How Long Before Michele Bachmann Demands a Role in the History Books?

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Michele Bachmann on KKMS Monday

Their enewsletter suggests they won't be at the Fair on Monday: 4:00 Hour - "The Debate Over Healthcare" - Michele Bachmann, U.S. Congresswoman for Minnesota's 6th District You can listen on 980 AM, or at www.kkms.com at 4:00 PM on Monday. Rick Scherber from Minnesota Teen Challenge will be on the show directly before Bachmann.

Michele Bachmann Makes PsychoTalk Again

Michele Bachmann's Inflamatory Rhetoric Hits Minn Post

Doug Grow has a good article about the state of the 6th CD campaign against Michele Bachmann. U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann keeps doing that thing she does. One day it's a national talk show, the next it's a speech at some event, far from Minnesota. The provocative comments tumble from her mouth and into headlines across the country. The most recent examples of Bachmann's flaming oratory came at a Monday night speech in Denver where the Republican congresswoman said people should "make a covenant, slit our wrists, be blood brothers" in fighting against any Democratic efforts to reform health care. "… Right now we are looking at reaching down the throat and ripping the guts out of freedom in this country." "Let me be on record as saying, 'I'm opposed to slitting wrists,' " said state Sen. Tarryl Clark of St. Cloud. She hopes to be the Democratic candidate running against Bachmann in the 6th Congressional District 14 months from now. Dr. Maureen Reed of Grant, another Democrat in the race against Bachmann, also is opposed to wrist-slitting. She said she does not ask even her most ardent supporters to "make a covenant or slit wrists" in the effort to beat Bachmann. "I ask them to volunteer, I ask them to give money to the campaign,'' she said. Read the whole thing.

Michele Bachmann's "Wrist Slitting" Being Used in Campaign Fundraising Pitches

Tarryl Clark (running against Michele Bachmann): It’s been just over a month since I launched my campaign for Congress. I’m excited to tell you that we’re off to a fast start in our campaign to unseat Congresswoman Michele Bachmann. People from around the District are jumping on board, giving of their time and money. At the State Fair, folks up and down Dan Patch Avenue came up to me, excited about the race and committing to help. So while Congresswoman Bachmann has20been traveling the country, riling up her right-wing base with calls to “slit their wrists,” I’ve been here, talking to Minnesotans about how we can really make a difference in their lives. The momentum is building. Already, I’ve received the endorsements of AFSCME Councils 5 and 65, North Central States Regional Council of Carpenters, Laborers District Council of Minnesota and North Dakota, Teamsters Joint 32 and Local 120, and even the College Dems at my local St. Cloud State University. Will you join us in our campaign to unseat Congresswoman Bachmann? I’ve said it from the start – this campaign will be fierce. Congresswoman Michele Bachmann has spent years courting the right-wing in Washington. She has hours and hours of face time on FOX News. But I know I will win this campaign, just as I won my election to State Senate in what was always assumed to be a “conservative district". I win by building coalitions that hit the streets – going door to door, voter to voter, in a ground game to talk directly with people about their lives. I win by earning the votes of Democrats, Independents, and Republicans who have seen first-hand how I listen and engage on the issues. Because that’s what this campaign is really about: the issues that affect the everyday lives of Minnesotans – jobs, affordable health care, education and investment in our communities. They deserve a Member of Congress who will fight for them. Will you join our campaign? That winning coalition starts with you. Your time, your contribution, and your support will make this happen. Join us by donating today. The campaign is off to a strong start – and you can be sure we have the resources we need from day one to wage that ground game. Your contribution of $25, $50, $100, or whatever you can afford will get that ground game started. This is a crucial time to show Michele Bachmann and her right-wing allies that we can and will build a winning campaign. I couldn’t be more proud of the endorsements we’ve already received in this campaign. But I’d be even more proud if I could add your endorsement to the list. Please join our campaign today. I look forward to seeing you on the campaign trail! Tim Walz is running for reelection, not against Michele Bachmann, is using Michele Bachmann in his fundraising pitch: August here in Minnesota has been a bit milder than usual, but the rhetoric used by National Republican Leaders in television ads and in radio ads has become increasingly heated, irresponsible and reckless. Now, as we come out of the dog days of August, consider what Congresswoman Michele Bachmann said about fixing health care insurance: “This cannot pass. What we have to do today is make a covenant, to slit our wrists, be blood brothers on this thing. This will not pass. We will do whatever it takes to make sure this doesn’t pass.” National Republican Leaders, like Michele Bachmann, have decided to use the issue of health care insurance reform for political gain. They believe that preventing health care insurance reform today will lead to their victory in 2010. We know that this issue is too important to be used to score political victories. This is about fixing what is broken and getting the job done. Tim knows we need health insurance that is stable and secure for working families, ensures coverage if you get sick, gives you an affordable option if you lose your job and will help small businesses provide health insurance to their employees without going bankrupt. Tim has launched his campaign earlier than ever before. He knows we need to keep our grassroots movement going in order to fix what is broken. Right now we are engaging voters at their doors about the importance of health care insurance reform. Can you support our grassroots movement today? A contribution of $15, $25, $50, $100 or more will help us continue to work the phones, hit the doors and get our message out in southern Minnesota. Now that August has wound down, the debate in Washington will wind back up. The National GOP’s rhetoric will get even more heated, so get ready. For now, help us keep our grassroots campaign moving this fall by chipping in a couple of dollars toward the effort! If a financial contribution is not an option at this time, then write a letter to your local paper! Thanks for your help!

Michele Bachmann and the 10th Amendment

Political Muse fisks Michele Bachmann's statements at her town hall meeting last week.

Michele Bachmann's "Slit Your Wrists" Speech - Live on Video

The Independence Institute has video of Michele Bachmann's speech and questions and answers. Her quotes about slitting wrists to stop the health care plan start at around 6:30 in the Q & A. Her comments about Marilyn Musgrave occur towards the end of the Q & A.

Another Day, Another Wacked Out Pronouncement from Michele Bachmann

Colorado Independent: In a fiery speech that had her conservative Colorado audience cheering, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann railed against the dangers of health care reform and other Democratic initiatives, warning the proposals “have the strength to destroy this country forever.” “This cannot pass,” the Minnesota Republican told a crowd at a Denver gathering sponsored by the Independence Institute. “What we have to do today is make a covenant, to slit our wrists, be blood brothers on this thing. This will not pass. We will do whatever it takes to make sure this doesn’t pass.” “Something is way crazy out there,” Bachmann said in her remarks, billed as a “personal legislative briefing” by the Golden-based Independence Institute, which bills itself as a “free market think tank.” “This is slavery,” Bachmann said after claiming many Americans pay half their income to taxes. “It’s nothing more than slavery.” n a speech filled with urgent and violent rhetoric, Bachmann — who proudly acknowledges she is the country’s “second-most hated Republican woman,” behind only former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin – drew a clear line on health care reform. “You’re either for us or against us on this issue,” she said after deriding U.S. Rep. Betsy Markey, a Fort Collins Democrat, for “[sitting] on the fence” about health care proposals at recent town halls. Bachmann earlier this month joined former U.S. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, the Republican ousted from office last year by Markey, in a telephone town hall where she told abortion opponents the health care “battle will be won – on our knees in prayer and fasting.” At times, Bachmann’s legislative briefing sounded more like the plot of a slasher movie. “Right now, we are looking at reaching down the throat and ripping the guts out of freedom,” she said. “And we may never be able to restore it if we don’t man up and take this one on.” Marilyn Musgrave is a Michele Bachmann clone from a similar district in Colorado. She was defeated in 2008 by Betsy Markey, who Bachmann was mentioning by name. “You can win these seats back,” she urged the audience. “Hey, I got elected in Franken country!” Noting that she heard plenty of carping about Markey over the weekend when she spoke at a conference in Steamboat Springs, Bachmann zeroed in on a vulnerability the freshman Democrat might face. Even though professional organizers packed Markey’s recent town halls with reform advocates “all paid to be there,” Bachmann claimed, “regular normal Americans were allowed in too.” This left Markey no choice but to straddle the issue, her colleague suggested. “She sat on the fence,” Bachmann said. “She didn’t say she’d support Obama-care or not. That’s her Achilles heel, that’s where you go after her. Because this is so clear, you’re either for us or against us on this issue.” The fact that Marilyn Musgrave was defeated in 2008, gives hope that Michele Bachmann can be defeated in 2010.

Is Michele Bachmann Worried About Reelection

Blois Olson asks the question. No damaging statements It's telling that Bachmann, the ever shrewd and calculating politico, actually engaged her constituents at the town hall session rather than trying to play to national conservatives. And she avoided overly damaging statements. Earlier this week, she made only a brief appearance at a forum in St. Cloud on Social Security. Thursday's gathering was unusual because she gave so much of her time to a public forum in her district, talking with the overflow crowd before flying off to Colorado to play the role of conservative fundraising magnate. So could it be that Bachmann is finally recognizing that constituents are tiring of her national profile (and rightful comparisons to former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin) and is worried about reelection? Yes. And that she realizes her political future faces not just a tough match in 2010, but the potential for an intra-party battle in 2012, when she could be redistricted with GOP Rep. John Kline? Yes. Rep. Michele Bachmann MSNBCRep. Michele Bachmann Privately, many Republican leaders concede they are concerned that she and her supporters are a liability to the GOP rebuilding efforts in Minnesota. Evidence locally and nationally can be seen in the explicit language that former GOP Sen. Dave Durenberger used when he broke news that former Republican Sen. Norm Coleman was going to lead a new group of GOP thinkers who are going to focus less on the social issues Bachmann and her political brood obsess over. And Kline's ascension to ranking member of the House Education and Labor Committee gives a clear signal from the House GOP leadership on who they trust more to carry their message. Kline. Now look ahead to 2012, when redistricting kicks in. The possibility of Minnesota losing a Congressional seat is real, but more concerning for the GOP is the possibility that Kline and Bachmann end up drawn into the same district.