Jeb Bush defends big brother

The president's famous younger brother, Jeb, the former Florida governor, got a little tongue-tied the other day trying to push his favorite cause -- education -- while still defending his brother. Jeb Bush was asked about his brother's No Child Left Behind Act, notorious among educators as forcing students to learn to the test but credited by some for infusing accountability into a broken public education system.

Kicking off a campaign for choice and accountability (and vouchers) in the nation’s public schools,

"I think President Bush 43 has tried," he said, calling NCLB "a historic piece of legislation" and an example of bipartisan cooperation.

But the former governor said he hopes whoever wins the White House next will refocus on education. And in case anyone tries to suggest that he's slighting his brother by pushing an education agenda on the next president, Jeb Bush said, "I'm not being critical of the current president by saying that the next president should make this a higher priority."

-- Peter Wallsten

Photo: Pablo Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press

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[FlyingSpaghettiMnstr]

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