Jeb Bush 'sheds business ties ahead of possible White House run'
Washington (AFP) - Former Florida governor Jeb Bush has stepped down from all of his corporate and non-profit boards, US media reported Thursday, in another sign that he is gearing up for a White House run.
In an email Wednesday to the Washington Post, an aide said Bush, 61, also has ended his role as a paid adviser to a for-profit education company, Academic Partnerships, that sells online courses to public university students in exchange for a share of their tuition payments.
The aide told The Post Wednesday that resignations were made "effective today."
The former governor in recent days has been ending business and professional affiliations, including some that could prove politically compromising, as he lays the groundwork for a possible presidential candidacy.
Shedding his private-sector work is "part and parcel of a process he is going through as he transitions to focus on a potential run for president," his spokeswoman, Kristy Campbell told The Post.
"This is a natural next step that will allow him to focus his time on gauging interest for a potential run."
Bush on December 16 announced he was laying the foundation for a White House run, making him the first serious Republican contender in the race.
He recently ended a consulting deal with Barclays, the British investment-banking conglomerate, that paid him more than $1 million a year, according to reports.
The Post also reported that recent filings to the US Securities and Exchange Commission revealed that Bush was leaving the boards of two publicly traded firms: Rayonier, which invests in forest lands, and Tenet Healthcare, which backed and profited from President Barack Obama's health insurance reform program.
The scion of one of America's most prominent political families, Jeb Bush is the son to one former US president, George H. W. Bush, and brother to another, George W. Bush.
