THE BURNED OVER DISTRICT

With his campaign currently swirling around the bowl and aiming for the drain despite having a $100 Million SuperPAC on his side, some are now wondering if that SuperPAC Right To Rise might be the cause of this Bush Family electoral disaster.

When Jeb Bush and his allies began helping the “super PAC” supporting him raise more than $100 million last year, his bid for the Republican nomination seemed like a safe bet. But as Mr. Bush’s campaign continues to lag, his backers are increasingly turning their frustrations over his foundering candidacy on the group, Right to Rise, and its inability to influence the race.

Some donors quietly worry about how the cash-rich group is spending its money, confounded by how few tangible results the tens of millions it has pumped into the race so far have yielded. Others have expressed dismay with negative ads Right to Rise has run and a 15-minute pro-Bush documentary that it produced.

The frustrations spilled into full view at a private meeting Friday at the Palace Hotel in Midtown Manhattan between Mike Murphy, the group’s chief strategist, and roughly three-dozen donors. Barry Volpert, a partner at the private equity firm Crestview Partners, sharply questioned Mr. Murphy about ads his group had aired attacking Senator Marco Rubio, one of Mr. Bush’s chief rivals for the nomination.

The concern over the negative ads is shared by some donors who have long worried that if Mr. Bush does not win the nomination, such attacks could irreparably harm the eventual nominee. Mr. Volpert, who has associates supporting Mr. Rubio, specifically raised concerns about damaging the Florida senator.

The exchange was the only contentious moment of the gathering, but the rebuke was representative of the growing turmoil between Bush supporters and Right to Rise, as well as a general sense of frustration and anger over what many Bush backers see as lost opportunities.

Some in Mr. Bush’s campaign wish that the group had done more over the summer to blunt the attacks from Donald J. Trump, who depicted their candidate as “low-energy,” and highlight Mr. Bush’s record as governor of Florida.

Jeb! isn't the first Bush to lose an election but he is the first to shit the bed before the first vote has been cast. And lots of people are curious as to why such a rich SuperPAC has signally failed to move public opinion. Maybe nobody is really trying.