Republican presidential contender Jeb Bush has drawn heavily from the administrations of his brother and father in picking his nascent team of foreign policy advisers, a choice that may undercut his assertion that he is his "own man" on international affairs.
Former officials and scholars caution that the list of 21 advisers announced ahead of Bush's first big foreign policy speech on Wednesday was preliminary and would not necessarily form the core of a third Bush presidency. It is also common for leading Republican and Democratic presidential candidates to lean heavily on experienced hands from former administrations — in this case a mix of party hawks and pragmatists.
But by including 19 advisers who served under President George W. Bush, or his father, President George H.W. Bush, Jeb risks criticism during the 2016 campaign that he will represent a continuation of his family's legacy on foreign policy.
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