“There’s going to be some resistance to a Bush III here,” said Fred Payne, a member of the Greenville County Council who backed George W. 15 years ago and is now uncommitted.
“Jeb’s a good guy,” added Payne, 74, who came to hear Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker speak at a barbecue organized by the state GOP Thursday night. “He’s got a great family name, but I really think America is ready for a fresh name. We’ve got such a great stable of candidates.”
That stable is part of Bush’s problem. While nearly everyone agrees that the 2016 field is currently wide open, the buzz at the grass roots is about neurosurgeon Ben Carson, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry (who has been spending a lot of time here) and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul — but not Bush. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum each came to the state last Saturday for a national security conference outside Columbia.
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