Politics & Government

WATCH: Jeb Bush Staffer Covers Citizen's Camera

While speaking with a New Hampshire voter about Hurricane Katrina, campaign tries to block someone from filming the interaction.

The long lost art of political birddogging, the process by which a voter or citizen with a particular political persuasion tries to get information out of a political candidate at a public event, has turned professional in recent years, with teams of videographers from both sides of the aisle attempting to catch a candidate making a huge mistake.

But the average voter in New Hampshire is now also recording their interactions with candidates, getting pictures, and receiving answers about the issues of the day.

Such was the situation last week, while campaigning in New Hampshire, former Gov. Jeb Bush, R-FL, was approached by Jong Chin, a New Hampshire voter who attempted to speak with the candidate on the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina about climate action.

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“Oh yeah? Why,” Bush asked. “Hurricanes have always happened.”

Chin replied, “It was acerbated by it.”

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Bush countered that the dikes in New Orleans weren’t built correctly and the hurricane hit Florida before Louisiana, where it didn’t cause nearly as much damage even though the storm was just as strong.

Chin tried to continue the conversation with the candidate and while doing so, a Bush staffer reportedly moved around and began trying to block the camera of a person recording the interaction. Bush then turned away and shook other hands.

Neither the Bush campaign’s national press office nor Rich Killion, the New Hampshire coordinator for the campaign, responded to email requesting information about the staffer or the interaction.


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