With the recent announcement that he’ll begin exploring a 2016 presidential bid, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has become the first nationally prominent Republican to lunge toward his party’s nomination. Meanwhile, on the other side of the aisle, all eyes are focused on Hillary Clinton, who’s widely expected to announce a bid early next year.

It’s all a little depressing, no?

Don’t get us wrong. Gov. Bush proved himself a capable chief executive during his eight years in the Sunshine State. As for Clinton, the former secretary of state is certainly a formidable and impressive figure.

What troubles us is not so much the individual records of either potential candidate but, rather, the dynastic impulse that they represent.

Consider this: Assuming that either Bush or Clinton makes the race in 2016, it will mean that nine of the past 10 presidential elections will have featured a member of the Bush or Clinton families somewhere in the mix (2012 was an exception). Of course, we laud both clans’ dedication to public service – but, surely, a nation of more than 300 million people has enough political talent to keep the highest office in the land from being the near-exclusive purview of just two families.

For good or ill, the Bushes and the Clintons have shaped much of the past three decades of American politics. Perhaps, however, it is time they yield the floor to a new generation. Indeed, it seems even their own parties may be growing restless. Progressive dissatisfaction with Clinton is not negligible, and the same can be said of conservatives’ reaction to Bush.

There is something unseemly about this quasi-aristocratic tendency taking hold in a constitutional republic. Rotating a diverse cast of characters through high office is a healthy impulse in a country such as ours. We wish Bush and Clinton well in their respective endeavors – but we also welcome an influx of fresh blood to keep them on their toes as 2016 approaches.

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