Controversy dogs Michele Bachmann, police reports show

With a penchant for tough talk and polarizing positions, Republican presidential contender Michele Bachmann is a magnet for controversy — and there's a trail of police reports to prove it.

She and her staff over the years have requested police protection or investigations when her house was egged; when protesters threw glitter on her or held up critical signs; when her campaign yard signs were stolen; when a man wrote an email perceived as a threat; and when she screamed that two women were holding her hostage "against my will" in a city hall restroom.

Red text signifies that the comment in the original article was actually somewhat reasoned, and I didn't bother to rephrase it.

~~Controversy dogs Michele Bachmann, police reports show~~

Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann the Target of Vandals and Thugs

By Marc Caputo, The Miami Herald

10:37 p.m. EDT, July 11, 2011

~~With a penchant for tough talk and polarizing positions, Republican presidential contender Michele Bachmann is a magnet for controversy — and there's a trail of police reports to prove it.~~

With a strong set of moral values, and a willingness to express them in public, Republican presidential candidate Congresswoman Michelle Backmann attracts more than her fair share of kooks, and there's a trail of police reports to prove it.

She and her staff over the years have requested police protection or investigations when her house was egged; when protesters threw glitter on her or held up critical signs; when her campaign yard signs were stolen; when a man wrote an email perceived as a threat; and when she screamed that two women were holding her hostage "against my will" in a city hall restroom.

Over the years, Congresswoman Bachmann and her staff have requested police protection or investigations a number of times. When the paint and exterior of her home was damaged by eggs thrown at it, when protesters threw glitter on her endangering her eyes, when her campaign yard signs were stolen, when a man wrote an email precieved as a threat, and when she was blocked from exiting a public restroom by two citizens who disagreed with her views and wanted to intimidate her and teach her a lesson, the Congresswoman or her staff made reports to the police, requesting their involvement.

The series of police reports from the Stillwater Police Department and the Washington County Sheriff's Office in Minnesota show a side of a candidate rarely seen on the campaign trail, where Bachmann has described herself as having a "titanium spine."

Upon investigation we found that the police reports from the Stillwater Police Department and the Washington County Sheriff's Office in Minnestoa, reveal that even a Congresswoman can be the victim of vandals, thugs, and criminal conduct.

Bachmann's campaign and congressional offices wouldn't comment, but her fellow Minnesota Republicans say they're not surprised by the reports.

"Michele Bachmann is someone who tells it like it is with the courage of her convictions," said Tony Sutton, state chairman of Republican Party of Minnesota. "There will be people on the other side who will react in an inappropriate way. There are a lot of liberals who can't cope with the fact that she's an outspoken conservative who sticks by her guns."

~~But those who have been a target of her calling the cops say Bachmann doesn't walk the talk.~~

But the people who have vandalized Bachmann's home, have stolen her property, have blocked her movements, specifically the exit of a bathroom temporarily imprisoning her, have issued vailed threats against members of her family, accuse her of not being a tough Congresswoman at all. And we here at the paper think vandals, thugs, and people who make vailed threats on a Congresswoman and her family deserve to be heard.

"She seems paranoid," said Brad Trandem, a Lakeland, Minn., resident who excoriated Bachmann in an email this year, only to face investigators. "She does all this criticism of other people's lives and talks about how people should be 'armed and dangerous.' But then someone says something critical about her and she calls the police."

In Trandem's case, Bachmann's staff who forwarded his correspondence to U.S. Capitol Police with the headline "Email Threat to Rep. Bachmann."

~~At issue, this last sentence of the 128-word email referring to Dr. Marcus Bachmann: "I would also keep a little closer tabs on the dear hubby if I were you."~~

I'm not going to provide enough information for you to know what actually took place here, so you'll have to guess if this was implying Dr. Marcus Bachmann was a homosexual, if this guy planned to do him harm, or both. That's what we in the business call "TOP NOTCH PROFESSIONAL REPORTING".

Bachmann's husband has become the focus of controversy himself, suggesting in a radio interview that homosexuals were "barbarians (who) need to be educated." Though the Bachmanns have denied it, gay activists say the Christian counselor is associated with a type of therapy aimed at stopping homosexuality through spiritual training.

Bachmann's husband has come under attack for his premise that homosexuality is a lifestyle that can be changed over time. I'm not going to bore you with the details of programs that have been successfully facilitiating these lifestyle changes though. We don't need to go there. Let's just remember what the take-away should be from this. Bachmann's husband is a flake. Therefore Bachmann is a flake. Conservatives are flakes.

Trandem said his email wasn't intended to threaten anyone, and he wasn't suggesting the congresswoman's husband was gay. He said he was just drawing attention to what he sees as the hypocrisy of social conservatives who accuse others of the offenses they commit.

In Trandem's defense, he did deny he was threatening Bachmann's husband or attempting to say he was a homosexual, the only two conclusions one could derive from his comments. Instead he claimed he was only making an important point, Bachmann's husband and Conservatives are hypocrits. And what better way to do that than imply that they are homosexuals themselves or that you may be planning to kill one of them? We here at the paper found that compelling enough of an argument to put it in print. You deserve to know.

Trandem's email, though, came a day after a watershed moment in American political history: The Jan. 8 shooting spree of Jared Lee Loughner, accused of killing six and wounding 14 others – including Tucson Congresswoman Gabbie Giffords. In his letter, Trandem referred to "tea baggers" and suggested conservative talk of armed revolt was to blame for the Tucson rampage. Loughner, it turns out, was mentally ill and wasn't a tea party member.

~~Capitol police referred the email to the Washington County sheriff's investigators, who determined Trandem posed no threat. Capitol police wouldn't comment.~~

Despite the evidence of what can happen to a Congresswoman if things are ignored, Capital Police found the emial troubling enough to refer to the the Washington County Sheriff's invesigators, but those investigators determined a Leftist could not be a serious threat to the Conservative Congresswoman. Move along... move along...

A spokesperson for another congresswoman and friend of Giffords, Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Weston, said Bachmann's staff acted appropriately in referring the matter to Capitol Police, who have asked staffers to report any suspicious or potentially threatening information. (do ya think)

"I wouldn't fault her or her staff," said Schultz spokesman, Jonathan Beeton. "Whether the incidents happen in a bathroom or wherever, it's better to err on the side of caution."

Beeton said Wasserman Schultz, head of the national Democratic Party, has police protection when she has events in South Florida, which is partly the result of the Giffords shooting.

But even before the shooting, Bachmann sometimes worried about the intentions of her constituents. The eight police reports concerning Bachmann exceed the number of reports connected to Miami-Dade's congressional delegation and calls to Wasserman Schultz' home, according to South Florida police.

But even before the shooting, Bachmann had already had reasons to show concern over the behavior of certian citizens. The eight police reports exceed the number of reports connected to Maimi Dade's Congressional offices and home of Congresswoman Wasserman Shultz. And yet Bachmann hasn't demanded police protection. (Don't you think for a second that's showing character and a titanium spine though. You hear me?)

Though her social-conservatism has helped inspire loathing on the left, it's a potent force in a GOP primary. Some polls show she's leading in Iowa and is now running in second place to Mitt Romney in Florida.

Though her views have caused the Radical Liberal Leftist Marxists in her district to loathe and despise her, she is a potent force for the GOP whose base agrees with much of what she believes. Some polls show she's now leading in Iowa and is running second only to Romney in Florida.

In April 2005, Bachmann held a meeting at Scandia City Hall in her state senate district. But she cut the meeting short when the topic turned to gay marriage. Two Minnesota voters, Pamela Arnold and Nancy Cosgriff, wanted the congresswoman to answer their questions.

We're not sure what the Congresswoman's schedule was, but it's more colorful to describe her as having cut the meeting short due to questions being asked that she didn't want to repond to. That's what we like to refer to as accuracy in media.

Cosgriff, a former nun, said she wanted to know about the "theological underpinnings" of Bachmann's stance on gay marriage. While trying to get a response, Cosgriff said she followed Bachmann into the restroom where the congresswoman washed her hands but wouldn't respond. Palmer then came in and asked about education as well.

Cosgriff, a former nun (and of course someone I would rip to shreads along with any other religious icon or institution if I didn't need to make her look like a sympathetic figure for purposes of destroying Bachmann here), said she wanted to know about the "theological underpinnings" of Bachmann's stand on homosexual marriage. So Cosgiff followed Bachmann into the restroom and demanded answers to questions while Bachmann relieved herself. Then Palmer came in and did the same thing on the subject of eduction.

When Bachmann had done her business, these two women blocked her exit. When they did so, they detained her in a manner that is against the law. It's called, false detainment, false imprisonment. They were demanding she do something before they would let her pass. That's coercion or a form of Blackmail.

"You have to get away from the door because I have to go," Bachmann said she asked repeatedly, according to a police report.

When Arnold tried to get an answer, Bachmann yelled "help me! Someone get me out of here!" Bachmann told police. Arnold and Cosgriff told police Bachmann said something like "Help, help you're holding me against my will!"

As a writer for this paper, I have always found it strange what people will do and say when they are being held against their will. It makes no sense at all.

Said Cosgriff: "I was amazed and concerned when she erupted in this emotional outburst without provocation… I tried to apologize for any misunderstanding.

Editorial note: I've seen this tactic used a number of times in my presence. The Leftist are trained to do anything they like, but to do it in a manner where they can deny any responsibility for their actions. Phrases like, "Oh no, that's not what we were doing, it's all just a silly misunderstanding." (of course the inference is that the Conservative target wigged out for no reason at all) "No, we didn't really block the door. It just seemed to her like we were, but there was plenty of room to pass." (of course they were stainding directly in front of the door making it impossible for the Congresswoman to pass, without a physical altercation) (Putting a Congresswoman in the position of have to use physical force to pass, is false imprisonment, pure and simple. It's most likely a felony from the moment it starts. Doing it to a public official like a Congresswoman is a serious crime.)

As the startled women looked on, Bachmann ran out of the restroom. She later filed a police report, which an investigator described as a "possible false imprisonment" inquiry. The women weren't prosecuted because the investigator determined that there were "conflicting accounts" and a "lack of any strong corroborating evidence that would suggest criminal activity."

Being called on what they were doing, these women allowed Congresswoman Bachmann to pass before anyone could catch them in the act. The Congresswoman was in essence, using the same tactic a woman would use if they were being assulated or raped. She yelled out for help. Any time a crime is being committed against a woman, that is what they are supposed to do. Here it worked precisely as it is intended to. Unfortunately, it worked before people could come to Congresswoman Bachmann's aide and witness what was taking place. The police had no choice but to drop the investigation. The intimidation was used. They got off. They just hope that Bachmann was scared enough to change how she operates. That's how the Left operates.

The year before, Bachmann and a Republican state representative sponsored a proposed Minnesota constitutional amendment to stop gay marriage. State Capitol activists put the lawmakers' pictures and home phone numbers on placards and pamphlets that said "shame" and "sponsoring hate crimes legislation."

~~Bachmann called the Stillwater police "in case she starts to get threatening phone calls," a report said.~~

Congressman Bachmann called the Stillwater police so that they could document the group that was doing this. If you don't get it on the record, later on the police have no leads if things go south.

Gay activists also hunted her down in Minnesota, where someone tried to throw glitter on the congresswoman as a protest on June 18 — shortly after she declared her presidential candidacy. Bachmann barely reacted publicly. But she called the Capitol police, who notified the sheriff's office of the glittering and a tweet someone posted that suggested "they would be using guns as their right."

Homosexuals also targeted her in Minnesota, where someone tried to assult her using glitter. This almost sounds laughable, until you consider the effect of a lot of glitter thrown into your eyes. Congresswoman Backmann kept her composure in the face of this, but later notified the Capital police, who notified the Sheriff's ofice of the incident, as well as a tweet that stated, "...they would be using guns as their right..."

Separately, Stillwater police have also investigated the theft of her campaign yard signs in 2002. And she called them to her house in 2007 when she complained her house was "substantially egged" for the second time.

Stillwater police have also investigated other acts of vandalism at the Bachmann residence. Hundreds of dollars worth of campign sings were stolen in 2002. In 2007 her home was substantially damaged by eggs thrown at it. Paint and cleanup costs to restore the home to it's prior condition, were deemed not worthy of establishing for this report.

~~None of the inquiries resulted in arrests.~~

These things were all so petty, that the police didn't even bother to arrest anyone, even though they knew exactly who did it. /s

"Michele is engaged and she's articulate and she is not one to back down," said Scott Fischbach, a Bachmann constituent and executive director Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life. "They've tried everything to stop her," he said. "They've thrown the kitchen sink at her."

~~They've even thrown eggs.~~

They've even attempted to assault her, falsely imprisoned her temporarily, have stolen her property, have implied that her husband is a homosexual, have threatened her and her husband's safety/lives, and have actually damaged the home of her and her family two times that we know of.

I'm still going to stick with the eggs, as it is the most effective way to make Bachmann look silly, and marginalize her.

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