Jeb Bush had some choice words for his GOP rival Donald Trump on Saturday, telling a crowd that he had something he had to get off his chest: "Donald Trump is a jerk."
Bush's name calling came in a New Hampshire event and at the tail end of a week filled with strong words between the front-runner and the former Florida governor, reports
CNN.
He was answering a question from a man who said he had Asperger's Syndrome and wanted to know how Bush, if elected president, would help people with disabilities.
Bush's "jerk" comment met with laughter and applause among his supporters, and he went on to talk about the work he did while governor of Florida, along with the state legislature, to gather more money for the state's disabilities programs.
But Bush wasn't finished with his attacks on Trump, repeating a debate-night argument that "you cannot insult your way to the presidency. You can't disparage women, Hispanics, disabled people. Who is he kidding?"
Last month, Trump came under fire when critics said he
mocked New York Times reporter Serge Kovaleski, who has arthrogryposis, a chronic condition which limits the movement of his arms. Trump demanded an apology from The Times and denied he knew Kovaleski.
Bush also said Saturday that it is "deeply disturbing" that Trump is "running for president and insulting people, and said voters should "reject that out of hand ... a guy like that should not be the front-running candidate of our great party. That is not how we win."
Bush further commented that he gave himself therapy by attacking Trump, and that he felt better. The statements came out on the same day that his
Right to Rise super PAC released a new advertisement panning Trump.
But Trump did not signal that the battle was over, launching two Twitter salvos against Bush, calling him
"dumb as a rock":
And daring him to
use his last name and not be "ashamed" of it: