Once again, NBC Nightly News offered the lone segment on the 2016 presidential campaign during its Wednesday program by choosing to hit expected Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush for some recently announced changes in his staff that interim anchor Lester Holt ruled has “overshadowed” his trip to Europe this week.
Leading into senior White House correspondent Chris Jansing’s report from Berlin, Germany, Holt hyped that “his travels are being overshadowed by the drama in his unofficial campaign just days before he's expected to go all in.”
When it was Jansing’s turn, she began by observing that while “[b]eing in Europe has put Jeb Bush miles from home,” it’s turned out to be “not far enough to escape questions about a shake-up on his campaign staff.”
Jansing then chose to play up how Bush refused to answer her question on Tuesday following an event in Germany about his campaign shakeup despite the fact that he told her he would answer questions the following day at an already-scheduled press conference.
Sure enough, a soundbite of Bush answering an identical question was shown from Wednesday in which he deflected it by maintaining that he doesn’t yet have an official campaign and “so there was no switching.”
After Jansing noted how it came as a surprise to many, Jansing mentioned that Bush has filed the necessary paperwork to run ahead of an expected announcement in Florida on Monday and also explained why Bush was taking a trip abroad:
So why come to Germany just days before a campaign launch? It's a presidential rite of passage to show candidates can hold their own on the international stage, look presidential. Bush did get a photo op with German Chancellor Angela Merkel[.]
Despite the staff changes, Jansing proclaimed that “he is still the favorite among the Republican establishment, but he's lost the aura of front-runner.”
A partial transcript from the segment on June 10's NBC Nightly News can be found below.
NBC Nightly News
June 10, 2015
7:11 p.m. Eastern[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE CAPTION: World Stage]
LESTER HOLT: Let's turn now to the presidential campaign trail, which reached all the way to Europe today. Unofficially speaking, of course, because Jeb Bush isn't officially a candidate yet, but his travels are being overshadowed by the drama in his unofficial campaign just days before he's expected to go all in. Our senior White House correspondent Chris Jansing reports tonight from Berlin.
CHRIS JANSING: Being in Europe has put Jeb Bush miles from home, but that's not far enough to escape questions about a shake-up on his campaign staff. Yesterday, he didn't want to talk about it. [TO BUSH] Governor, can you say why you replaced your campaign manager?
JEB BUSH: I will tomorrow when we have our press advise –
JANSING: Today, he's trying to downplay the abrupt change at the top. [TO BUSH] Why have you replaced your campaign manager?
BUSH: Well, first of all, we don't have a campaign, so there was no switching.
JANSING: That would be news to two top campaign aides who got new duties and new titles to the organizations raising tens of millions of dollars to get Bush elected, even to Germans who came to hear him speak...Monday, Bush officially announces for president, although he's already filed the papers. So why come to Germany just days before a campaign launch? It's a presidential rite of passage to show candidates can hold their own on the international stage, look presidential. Bush did get a photo op with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and he is still the favorite among the Republican establishment, but he's lost the aura of front-runner.
(....)
JANSING: Still, Bush insists staff changes are strategic, not a reaction to disappointing polls.
