"He’s not playing games. He’s being very sincere and honest with folks and..."

[Miles Archer]

Jeb Bush and his emissaries are sending increasingly strong signals that the former Florida governor is gearing up for a 2016 presidential campaign, with associates saying he could announce his intentions within a month.

***

Some senior Republicans in communication with Bush said they have concluded he is almost certain to run. His family — once averse to a campaign — is now on board with a run. Bush also has slimmed down: He is working with a new personal trainer after a knee surgery, according to the Miami Herald, and lost 15 pounds in recent weeks.

Asked whether he saw any reason Bush would not run, one confidant who has been in touch with the former governor said, “I don’t know of anything.” This person, who like some others interviewed spoke on the condition of anonymity to talk candidly about the conversations, said Bush sees value in taking his time before deciding.

***

A second Bush confidant said: “He’s not playing games. He’s being very sincere and honest with folks and going through the things that really matter to him. Within a month, we’ll know.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/jeb-bush-sending-signals-that-he-may-be-getting-ready-for-2016-presidential-run/2014/12/12/eb421326-8235-11e4-8882-03cf08410beb_story.html

[arcane1]

1. Please proceed. The sooner the better n/t

[True Blue Door]

2. No more fucking Harkonnens in the White House.

Two was enough.

[CrispyQ]

3. If it's Clinton vs Bush, I'm writing my vote in.

[OKNancy]

4. The talking heads on CNBC said he sure wasn't making investments like he was running

This was Friday, I believe. They said all his investments sure didn't seem like a good idea for someone running.
He made recent private equity investments and I THINK they said did some stuff with off-shore accounts.
-------

I just did a search and found this from Bloomberg:

http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/features/2014-12-11/jeb-bush-has-a-mitt-romney-problem

Documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Nov. 27 list Bush as chairman and manager of a new offshore private equity fund, BH Global Aviation, which raised $61 million in September, largely from foreign ­investors. In November the fund ­incorporated in the United Kingdom and Wales­—a ­structure, several independent finance lawyers say, that operates like a tax haven by allowing overseas investors to avoid U.S. taxes and regulations.

much more at the link

Also: “I think it signals someone who isn’t seriously looking at the presidency or he wouldn’t have gone down this path.”

Republican consultant John Brabender