Posted on 07/11/2011 1:42:46 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
As a conservative activist in an area of the country largely believed to be a remote suburb of the Twin Cities, I am increasingly encountering a general assumption — at family gatherings, on the air, and in casual conversation — that I am a big supporter of Michelle Bachmann. I fully realize, of course, that I am supposed to be. I'm just not.
The problem with Tea Party-type Bachmann supporters is that they haven't been paying attention. You'll hear it said that, "At least, she's better than Barack Obama." So was John McCain. You'll hear it said that, "At least, she doesn't have all the negatives of a Palin candidacy." That's because she doesn't have Sarah's record, or her guts, either. If she did, Bachmann would never have been proffered an apology for merely being called a "flake." The former governor of Alaska is a conservative. Her would-be political clone only plays one on TV.
Now, don't get me wrong. I am not saying that Bachmann is insincere. Her voting history and her life story all indicate that she is. What I am saying is that, if you listen to her words and not the hype, you will easily perceive that Michelle's stock in trade is playing both sides of the Republican divide. Allow me to explain.
In scams, you have the role called, "cooling out the mark." It's kind of like the "good cop — bad cop" thing, where one person's job is to make sure that the person being scammed doesn't realize it, or at least doesn't try to do anything about it. This, by default or on purpose, has become the Bachmann role on the national Republican scene.
Whenever the GOP leadership decides to stab its base in the back, to let us down, to put political expediency above principle — and one could set one's clock by this phenomenon — it is Bachman who goes all over the airwaves making excuses for them. Listen for it. It will always be Michelle who is there to "cool out the" — well, "remark." I remember Bachmann being at the forefront, for example, of the "Repeal and Replace" groundswell that helped drive the huge Republican victories of last November. Now that that uproar has died down, her silence is as deafening as anybody else's.
On Hannity a while ago, Bachmann was touting herself as a "unifying" figure. There are Democrats and independents who approach her to express their support, she contended. The obvious question arises: Why? Why, at this extremely early stage in the game, would that be the case? Are they schizophrenic, or do they also perceive that she is not who she claims to be?
The only unity it is possible to achieve is the unity of a return to our national identity, based as it is on the Declaration and the Constitution, with their ineluctable recognition of the sovereignty of our Creator, God. The quixotic attempt to bridge the gap of the American political divide in any other way has already been attempted. Just ask Newt. The famous definition of stupidity as doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting a different result, applies to conservatives as well as liberals.
As the primary season unfolds, I have diligently been trying to give Bachmann the benefit of the doubt, but in order to do that, there has to be some doubt there to work with. And as I say, I understand why people tend to assume that I back the bright, family-friendly, Palinesque-but-not-actually-Sarah-herself conservative activist from my own geographical region, who is ever ready to carry the Tea Party banner as far forward as serves her own political purposes.
I know I am supposed to like Michelle Bachmann.
I just don't.
“Looks likes BDS is striking.”
Good grief, nobody is trashing her here, rather they’re showing some legitimate concerns.
It’s hardly “deranged” to show some reasoned anxiety about her and her limited experience.
who the hell is this self-inflated who seems to think the world turns on her opinion ...
So it doesn’t come from the oil and gas taxes?
Helen M. Valois is a homemaker and mom currently residing in the northwoods of Wisconsin. She is a member of the MI (Militia Immaculatae) movement founded by St. Maximilian Kolbe. In 1996, she received a Master’s Degree in Theology from Franciscan University of Steubenville. Helen’s articles and book reviews have appeared in a number of publications since that time.
I've read all the excuses. To me she walked off the job at one of the most critical times. She could have stayed and fought and in the end it would have shown her to be strong and solid. It would have given her a chance to show just how deranged the left was/is. It would have shown light on the tactics of the left and revealed their nature.
She would have been able to say, "Look at how much the leftist tactics have cost Alaska in time, money and reputation. I have weathered the storm and am stronger for it. The left has shown themselves, to the nation, to be petulant children instead of leaders."
But, instead, she walked away.
George W. Bush came across as a "decent" conservative but his record turned out to be that of a big spending Republican as well as supporting the New World Order. Remember the Farm Bill and the massive prescription drug entitlement? The "hysteria" against "W" was very distracting but we really should have held him accountable for straying from true conservative principles.
His "invasion" of Iraq was pretty impressive. It was necessary to remove Saddam from power. But the "occupation" was poorly planned and the "pacification" effort was botched. It would have been advantageous to retain the members of the Iraq military on modest salary and make them responsible for keeping the Islamist under control and clearing out IEDs, etc.
Is Bachmann another George Bush? We need to investigate her background and not just listen to her stump speech. I read today that she used to write tax code? Is that a negative or a positive? Did she support any kind of social engineering in the tax code? We need to ask questions NOW! Do not stand by passively and wait to see what develops. We need to fight for the hearts and minds of the American people.
Amen brother!
No, you're right: "Her would-be political clone only plays one on TV." is a totally innocuous statement.
Poor Mike Pence. He should have ran.
You do realize that when you lie, you are simply admitting that your side of the debate has no facts upon which to stand?
I'm really not surprised that you haven't tired of this need to spew festered brain-snot every time a thread comes up that refers to Madam "President-in-Waiting" Palin. Such vitriolic fixations are a frequent symptom of progressive dementia.
Just for giggles, how long do the doctors say you have left, anyway? Think you'll make it to Sarah's Inauguration? I do hope so...
8^D
You have said that a number of times and I want to call you on it. A simple answer is go see the film, "The Undefeated". Try reading her 20,000 emails during the period she held office.
Sarah was probably the single most effective influential capable Governor during the period she held office. The whine about her premature departure is just that--she and the Conservative cause is far better off than if she had stayed to spend her time broke responding to meritless claims and complaints.
She is the Republican that draws the crowds; and the interest. If she runs for President, she will win every primary. She is a historic politcal leader.
And you do realize that MB’s District has more voters in it than the entire voting population of Alaska, right? The statewide comparison you try to claim is illogical based on the following results:
2006 Alaska Race
Palin - 114,697
Knowles - 97,238
2010 MN CD 6 Race
Bachmann - 159,476
Clark - 120,846
So more people have voted for MB than SP.
He knows congresscrittes don't win their party's nomination, so he's upping his profile by trying to become a good conservative governor. If he succeeds, he'll be a great candidate in the future.
Bachmann on the other hand, does not have a clue about what she is doing in actually running for president (Pence had a far greater resume than she does), but rather seems to be attempting to raise her fund raising profile and to eventually leverage a possible cabinet job, or other job in someone else's administration.
I like her as a congresscritter, but her fake run for president has turned me sour on her.
David:
I was talking about Congresswoman Bachmann. Read my tag line.
I'm getting sick and tired of you thin skinned “worshipers” name calling folks with legitimate points.
Just because somebody doesn't see things as you do does not make them deranged, ignorant, stupid, RINO, fascist or a commie. Get a grip.
;^\
There’s no question that I’ll vote for Mrs. Bachmann, if it came down to choosing between her and Mr. Obama. However, I am still waiting to hear the elite intelligentsia, like Sauer-Krauthammer, Rove, etc., take her (MB) on as “unschooled” and suggest that she is unfit for the office much less running in the primaries. Until they do (and if they already have, I am sorry that I have missed it); I’d have a lingering suspicion about Mrs. Bachmann and her connections to the snobs and RINOS in DC.
There’s no question that I’ll vote for Mrs. Bachmann, if it came down to choosing between her and Mr. Obama. However, I am still waiting to hear the elite intelligentsia, like Sauer-Krauthammer, Rove, etc., take her (MB) on as “unschooled” and suggest that she is unfit for the office much less running in the primaries. Until they do (and if they already have, I am sorry that I have missed it); I’d have a lingering suspicion about Mrs. Bachmann and her connections to the snobs and RINOS in DC.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.