The Business Council of Alabama (BCA) announced Tuesday that former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush will be the keynote speaker at their annual Chairman’s Dinner Oct. 7 at The Sheraton Hotel in Birmingham.
Speculation about Bush possibly running for president in 2016 has grown in recent weeks. Chris Christie’s star has dimmed a bit in the eyes of some of the major donors in the establishment wing of the GOP, making Bush their top choice. The Washington Post continued stoking the speculation Monday with a post discussing the key members of Bush’s inner circle who would play a role in his campaign if he decides to run. Bush also spoke alongside former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at an education conference in Texas earlier this week, giving the media a glimpse of what the Bush-Clinton matchup that they so badly want might actually look like.
Education reform has been the policy area Bush has been most engaged with since leaving office in 2007. Perhaps most notably, Bush has been one of the biggest proponents of Common Core, the national education standards that have become such a hot button issue, particularly among grassroots conservatives who are pushing for the repeal of Common Core in states around the country. Earlier this week Indiana became the first state to opt out of the standards. Repeal efforts have faltered in Alabama, in large part because of the successful lobbying efforts of the BCA and the support of many of their members.
Contributions for the BCA’s Chairman’s Dinner are used to support the organization’s political action committee, ProgressPAC. The PAC currently has over $2.2 million cash on hand, according to campaign finance disclosures filed with the secretary of state. Most of that money is expected to go to Republican incumbents in the Alabama legislature, although the BCA is a non-partisan organization that donates to candidates on both sides of the aisle.
For more information about the dinner or purchasing tickets, visit the BCA’s website or contact Mark Colson at mcolson@bcatoday.org.
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