The end of the Jeb Bush presidential campaign could just be weeks away, as Team Bush is cancelling reserved advertising in South Carolina and Iowa, saving his fledgling campaign roughly $3 million in advertising costs.
Bush is also pulling staff from Florida and shipping them to Iowa and New Hampshire. New Hampshire appears to be the early primary state that will be Bush’s last stand.
In addition to the staff influx, roughly 200 volunteers are also preparing to deploy into the early states. The first wave of volunteers — many of whom have ties to the presidencies of Bush’s father and brother or worked for him as Florida governor — will be canvassing in New Hampshire and South Carolina beginning on Jan. 8, aides said on Wednesday.
The Bush camp also said it plans to increase its advertising on conservative talk radio stations in South Carolina, a cheaper, lower-profile and less effective way to reach GOP base voters.
No matter how you try to slice or spin this, the news of Bush pulling ads should be very concerning for his donors and supporters, and welcoming to other establishment GOP presidential candidates like Marco Rubio, John Kasich, and Chris Christie.
Somewhere in Iowa, South Carolina, and New Hampshire, a fat lady begins to sing the blues for the Jeb Bush presidential campaign.