Jeb Bush lashes out at Donald Trump for criticizing George W. Bush over 9/11

Maxwell Tani

Oct 17, 2015, 01:16 IST

Thomson Reuters

U.S. Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush tours Next Step Bionics & Prosthetics in Manchester

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) lashed out at Donald Trump on Friday over his "pathetic" comments about President George W. Bush's role in the September 11, 2001, terror attacks.

In a tweet Friday afternoon, Bush criticized Trump for suggesting that Bush's brother, who was president during the attacks, was partially to blame.

"How pathetic for @realDonaldTrump to criticize the president for 9/11. We were attacked & my brother kept us safe," Bush tweeted.

During an interview on Friday with Bloomberg, Trump had suggested that Bush may deserve some of the blame for the attacks because "he was president."

"When you talk about George Bush, I mean, say what you want, the World Trade Center came down during his time," Trump said.

"Hold on, you can't blame George Bush for that," Bloomberg anchor Stephanie Ruhle said in response.

"He was president, OK? Blame him, or don't blame him, but he was president. The World Trade Center came down during his reign," Trump said.

During his own campaign, Jeb Bush has faced the difficult challenge of respectfully distancing himself from the legacies of his brother and his father, President George H.W. Bush. But the former Florida governor has forcefully defended his brother's record on national security.

During the second Republican debate last month, Trump hit Jeb Bush by quipping that George W. Bush's presidency resulted in the election of then-Sen. Barack Obama.

Bush immediately fired back, invoking 9/11 and garnering one of the biggest cheers of the night.

"You know what? As it relates to my brother, there is one thing I know for sure - he kept us safe," Bush said. "I don't know if you remember, Donald. You remember the rubble? You remember the firefighter with his arms around it? He sent a clear signal that the United States would be strong and fight Islamic terrorism, and he did keep us safe."

The 9/11 Commission Report, the comprehensive government document that detailed much of the breakdown that led to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, found that the planning for the attacks stretched back beyond President George W. Bush's tenure.