(CNN) -- This is what happens when politics starts looking like a cult: Jeb Bush gets attacked for being a traitor to the conservative cause. The former Florida governor has been speaking with the freedom of someone not running for office, saying that both his father and Ronald Reagan would have had a hard time in today's hard-right GOP and questioning the wisdom of Grover Norquist's absolutist anti-tax pledge. That set off a fascinating public fight between Bush and Norquist, two faces of competing factions within Republican Party. It is the latest evidence of a growing GOP backlash against the ideological straitjacket Norquist has attempted to impose on governing in the United States.
@highlight
It's a bad sign for GOP when Jeb Bush's conservative allegiance questioned, John Avlon says
@highlight
Avlon says Bush was right to repudiate Grover Norquist's anti-tax pledge
@highlight
Ronald Reagan was willing to accept some tax increases to achieve compromise, he says
@highlight
Avlon: In the battle between Bush and Norquist, the smart choice is to back Bush's view
Grover Norquist
Norquist
Norquist
Grover Norquist
Norquist
The @placeholder pledge commits signers to oppose all tax increases on individuals or businesses in any circumstances as well as changing deductions or credits unless they are revenue neutral.
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
He added, "Back to my dad's time and @placeholder's time -- they got a lot of stuff done with a lot of bipartisan support," saying that Reagan "would be criticized for doing the things that he did."
Jeb Bush
Bush
Jeb Bush
Bush
Bush
Bush
Here was his response to @placeholder on this front: "There's a guy who watched his father throw away his presidency on a 2:1 (ratio of spending cuts to tax increases) promise.