Here's the Family Member Jeb Bush Loves Most

January 7, 2016 4:13 PM EST

Jeb Bush loves his mother Barbara more than his father George.

The former Florida Governor made the announcement at an event Thursday in New Hampshire. The New York Times reports that the comment was unprompted.

“I get asked all the time: ‘Well, are you like your brother? Are you like your dad?’” said Bush. “I know there’s a real fascination about this. Let’s just — let me get this out of the way: I love my mother more than my dad.”

Besides praising the former First Lady, Bush continued on about his father, George Bush, the 41st president, and his brother, George W. Bush, the 43rd president. Bush has repeatedly talked about his father on the campaign trail, but tried to to distance himself from the family legacy early on.

“Put aside all the 41 and 43 — who you like, all that stuff that’s a People magazine kind of fascination,” he said. “I’m blessed, that’s all I have to tell you.”

Bush continued to praise his family, but was careful to separate himself from his brother’s 2000 presidential run and presidency as a whole. “I’m blessed to be George and Barbara’s son, and I’m blessed to be George W.’s brother,” Bush said. “But the world we’re in today is dramatically different than 2000, when my brother got elected, and 2001, when the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon and the plane went down in Pennsylvania.”

Here's the Family Member Jeb Bush Loves Most

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