US election 2016: Republican candidate Jeb Bush vows Washington culture shake-up

US Republican presidential hopeful Jeb Bush vowed on 20 July to cut government spending and more tightly limit lawmakers' connections with lobbyists if he reaches the White House, part of an attempt to separate himself from a large pack of Republican rivals.

Bush proposed a federal balanced budget amendment and presidential line-item veto power, as well as a freeze on government hiring.

"Should I win this election, you won't find me deferring to the ways of 'Mount Washington.' The overspending, the overreaching, the arrogance, and the sheer incompetence of the city - sometimes they're treated as though it's a fact of life that nothing can be done about it. But a president should never accept them, and I will not. We need a president willing to challenge the whole culture in our nation's capital - and I mean to do it.

"I have no illusions about what reform really takes. The next president of the United States has got to confront the spending culture in Washington - and I promise you I will do it" Bush said during a speech In Tallahassee.

Bush has been eager to distance himself from Washington or any appearance of continuing a political dynasty.

He has pointed to his record in Florida to cast himself as a reformer and distinguish himself among the 15 Republicans seeking the party's nomination for the November 2016 presidential election.

Bush called for change in what he cast as a calcified culture of spending and lack of oversight in Washington DC. He said a federal balanced budget amendment would be a tool to limit government, "not raise taxes."

On his plan to freeze federal hiring, he said he would replace just one worker out of every three federal employees who leave. He said the president should have "constitutionally sound" line-item veto power to eliminate spending measures from legislation approved by Congress.