Bob Dole Endorses Jeb Bush

Dole is also serving as the campaign's national veterans' chairman.
Former Sen. Bob Dole (R-Kan.) will serve as the National Veterans' chairman for GOP candidate Jeb Bush.
Former Sen. Bob Dole (R-Kan.) will serve as the National Veterans' chairman for GOP candidate Jeb Bush.
(Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush announced another endorsement on Wednesday: former Sen. Bob Dole (R-Kan.)

Dole will serve as the national veterans' chairman for the former Florida governor, the campaign announced on Veterans Day. Dole, a previous presidential candidate himself, was injured while serving in World War II.

He said in a statement that he considers "nearly all the Republican candidates to be my friends, but [has] determined that Jeb Bush is the most qualified."

"Jeb has the proven leadership skills and executive experience needed to fix the problems facing our country -- from the anemic economy to America's weakened standing among world leaders," Dole said.

He cited Bush's "conservative reform agenda and forward looking vision" on economic growth, combatting the Islamic State group and veterans' issues, which he said were better than Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton's.

"I will do all I can to be helpful to Jeb’s campaign," Dole said.

Bush has been critical of the Department of Veterans Affairs, which has been plagued with problems and long wait times. Bush announced in August his plan to overhaul the VA by expanding the ability of veterans to receive care outside the agency as well as modernizing how appointments are made within it.

Bush said he was "honored to have Senator Bob Dole’s support."

"The policies of the Obama administration have left the Veterans Administration in an utter mess and one of my first priorities as president will be to fix this broken system and give our veterans the care they deserve," he continued in a statement. "I'm thankful for Senator Dole's valued advice."

Bush currently is running in fifth place in the Republican primary with 6.2 percent support, according to HuffPost Pollster averages.

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