FILE - In this Nov. 20, 2014 file photo, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush listens before speaking at the National Summit on Education Reform in Washington in November. There’s a whole year of campaigning, positioning and politicking to go before the next campaign for president... (Associated Press) 
 
 The former Florida governor stepped down from his remaining board memberships on Wednesday, the last day of the year, an aide said Wednesday night. The aide said the resignations had been made “effective today.” 
 
 The aide said Bush was reviewing other businesses in which he is principal partner or owner, such as Jeb Bush & Associates, a consulting firm, and Britton Hill Partnership, a business advisory group that in 2013 set up private-equity funds investing in energy and aviation. Bush’s decision to extricate himself from his private-sector work is “part and parcel of a process he is going through as he transitions to focus on a potential run for president,” said his spokeswoman, Kristy Campbell. While some strategists have said Bush's private-equity work could open him to some of the same criticisms that dogged Mitt Romney, the GOP's last presidential nominee, Bush himself has said his business record would be an asset in a campaign. He previously announced plans to step down from the board of Tenet Healthcare Corp. and leave his advisory role with British banking giant Barclays by Dec. 31. WASHINGTON (AP) — Jeb Bush has resigned all of his board memberships — both nonprofit and business — in a move that helps clear a path toward a 2016 presidential campaign.
– One more sign that when Jeb Bush says he is "actively exploring" a presidential run in 2016, it means the formal announcement is just a matter of time: He has resigned from all his boards and continues to "shed business interests" ahead of a primary fight, reports the Washington Post. “This is a natural next step that will allow him to focus his time on gauging interest for a potential run," says his spokeswoman. The Post singles out one business connection in particular that opponents might have seized upon to sully his image as an education reformer: He had been a paid adviser for Academic Partnerships, a for-profit education firm that sells online courses to public universities. As the Post writes, "some faculty members say it siphons money from the schools while asserting too much control over academic decisions." Meanwhile, Bush also rejected an invitation from Rep. Steve King to speak at the Iowa Freedom Summit later this month. Bush cited a scheduling conflict, though the AP notes it could have been politically dicey: King is a vocal critic of immigration reform, while Bush is an advocate.