Most of the stuff in Minneapolis Star Tribune reporter Kevin Diaz' latest big piece on Bachmann is stuff you could have read on this blog at any time over the past month or so. But here's the dramatic anecdote that reporter Diaz uses to open his latest big piece on Michele Bachmann.
WASHINGTON - A few weeks into her first term in Congress, Michele Bachmann stood around a radio booth as a news reporter described her as an evangelical Christian who had the potential to be "very outspoken" on social issues.
Bachmann approached moments later to inform him, "I'm also a tax attorney."
As the Minnesota Republican rises to prominence in the national Tea Party that meets this weekend in Nashville, the two sides of Bachmann's political persona have been fused into a mirror image of the newly charged conservative reaction against government spending and much of the rest of President Obama's domestic agenda.
That's it, babe, that's the anecdote and the insight. You see? She was an attorney for the government's tax department, Diaz reports that she reminded people of that back in 2006--and this is one of the two sides of Michele Bachmann that have been "fused."
But what about the other side--the "evangelical conservative" side that Diaz mentioned? Does Diaz explain how the "evangelical Christianity" he mentioned in the first paragraph is fused to tea party anti-tax conservatism?
No, sadly, he does not. You think that this time the Strib might boldly go where no professional reporter has gone before and explain how the national evangelical political movement made an obscure Minnesota backbencher into a national political figure: but no. (At the least the Strib is willing to use the phrase the "evangelical Christian" to describe her, nine years later. Prior to this, they used a political euphemism ("social conservative") which told readers nothing about the national political movement backing Bachmann.)
CONTINUED BELOW
The papers keep telling me that the teabagging guys are grassroots, but I don't see it. I mean--the tickets to the convention in Nashville cost $549, and only 600 "delegates" were willing to pay that.
As you probably know by now, teabagger icon Michele Bachmann decided to cancel, when it was pointed out to her that a paid appearance at "for profit" grassroots event might get into some law trouble. But Sarah Palin isn't holding any office, so she's free to go--collecting her "grassroots" $100,000.
All this following Michele's "no" vote on taxing the bonuses of AIG execs who left American taxpayers holding the bag for a $100 billion dollar bailout. If you smell a rat when teabagger elected officials claim that they have the interests of the grassroots at heart--you're not the only one. Here's some teabaggers smelling that very same rat, as quoted in the Seattle Times:
...prominent voices in the (tea party) movement remain furious about the financial setup. Erick Erickson, editor of RedState.com, a conservative blog, wrote that the convention "smells scammy."
Two tea-party groups - the American Liberty Alliance and the National Precinct Alliance - withdrew from the convention in protest, as did two featured speakers, Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., and Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn. (Editor's note: That's a very kind interpretation those speakers' decisions. As I said, I think it more likely that it was not principle but fear of law trouble. I am supported in this belief by a remark by another tea bagger, who said he understood Bachmann's decision to cancel in light of the possibility of a follow-up "show trial" in Washington. Anyway:)
"The average tea-party person is going to be sitting on their couch at home because they can't afford $600 for a lobster-and-steak dinner in a fancy hotel," said Anthony Shreeve, 27, a tea-party organizer from Tennessee who is boycotting the convention and Palin's speech. "It didn't sound 'tea party' to me. It sounded more like a regular Republican fundraiser."
RIGHT you are, Mr. Anthony Shreeve of Tennessee! Give that very perceptive young man a cigar. The tea party spurted directly out pre-existing conservative activism. Same cast of characters, new name for the movement. They are no more "grass roots" than socialist activists, and they have received considerable aid and counsel from "grassroots" right wing millionaires. The fiction it's a "grass roots" movement is based on the conservative fiction that "conservative Americans are the "real" America," and all of the rest of us are dopes or a potential threat to national security.
But it is kind of fun to see the expression on rank-and-file tea bagger faces when they find that their supposedly "grassroots" movement has been co-opted so quickly and so easily by the very special interests in Washington, D.C. that they claim to be battling. It does indeed look a like a GOP fundraiser, when tickets are going for $549.
...the groups largely have united around a common cause: a don't-tread-on-me brand of fiscal conservatism and a belief that the federal government, first under President George W. Bush and now under Obama, has recklessly plunged the nation further into debt and overstepped its constitutional powers.
It is only the fabled "conservative power of reality denial" that keeps the tea party guys in the movement. After all--these conservative activists were slavish idolators of (and proselytizers) for the Bush/Cheney administration and the Gingrich/DeLay GOP Congress...
...who, between them, spent their taxpayer dollars like drunken sailors for more than a decade! Where, then, were the angry conservative mobs demonstrating against the out-of-control spending? Denial is at the heart of the average conservative--without denial to shred reality and historical fact for you, every day, you cannot be conservative. And if you're a teabagger, you've been coopted--your candidates will be Bush "big government people," too.
How do I know that already? Because one of leading lights of the teabaggers is our own Michele Bachmann--the most adoring fan of current teabagger villian George W. Bush. On the record, so many times during the past decade-- slavering over the man and defending Bush economic policies that teabaggers now regard as anathema. Literally kissing the guy!
And she's the one the teabaggers think is going to overturn the massive spending and debt incursion in Washington that Bush implemented for eight years.
Put down the tea party's acceptance of Bachmann as a principled leader as more evidence of the following--written in 1866 by a man acknowledged to be one of the most brilliant who ever lived:
"I never meant to say that the Conservatives are generally stupid. I meant to say that stupid people are generally Conservative. I believe that is so obviously and universally admitted a principle that I hardly think any gentleman will deny it."-- John Stuart Mill.
Michele Bachmann, in the Star Tribune, December 10, 2009:
The majority of Americans last fall were united against the $700 billion Wall Street bailout known as TARP. Proponents of the bill urged immediate action, claiming that a failure to act quickly would send the financial industry over the brink.
And the people who said TARP was necessary were right, and Michele and the conservatives were wrong. Again.
Audit Finds TARP Program Effective
By JACKIE CALMES
Published: December 9, 2009
New York Times
WASHINGTON - The independent panel that oversees the government's financial bailout program concluded in a year-end review that, despite flaws and lingering problems, the program "can be credited with stopping an economic panic."
...
Its conditional good review of TARP coincides with the Treasury Department's separate report this week that better-than-expected repayments, interest and other returns likely will mean that taxpayers will get back most of the $700 billion used to create TARP.
The bank bailouts are turning a small profit, Treasury said. It anticipated losses through next year of no more than $140 billion-about $200 billion less than forecast just four months ago-on payments extended to auto and insurance companies and for housing programs...
I never thought I'd say this, but: kudos to the Obama and Bush administrations for acting to head off a real economic depression by standing up to anti-TARP dingleberries like Bachmann.
So they had the rally supporting Pawlenty's proposed amendment to stop future governors from spending as much as he spent.
Bachmann was there; she spoke and that rates a mention in the Star Tribune. But instead of reporting, we get this...
Bachmann joins rally on state spending
In St. Paul, she voiced support for a constitutional amendment to cap state spending and end "fantasy economics."
By BAIRD HELGESON, Star Tribune
Last update: December 7, 2009 - 10:25 PM
U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann brought her fiery brand of fiscal conservatism to a State Capitol rally Monday in support of a proposed constitutional amendment to cap state spending...
Where are they finding reporters for the Strib, these days? Do the editors just pull up to the local 7-11 and hire whatever kid is working the Slurpee machine?
Bachmann's not a fiscal conservative. She just talks like one; there's a difference. And the difference between her actions and her words is the story here--not the fact that she spoke.
Her words are empty conservative BS, as usual. Bachmann notoriously made a pledge not seek or accept any earmarks for her district. If she'd kept that promise, that would be fiscal conservatism--because federal earmark money represents the government spending of other people's tax dollars in her district. That's what Bachmann is supposed to be against, as a "fiscal conservative."
But she broke her promise not to seek or accept earmarks. And that's not fiscal conservatism, "fiery" or otherwise. That's called "hypocrisy"--and when a politician is hypocritical on a matter of public policy,real newspapers explain the context and the truth to its readers.
Not the Strib. They don't see that as their job--if Bachmann tells people that she's for fiscal responsibility at the same time she's supporting increased deficit spending: that's a lie that the Strib can live with, and pass on to their readers.
And let's not get started on the Pawlenty angle of the story that this story could have included for the readers' benefit: the story of how TP has the nerve to propose a fiscal restraint amendment on future governors, when he couldn't govern that way to save his political life. He puts us all six billion in the hole, and wants to be known as the "fiscal restraint" guy!
"Reporting" is not supposed to be the same as "stenography." The guys who write and publish the Strib should really start reading other papers, so they get some idea of what's going on in the news these days.
Well, duh, we've been doing the "horrific rate of home foreclosures in Bachmann's district" for years now--someone in the national media has finally picked up on the notion that "wow, that story's worth running..."
Ed Schultz seems to be the first member of the national triumvirate (Olbermann, Maddow) to pick up on the story of the extraordinarily high rate of home foreclosures in Bachmann's district and her "failure to do s**t about that." (My phrase.)
You know, the "Bachmann's home foreclosure rate is highest in Minnesota" story has been an established fact almost a year now, and I've commented on it here on the Kos countless times and I even did a comic about the fact in a local newspaper. What I want to know is--who finally got that fact to a person like Ed Schulz--a person who could finally turn into the national news story it deserves to be, given Bachmann's national reputation. (How the f**k can she talk about the economy if she's presiding over home foreclosure for years?)
I mean, that "home foreclosures scandal" is worth a lot in terms of defeating Bachmann, and the biggest players at the table weren't even aware of that story that was all over Bachmann blogging for months. There's a lot of stuff like this that Olbermann, Maddow and Schulz have apparently never even seen. How do you get those guys and their producers to see this stuff?
Yea, up there on Olympus--they have finally taken notice of the national political phenomenon that is Michele Bachmann.
Unfortunately, it looks like most of the piece was phoned in. King Banaian of NARN is quoted, but apparently the reporter didn't read any of the editorials on Bachmann in the Twin Cities or Bachmann's own Sixth District. Apparently they don't believe in Lexis/Nexis at the NYT.
Bachmann opponent Tarryl Clark is quoted and manages to throw the fact of home foreclosures into this NYT article, tossing it over the transom. But a statement about Bachmann's "great constituent service" goes unchallenged, even though it would seem to contradict the fact of the home foreclosures (highest in Minnesota, this year.)
Nevertheless, I am used to having to climb over the daily wall of idiots reporting on this modern day McCarthy--so come over the top with me this time, into the NYT, America's "newspaper of record"...
(continued)
Media Matters documents a non-exhaustive list of Fox lies and smears and biased reporting. Mentioned are comments by Fox' Live Desk co-host Martha MacCallum on Bachmann's charge that Obama's a socialist:
MacCallum agrees with Bachmann's claim that Obama's proposals are a "lurch toward socialism." On March 24, MacCallum responded to Rep. Michele Bachmann's (R-MN) claim that Obama proposals are a "lurch toward socialism" by stating: "I think you're absolutely right about that."
Bachmann has styled herself an expert on tax issues since she began her political career. But here's Keith Olbermann catching her in a lie about the rate of taxation:
One of Bachmann's many problems is that even as she's going around the country telling everyone how to run the economy, the economy of her district sucks.
To a large extent, that's because the district is represented by Michele Bachmann. Bachmann's conservative predecessor, former Congressman Mark Kennedy, believed in earmarks spending. Bachmann did not, and made a promise not to accept the earmark spending.
Earmark spending is the federal money that congressional representatives obtain for projects in their districts. When the money is spent on the project, jobs are created in the district.
(continued)
Ladies and Gentlemen, a lot will be written about Michele Bachmann's Bachmann MotorMouth Overdrive "Forum" yesterday at Lake Elmo - as well there should!
One of the cruxes of the entire conservative movement, aside perhaps from an unhealthy obsession with the 2nd Amendment, is their purported adherence to the 10th Amendment:
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
Now I don't necessarily share their passion for the 10th Amendment nor do I believe that it definitively proves their strict constructionist states rights beliefs but it is their belief none the less. Any true conservative will swear by the 10th Amendment and use it as a cudgel against any supposed deviation from the ideas of strict constructionism.
So, given that Bachmann is supposed to be a "rock ribbed conservative", it would stand to reason that she too believes in this principle of strict constructionism and the 10th Amendment, right? WRONG. Today at her town hall forum on health care reform she completely tossed out the amendment even going so far as to suggest "erasing the boundaries" around each of the states in order to create so called competition in the health insurance industry. (LitLoC.com)
Bachmann's "Big Eraser" plan apparently caught Political Muse's attention, too. Political Muse has Bachmann's "Big Eraser" plan on a YouTube; it's the Bachmann quote I used earlier today. Except, Political Muse has it on a YouTube showing Bachmann used the "Big Eraser" fairy tale story TWICE. So, go look!
Dusty Trice was also at the "Forum" with a camera (big surprise there - NOT!!!) and has a whole bunch of footage - like 10 (count 'em - 10!) YouTubes of the "Forum." As Dusty says: "You're not going to want to miss her stupid Brett Favre joke!" So, go look!
Some days, Republicans believe in a quaint notion called "state's rights." For instance, Texas Republicans believe in the primacy of state's rights regarding the death penalty, even if it invovles executing the mentally retarded. Other days, not so much - like with California and medical marijuana, approved by California voters in 1996.
George W. Bush used to be the prime example of a Republican that believed in state's rights (except when he didn't). As Texas Governor, Dubya relished Texas' sovereignty and eagerly affirmed each and every death penalty he could. As President, Dubya's administration frequently ignored California's sovereignty by frequently raiding medical marijuana distributors.
Then yesterday, along comes Michele Bachmann, giving the guy she "enjoys a great relationship" with, a run for his money on ignoring state's rights. Here's what Michele Bachmann said yesterday, at her Lake Elmo "Forum":
"We could do this: there's a law right now at the federal level that says that states can, in effect, draw boundaries around their state and insurance companies don't have to compete with other companies outside of their state. This drives, this jacks the cost of healthcare way higher than what it would need to be. If we took a big eraser, and erased those lines, of each state's boundaries, and allowed people to buy health care anywhere in the United States...in other words, if we, if we allowed more competition among insurance companies, rather than less competition, we would see more insurance products, cheaper prices, and people could buy what they want." - Rep. Michele Bachmann, Lake Elmo, MN, August 27th, 2009
"If we took a big eraser, and erased those lines, of each state's boundaries..."
O
M
G.
What other issues does Michele Bachmann feel states shouldn't control; other issues to pull out a "big eraser" and obliterate state borders?
And that's before examining her claim of being consumer friendly.....
Let's take what Bachmann said, replace "insurance" with "credit cards", and see how it reads...although not an exact analogy, you'll get the picture of how Bachmann's "insurance" plan just might work out - for "insurance" guys like Billion Dollar Bill McGuire!
"We could do this: there's a law right now at the federal level that says that states can, in effect, draw boundaries around their state and credit card companies don't have to compete with other companies outside of their state. This drives, this jacks the cost of credit cards way higher than what it would need to be. If we took a big eraser, and erased those lines, of each state's boundaries, and allowed people to get credit cards anywhere in the United States...in other words, if we, if we allowed more competition among credit card companies, rather than less competition, we would see more credit card products, cheaper prices, and people could buy what they want."
Yeah, "right."
Barry Goldwater has got to be spinning in his grave, over what Boy Blunder and Bachmann MotorMouth Overdrive have done and said. And Michele Bachmann has once again proven that GOP does indeed stand for GreedOverPrinciples.
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) likes to fear-monger. She's always searching for any wedge issue to exploit. From members of Congress holding Anti-American views to secret plans create a one-world currency to urging conservatives to not participate in the census because the government would use it as a tool to round up conservatives.
When Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) introduced a bill to expand AmeriCorps she characterized this bill as creating re-education camps for US children.
I believe that there is a very strong chance that we will see that young people will be put into mandatory service. And the real concerns is that there are provisions for what I would call re-education camps for young people, where young people have to go and get trained in a philosophy that the government puts forward and then they have to go to work in some of these politically-correct forums. As a parent, I would have a very, very difficult time seeing my children do this.
Listen here:
Of course, the truth is that AmeriCorps is a government program that pays young people to do things like clean up parks and teach inner city kids.
The irony of all this is just scrumptious. Her son, Harrison, has joined AmeriCorps. Harrison joined Teach for America which is a part of AmeriCorps. Apparently, he joined before his Mom's rant. Thanksgiving is going to be a bit awkward at the Bachmann household this fall, don't you think?
Reps. Michele Bachmann (D-MN) and Barney Frank (D-MA) appeared on Lou Dobbs show to discuss ACORN. Sadly and probably because Barney was present, she didn't unleash Teh Crazy although she did smile like an idjit the whole time.
She began by repeating the talking points about ACORN receiving $53 million since the early 90s and having access to $8.5 billion because Obama is President.
Lou Dobbs was as supportive as he could be to help her push the talking points, but Barney owned them. The smackdown begins at about 5:30.
You came into the Congress in 2007 and that year George Bush gave ACORN $1.6M. Did you ask George Bush to cut off the funding? I don't want to put every organization in jeopardy if any prosecutor anywhere indicts any single individual ... [cross-talk]
Today the U.S. House passed S.386, the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act. This is a pretty solid piece of legislation, which would provide more resources for government investigators looking into fraud in the corporate and mortgage realms.
It will also create a new Pecora commission. If you're too young to remember what that means, that's okay; most of us are too young. From Speaker Pelosi's office:
This bill invests in the Justice Department and other agencies to hire prosecutors, agents, and analysts so that they can aggressively pursue mortgage, corporate, and other financial fraud during this economic crisis.
The bill also establishes a Financial Markets Inquiry Commission to examine the causes and factors leading to the financial crisis. It is similar to the Pecora Commission established to investigate the 1929 stock market crash which uncovered the fraudulent and unscrupulous practices on Wall Street that led to the Great Depression and laid the groundwork for regulatory reforms.
Really, this is a good piece of common sense regulatory legislation. Who could oppose it?
We're way beyond the point of protest votes at this point. Bachmann and Kline have gone over the border into "I don't care what it is, I'm voting no because I can, my constituents and principles be damned" land.
To his credit, fellow Minnesota Republican Erik Paulsen went along with the Democratic majority on this one. Now if he could only push a little common sense on his caucusmates...
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), the energizer bunny of crazy, is at it again. This time it's another two-fer. She repeats a prayer she attributes to George Washington that he never said and she talks about orgies in public.
Let's start with the crazy: the orgy business. The Republicans held an anti-tax rally at the State Capitol yesterday. This in and of itself isn't unusual. But Bachmann saying "orgy" and "wad" in connection to each other is a tad bizarre (mad props to Dusty Trice for the vid).
"We have seen an orgy... The government spent its wad."
This is just a bizarre rant about government, evil, shackles, chains, orgies and taxes.
Now let's get to the stupid: the Washington prayer. The kernel of this fake prayer is Gen. Washington's resignation letter after the Revolutionary War. Along the way some Christians added Thee's and Thou's as well as Almighty God and the Jesus bit at the end. This pretty much makes it not anything that Washington would have written. Washington never referred to his faith in his writings.
But the truth and facts have never stopped right wing Christians like Princess Sparklepony before.
Bachmann then proceeded to spew out a fake Washington prayer found on numerous Christian nationalist websites, compounding the lie by attributing this prayer to Washington's inaugural address, something that even the Christian nationalist history revisionists aren't stupid enough to try to get away with.
"And, Mr. Speaker, likewise, as President Obama insisted a Catholic university cover the image of Christ during the Easter season while he spoke at that school, George Washington, our first President, demonstrated that he was not offended by the image of the risen Christ. In fact, our Nation's first President let his views be known quite clearly on his inauguration by a prayer which George Washington himself gave at his inauguration. He said, and I quote, Mr. Speaker:
"'Almighty God, we make our earnest prayer that Thou wilt keep the United States in Thy holy protection; that Thou wilt incline the hearts of the citizens to cultivate a spirit of subordination and obedience to government; and entertain a brotherly affection and love for one another and for their fellow citizens of the United States at large. And finally, that Thou wilt most graciously be pleased to dispose us all to do justice, to love mercy, and to demean ourselves with that charity, humility and pacific temper of mind which were the characteristics of the Divine Author of our blessed religion, and without a humble imitation of whose example in these things we can never hope to be a happy nation. Grant our supplication, we beseech Thee, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.'
"Mr. Speaker, our first President, George Washington, insisted on his inauguration day as the first President of this great country, that unless the citizens of our country imitate the example of Jesus Christ, that we would not be a happy Nation. What a clear contrast between our first President and our current President."
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) likes to fear-monger. She's always searching for any wedge issue to exploit. From members of Congress holding Anti-American views to secret plans create a one-world currency to urging conservatives to not participate in the census because the government would use it as a tool to round up conservatives.
