bush could afford to lose socially conservative Iowa—something most expect—on the way to winning the Granite State, where his wonky policy-laden message could truly flourish. But between Donald Trump's bombastic barbs and John Kasich's modest appeals, Jeb!'s getting squeezed out,
reports Eli Stokols.
Despite his professions of joy and optimism, Bush is facing mounting pressures from all sides. Trump continues to hammer him over his gentler manner while running hard to his right on immigration reform and pounding away with a populist assault on Bush's reliance on a network of rich donors.
Beyond Trump knocking him off his game, he is contending with voter fatigue over the possibility of a third Bush in the White House, a sentiment that's only growing as Trump, along with Ben Carson, Carly Fiorina and Ted Cruz continue to fan the flames of this anti-establishment season.
And then there is the growing problem of Kasich, who has made deeper inroads than many expected in New Hampshire, the early state Bush most needs to win. [...]
Here is a moderate two-term governor of a swing state offering himself up to voters as a more charming, blue-collar alternative to Bush without a politically toxic last name.
While Kasich's super PAC has dropped $5 million dollars on positive ads of the candidate, Trump's "low energy" Jeb! jab has taken hold with voters.
“Trump’s right, he’s low key,” said Claira Monier of Goffstown, New Hampshire. “He has no fire in the belly. He’s not energizing people. He’s losing it.”
“He’s got no charisma,” said Steve Christensen of Howe.
All that has lead to this (via
RealClearPolitics' average of polls):