I don’t want to eulogize Jeb, but I want to say a few words about him. As I’ve said before, he’s one of my favorite people in public life. He was a superb governor. I have a feeling he would make a superb president. The voters prefer Trump, by a lot. That’s the way it works in a democracy.

Last summer, I jotted my disclosure about Ted Cruz: He and I are old and dear friends, and I of course support him to the hilt. I help him when he asks me to.

In my disclosure, I wrote, “The fact that I am pro-Ted does not mean that I am anti-others. For instance, I’m a big fan of Jeb Bush, always have been. I think he’s one of the best people in public life. About a month ago, Rich Lowry said to me, ‘You’re the only person in the country who loves both Ted and Jeb.’ I doubt it. But if I am, so be it.”

Five years ago, I interviewed Jeb Bush in a TV series. He provided a highly interesting hour, for he is a very, very good interviewee. That interview is here. I’ve just listened to a bit of it.

At about the 11:45 mark, we start talking about presidential politics: He worked for his dad in the 1980 primaries. Campaigned in almost all 50 states. He also campaigned for the Reagan-Bush ticket.

Then there was the Reagan-Bush reelection in 1984. Then the Bush victory in the Republican primaries of 1988. Then the general-election victory over Dukakis. Then the loss to Clinton in 1992. Etc.

In this interview, Jeb talked about losing: about the sting of it, about how you learn from it, about how you grow beyond it. This discussion starts at about 19:27. Jeb suffered a very close loss to Lawton Chiles in 1994. He had seen his dad lose two years before, and handle it manfully (which is how he handles pretty much everything).

Jimmy Carter seemed transformed, and not in a good way, by his loss to Reagan in 1980. Jeb reflects on this.

I have a memory of George W., too: who, when he ran in 2000, was sometimes asked about the prospect of losing. He’d answer in the same way every time: “I saw a good man lose in ’92.” Yup.

Anyway, on we go. The Trump army believes that there is a sickness in the Republican party. I do too — but I diagnose it in a different way: I think that a preference for Trump over Jeb Bush is not a great indication of health.

We are a nation of 300 million people. The two frontrunners are Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. It would be hard for me to think of two people less suited to the presidency in mind and character — especially character — than those two. But, in a democracy, the people get their way. And elections tell us a lot more about us than about the candidates.