MIAMI -- Republican Jeb Bush formally kicked off his presidential campaign Monday with a hopeful message about America's future staked on his track record as Florida's governor, while also differentiating himself from some of his GOP rivals.
"In any language, my message will be an optimistic one because I am certain that we can make the decades just ahead in America the greatest time ever to be alive in this world," Bush said. "I will campaign as I would serve, going everywhere, speaking to everyone, keeping my word, facing the issues without flinching, and staying true to what I believe.
"I will take nothing and no one for granted. I will run with heart. I will run to win."
Bush touted his tenure in Florida, during which 1.3 million new jobs were created, the state's credit was upgraded and student achievement improved. Under his governorship, Bush said, the state budget was balanced and taxes were cut each year for eight years.
"And if I am elected president, I'll show Congress how that's done," said Bush, 62.
Priorities if he wins the White House include 4 percent economic growth, reduced taxes and regulations, energy security and a rebuilt military.
He offered direct criticism of President Barack Obama and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton, notably on what he called a "phone-it-in foreign policy" that has led to "crises uncontained, violence unopposed, enemies unnamed, friends undefended and alliances unraveling."
Bush offered veiled criticism of some of his GOP rivals, noting that they have the same level of experience that Obama did when he took the oath of office.
"There's no passing off responsibility when you're a governor, no blending into the legislative crowd or filing an amendment and calling that success," Bush said. "As our whole nation has learned since 2008, executive experience is another term for preparation, and there is no substitute for that. We're not going to clean up the mess in Washington by electing the people who either helped create it or have proven incapable of fixing it."
Bush spoke glowingly of his father, former President George H.W. Bush, and his mother, former first lady Barbara Bush, and he mentioned his brother, former President George W. Bush. He confronted one of the obstacles to his candidacy: his last name.
"There are a lot of good people running for president. ... And not a one of us deserves the job by right of resume, party, seniority, family or family narrative," Bush said. "It's nobody's turn. It's everybody's test, and it's wide open."
The announcement formalizes what has been well-known for months as Bush crisscrossed the nation greeting voters and raising tens of millions of dollars.
Democrats immediately criticized Bush's record as governor and sought to tie him to his brother.
"We already know what to expect from a Bush presidency, because we've seen it before. Jeb Bush supported his brother's disastrous economic and foreign policies that made us weaker at home and abroad," said Democratic National Committee Chairman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
Bush, who had been mentioned as a presidential prospect for years, surprised many when he finally expressed interest in running in December.
But far from being a commanding front-runner -- as his brother proved to be when he ran in 2000 -- Bush has failed to break free of a large and growing field of GOP rivals.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who will likely vie with Bush for the support of establishment and less ideologically conservative Republicans, has signaled his intention to enter the race by the end of summer, saying that he began considering a run because Bush has not proved to be a dominant front-runner.
"I thought Jeb was just going to suck all the air out of the room, and it just hasn't happened," Kasich said in New Hampshire earlier this month.
Even Marco Rubio, Florida's junior senator, declined to stand aside for Bush, who helped mentor Rubio early in his political career. The freshman lawmaker has been climbing in polls as Bush has stalled or fallen back.
Bush was accompanied by his wife, Columba, their children and grandchildren, as well as his mother.
He was not planning to talk about immigration on Monday, but protesters left him little choice. Just as he introduced his mother, a group of several people revealed yellow T-shirts that spelled out, "Legal status is not enough," before being escorted out of the speech.
Bush responded by departing from his prepared remarks. "Just so that our friends know, the next president of the United States will pass meaningful immigration reform so that that will be solved -- not by executive order," Bush said, referring to Obama's orders to offer relief to some people who are in the country illegally.
Bush prefers creating a path to legal status for the millions of people now living in the country illegally as part of an immigration overhaul, rather than making a path to U.S. citizenship.
In the past six months, Bush has made clear he will remain committed to his core beliefs in the campaign to come -- even if his positions on immigration and education standards are unpopular among the conservative base of the party, which plays a large role in the GOP primaries.
Tea Party leader Mark Meckler on Monday said Bush's positions on education and immigration are "a nonstarter with many conservatives."
The venue for Monday's announcement, Miami Dade College, was chosen in part to telegraph Bush's intention to reach beyond what has been the party's political base. A part of Florida's extensive public university system, the college has one of the largest enrollments of Hispanic students in the country.
Bush broke into fluent Spanish during his campaign speech in front of a diverse audience of several hundred people inside the heavily air-conditioned campus gymnasium. Aides passed out red and white signs and "thunder sticks" emblazoned with Bush's campaign logo -- Jeb! -- as well as placards reading in Spanish, "Todos por Jeb," or "All in for Jeb."
Stationed outside were demonstrators with signs indicating that they did not want another Bush in the White House. Bush's father was president from 1989 to 1993. His brother was president from 2001 to 2009.
Having made his announcement, Bush next plans to take a three-day swing through several of the earliest-voting states -- Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina -- followed by a trip later this month to Nevada.
Information for this article was contributed by Mark Z. Barabak and Seema Mehta of The Los Angeles Times and by Steve Peoples, Brendan Farrington, and Meg Kinnard of The Associated Press.
A Section on 06/16/2015