Jeb Bush's Massive Email Release May Prep 2016 Run

That familiar season is nearly upon us! No, not the holiday season, or the coming new year. I'm talking about the 2016 presidential campaign season, which is widely expected to begin in earnest when Hillary Clinton makes her decision sometime in January. But for all the publicity she's received, there's another side to the coin: who's going to step up for the GOP? Of all the establishment names being floated, one former Florida governor seems to be picking up steam — Jeb Bush will release emails from his gubernatorial years, citing a desire for "transparency," which is a solid indication he's prepping a 2016 presidential run.

This is far from the first time we've heard rumblings that Jeb, the younger brother of former President George W. Bush by seven years, is looking to flip his hat into the ring. In fact, George W. himself made the case for Jeb's candidacy back in May, saying he thought he'd make "a great President." Jeb's son George P. Bush also spoke to his father's possible ambitions, telling the press that he's "more than likely" going to run. But his announced intention to release 250,000 emails from his time as Florida governor takes the speculation to a new, more concrete levels — if Bush isn't planning to run in 2016, he's at the very least acting exactly as he would if he were.

Bush explained his decision in an interview with Miami's WPLG Saturday.

I was digital before digital was cool, I guess. ... I think part of serving or running, both of them, is transparency — to be totally transparent. So I’ll let people make up their mind. There’s some funny ones, there’s some sad ones, there’s some serious ones.

Bush isn't stopping just at the email release, however. He's also planning to release an Ebook about his politics and his time in office. The publishing of a self-defining book in advance of a presidential run is yet another tried-and-true staple of presidential campaign prep — you may remember Mitt Romney's pre-campaign book, conspicuously titled No Apology: Believe in America.

All in all, despite there being a number of prominent Republicans who've been bandied about as likely contenders for much longer — New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, to name a few — Bush seems to be seriously gearing up to win the favor of the GOP establishment.

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