That rigged candidate selection bit had me worried for a while.
Don't think the riggers will dare try that at this point, but I've had some hunches go south before.
Think some RINO scum would prefer the b-b-b-b witch over Trump, who I think will remain on top as the GOP candidate. .
Like I just said, my hunches ain't prophecy.

I understand your point, but it just goes to the point that the Republican establishment is delusional.

I think that the Republican Political establishment still considers Trump and Cruz as the public throwing a tantrum and when they settle down to being 'serious' that they will go away in favor of someone with experience -- then Bush is back at the top.

Of course having Paul Ryan just pass Obama's Christmas wish list is probably going to keep people riled up for some time to come.

I believe the political elite have been out of touch for a while. As for him being stupid, I think he is being pushed into it by the political elite and that he will stick around for a while until everyone else implodes and we will stuck with him. In reply to GaryL, I fit that perfectly. I am an independent and even the State of New Mexico does not like that, my County Clerk sent me a postcard saying that I could not vote in the primaries unless I registered with a party. New Mexico has a closed primary system where only registered party members can vote in their primaries. To bad, I will not put my name on the party rolls and get swamped with all those emails and letters for donations, I get enough already even being an independent.

It's not the voting that matters; it's the counting...
America has been on a slide into a Banana Republic for a long time. If Bush wins the primary, that would establish it a solid Banana Republic, for sure.

Yes to both of your questions!
The establishment Rs would prefer any of the others who are already in lock step with them. That absolutely excludes Cruz, Trump, Fiorina, Carson, Paul and Christi to a degree. They would have spent the entire bank on Lindsey Graham if he could have moved up even just a little.
A better question might be, How many of us here are registered republicans or independents simply because we could never be democrats?

Sir Jeb of the Royal House of Bush is the one GOP candidate I would refuse to vote for (even to beat Clinton) if he could actually rise to the top. I give thanks unto mysticism that he cannot.
I like to call Sir Jeb "grasshopper eyes" due to that weird stare that peers out from his glasses.
Ted Cruz reminds me of a relative of the Addams family or the Munsters, but I'd voter for him to beat the b-b-b-b witch.
Looks ain't everything. This here is a place to be objective, y'all.
Still, Broom Hillary has aged uglier as sin.

To quote Jebby from an interview on TV dealing with his low standing in the polls: “I’m happy where I am.” Which does drive one to answer the two questions as yes and yes.

I think the only reason he's still in is negotiating power. He feels that if there is a tight race for first and second he can promise his support in exchange for a cabinet position, or the ability to shape the platform. To believe any thing else would be delusional.

Yes it could be comical too.

I think in his insulated world he does believe he will be the nominee. Much like Hillary he thinks the nomination process is a waste of time. They both expect to be coronated nominee and then President just because they agreed to run. If Trump wins and something happens to keep Hillary from running the Political establishment will go crazy. That would be fun to watch.

As far as Jeb goes, IMO, he lost any chance to win the primary when he lost his temper and stammered twice on stage at Trump:
“You will never be president. You will never be president!"
The only thing left to do at that point was to fall to the floor kicking and screaming.
When the tantrum is over...he’ll drop out.

Oh yea. How could I forget. LOL

Lol.

Exhibit 2: Hillary Clinton.

Not sure if photogenic is all that important. Exhibit 1 - Donald Trump. :)

Yes and yes.

Bush is running because he's part of the Republican old blood like his brother and father before him. What he fails to understand (like many other politicians) is that politics is shifting away from the media elites and more toward online forums and blogs. His campaign likely would have been very successful about 30 years ago. His problem is that many of the Republican voters are as tired of the Bush family as they are sickened by the Clinton family. Bush just really isn't all that photogenic - he lacks the type of presence needed by a Presidential candidate. And worst of all are his policies. He's a centrist, establishment guy - which was great twenty or thirty years ago, but people are sick of that kind of candidate - especially now.

Bush has blown a lot of money and has nothing to show for it. He's topped out at 2%-3% in the polls and that isn't going to get any better unless Marco Rubio drops out. Bush, Kasich, Christie, Gilmore, and Pataki are all establishment and getting nowhere. Santorum and Huckabee are trying to appeal to the Evangelicals and are getting trashed by Cruz. They also need to drop out. Carson had a good run, but the more he speaks, the less people want to hear of him. I still think he'd make a great Cabinet member, but I think his presidential aspirations are over. Fiorina may talk big, but her business past is a huge liability I don't see her getting past with GOP voters - let alone Independents. Rand Paul would make a great Secretary of Anything, really. Treasury would be awesome. But he's old news to most as he's run several other times and just can't get critical mass.

I really think that at this point the real battle is between Cruz and Trump. I think Cruz will win Iowa and Trump will take New Hampshire. After those two, we should see at least a half-dozen candidates drop out, probably leaving Trump, Cruz, Carson, Fiorina, and Rubio. A couple of others will probably try to hang around for Nevada and Bush might even try to stay for Florida, but it's just wasted money IMHO.

I think that the party wants a Brush/Rubio ticket so that it will continue to be business as usual. I also don't believe the vote of the people will change the outcome. As for hitlary, I still think the game is to wait until the last minute then stick in Warren.