Jeb Bush Defends Comments on American Work Ethic

As the campaign trail continues to heat up, things are getting pretty interesting.

Just last night, Presidential hopeful and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush met with a group in New Hampshire and some of his comments apparently became fair game for others.

Here is an excerpt below of what Bush said at a town hall meeting, courtesy of the New Hampshire Union Leader:

"My aspiration for the country and I believe we can achieve it, is 4 percent growth as far as the eye can see. Which means we have to be a lot more productive, workforce participation has to rise from its all-time modern lows. It means that people need to work longer hours and, through their productivity, gain more income for their families. That's the only way we're going to get out of this rut that we're in."

Well some of those comments didn’t sit too well with other Presidential hopefuls.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton tweeted:

But Jeb Bush didn’t lay down and his rebuttal was:

In addition, The Bush campaign pointed to the 6.5 million people in America who are working part-time while seeking full-time employment for context.

But, of course, in the heat of the political season, more mud-slinging ensued.

Bernie Sanders decided to add his two cents and in a release said:

"Unfortunately, Gov. Bush does not seem to understand what is happening in our economy today. The sad truth is that because the middle class has declined over the last 40 years, while almost all new income and wealth have gone to the people on top, Americans already work the longest hours of any people in the western industrialized world.”

But that wasn’t all…Rick Tyler, a spokesman from the Cruz campaign told Fox News Channel:

"It would seem to me that Gov. Bush would want to avoid the kind of comments that led voters to believe that Governor Romney was out of touch with the economic struggles many Americans are facing. The problem is not that Americans aren't working hard enough. It is that the Washington cartel of career politicians, special interests and lobbyists have rigged the game against them."

Look for much more of this rhetoric coming from the hopefuls as the campaign season hits its stride.