Jeb Bush in The New York Times 2010s

On War & Peace: Non-state terrorists are greatest threat we now face

The former Florida governor called non-state terrorist groups such as the Islamic State "perhaps the greatest security threat that we now face for our own homeland."

He added, "Taking them out is the strategy."

On Foreign Policy: Pressured father's V.P. staff to help Cuban prisoners

Jeb Bush sought to arrange a meeting between his father and exile leaders. He called for economic sanctions that would "tighten the noose on Castro." And he questioned the Justice Department's prosecution of a Cuban militant who had already been incarcerated in "Castro's jail for 23 years."

Jeb Bush also sought a promotion for an Army colonel who he noted could become the first United States general of Cuban origin. The president's staff thought better of acting on that request. "Armed Services promotion board reacts very negatively to any sort of political pressure, perceived or otherwise," wrote one of his father's top aides.

On Technology: BlackBerry pictured in official gubernatorial portrait

Bush's reliance on written communications presages his habits as an elected official. As governor, he was known to spend up to 30 hours a week on email and so adored his BlackBerry that he insisted on featuring the device in his official portrait.

The archives at the Bush and Reagan libraries contain more than 1,200 pages of documents relating to Bush, capturing dozens of exchanges between him and the White House staff. But even that may represent just a fraction of his messages, since the archives are incomplete.

On Civil Rights: Respect civil unions & same-sex lifetime commitments

Policy adjustments big & small are routine in American politics. Pres. Obama and Hillary Clinton both previously objected to same-sex marriage; today, they support it.

For Bush, the pattern was illustrated last week by a head-turning statement on the legalization of same-sex marriage in Florida, when he urged "respect" for the unions and offered words of conciliation to same-sex couples "making lifetime commitments to each other."

In 1994, as he ran for governor in Florida, Bush employed strikingly different language when discussing gay rights, arguing that "polluters, pedophiles, pornographers, drunk drivers and developers without permits receive--and deserve--precious little representation or defense from their governor."

On Civil Rights: 1994: LGBT protections are tantamount to elevating sodomy

On Crime: 1994: build more prisons; serve longer sentences

One of Bush's central themes during the 1994 campaign was his desire to streamline the execution process for death row inmates. In order to do this, he proposed limiting death row inmates to only one appeal with the state, a measure he hoped would speed up the state's execution process. Bush named his plan "one trial, one appeal," and released it in the spring of 1994.

Enacting the "one trial, one appeal" plan would have required Florida voters to approve an amendment to the state's constitution, but this hurdle didn't dissuade Bush. In November, he reiterated his goal, saying, "I want to accelerate, not slow down, the enforcement of the death penalty in Florida."

On Crime: 1990s: punishment over therapy; 2010s: that hardens people

Bush "does not flip-flop," a Bush adviser said. "He learns. When he learns, he changes." Bush was particularly influenced by the experience of governing: he suddenly had access to measurements of what worked, and what did not, on issues like juvenile justice

On Education: 1994: cut Department of Education from 2,000 to 50 staff

On Environment: 1990s: Compensate landowners; 2010s: state-run conservation

Bush insists that he will not contort himself to satisfy ideologues, but his views have already changed--in presentation, in tone, in language and, at times, in substance.

A useful case study: the environment. Before the 1994 election, Bush supported a state constitutional amendment, also backed by big corporations, to compensate landowners hurt by conservation efforts. He held out the prospect of cutting funds for a major program to purchase environmentally fragile lands and declared that "excessive regulation does not mean we are going to improve the quality of water, air or land-use planning."

But Bush met with conservation experts and toured important environmental sites across Florida. When he was elected four years later, "his heart changed," an adviser said.

On Tax Reform: 1994: Require voter approval of any new taxes

On Welfare & Poverty: 1994 Phoenix Project: end welfare culture

Under the plan, Florida would refuse to accept federal funds to aid the state's poor families, and restrict benefits to just two years of assistance. To be eligible for benefits, poor women would be required to "identify the fathers of their children, submit to random drug tests and work if jobs were available," according to a Herald story from March 1, 1994.

Bush's welfare plan was an early sign of the sharply conservative tone that would come to characterize his entire campaign.

On Civil Rights: Don't-ask-don't-tell ok if it doesn't affect policy

"On the other stuff, don't ask, don't tell is fine with me," Bush responded, appropriating the terminology Pres. Clinton used regarding gays in the military. "What you do in your private life is your business. If it crosses over into the public policy realm, then that is another matter. If you are comfortable with that, then we can proceed."