A new report claims the Bush political machine is quietly preparing to move back into the GOP once President Donald Trump leaves office in 2029.
The family that once ruled Republican politics is reportedly looking to reclaim control of the party.
Former President George W. Bush has spent most of the past decade outside the political spotlight. He has focused on golf, charity events and life in Texas. He has rarely weighed in on the Trump era.
Bush has criticized the president’s policies in the past, calling them forms of “nativism.” Beyond that, he has stayed mostly silent. His allies have publicly pushed him to rejoin the fight.
Former RNC Chair Michael Steele pleaded with Bush during a recent MSNBC broadcast.
He looked into the camera and said, “President Bush, please man, we could use your voice right now.” He added that Bush’s voice “would resonate with a lot more Americans than some folks around you are telling you.”
The Daily Mail reported that Bush allies have long believed they needed to “ride out” Trump’s second term before launching any comeback attempt.
The outlet wrote that “rumors are stirring of a plot to end the so-called Bush Exile and take back the GOP from the so-called scourge of Trumpism.”
The report said that a “shadow Republican Party” connected to the Bush world is waiting for Trump to leave office. These allies want to shape the GOP’s future after 2029. The report suggested Bush himself may quietly help influence the party’s long-term direction.
A former Bush official told the Daily Mail that the president “knows that there’s no third term option.” The source admitted that Vice President JD Vance “has a head start” for 2028. Polling has consistently shown Vance with a strong lead over other potential GOP contenders.
The same former official predicted a wide-open Republican field in 2028. He said there will be significant competition for the party’s leadership once Trump completes his second term.
Bush and Trump clashed heavily in the 2016 primary cycle. The president repeatedly attacked Bush over foreign policy decisions and the war on terror. Those criticisms helped define Trump’s rise.
Bush has emerged occasionally to criticize Trump since then. During a 2019 political discussion with Bill Clinton, he claimed that Trump’s “isolationist” policies were destabilizing the world. That comment drew immediate backlash from conservative voters.
Bush continued those criticisms in a 2021 CBS News interview. He told Norah O’Donnell that he believed Trump lacked the “humility” needed to lead effectively. Bush’s remarks were widely viewed as an extension of his long-standing dislike for Trump’s populist appeal.
The new report has stirred renewed anger from grassroots conservatives. Many voters view the Bush world as the establishment class that lost touch with the party’s base. The idea of a Bush comeback has already triggered strong pushback online.
The Bush family has not responded to the report. Allies insist they are simply preparing for the post-Trump era. The president remains overwhelmingly popular within the GOP.
