Never Go Full Palin
May 29, 2013 5:20 AM Subscribe
Michelle Bachmann, previously chronicled here for the suicide epidemic in her district, her husband's anti-gay counseling center, and her interesting views on issues, will not be seeking re-election in 2014.
This post was deleted for the following reason: Yeah, this is pretty heavily OP-editorialized / two-minute hate with the batshitinsane tag, etc. -- maybe try again with something a little more substantial? -- taz
"Normalization (of gayness) through desensitization. Very effective way to do this with a bunch of second graders, is take a picture of “The Lion King” for instance, and a teacher might say, “Do you know that the music for this movie was written by a gay man?” The message is: I’m better at what I do, because I’m gay.” — Senator Michele Bachmann, speaking at EdWatch National Education Conference, November 6, 2004.
Uh, Hakuna Matata, adios, and amen.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 5:22 AM on May 29, 2013
Uh, Hakuna Matata, adios, and amen.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 5:22 AM on May 29, 2013
Perfect use of the batshitinsane tag, btw.
posted by Foosnark at 5:23 AM on May 29, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by Foosnark at 5:23 AM on May 29, 2013 [1 favorite]
I wonder what lobbying group or think tank offered her so much money that she couldn't refuse.
posted by hippybear at 5:23 AM on May 29, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by hippybear at 5:23 AM on May 29, 2013 [3 favorites]
s/not seeking re-election/molting into a new form so we have to start over rebutting her/
posted by DU at 5:24 AM on May 29, 2013
posted by DU at 5:24 AM on May 29, 2013
Yeah, I can kind of get the weird feeling of disappointment. I still smile every once in a while when I think of voting to help get Santorum out here in PA, some people deserve to have the voters tell them to GTFO.
She will live on in cable news and tea party land now, reputation untarnished by a loss.
posted by Drinky Die at 5:25 AM on May 29, 2013
She will live on in cable news and tea party land now, reputation untarnished by a loss.
posted by Drinky Die at 5:25 AM on May 29, 2013
...because there's a whole lot more money in being a part of the conservative media/lecture circuit pundo-commentariat than in pushing go-nowhere crazytown legislation. That way, she still gets to ride the right-wing crusader hobbyhorse without having to actually do anything.
posted by Strange Interlude at 5:25 AM on May 29, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by Strange Interlude at 5:25 AM on May 29, 2013 [3 favorites]
I haven't watched the video. Is she accepting a job at FOX news?
posted by Curious Artificer at 5:25 AM on May 29, 2013
posted by Curious Artificer at 5:25 AM on May 29, 2013
Yeah, I won't be surprised when she ends up making megabucks at some Koch bros antithink tank.
posted by mareli at 5:29 AM on May 29, 2013
posted by mareli at 5:29 AM on May 29, 2013
I heard an excerpt on NPR this morning. What's with the weird background track? It's an announcement dammit, it doesn't need the swell of faux-victory behind it.
And she'll run for president.
posted by readery at 5:31 AM on May 29, 2013
And she'll run for president.
posted by readery at 5:31 AM on May 29, 2013
This'll make it easier for her to stick around St. Paul and peer out of bushes at rallies she disapproves of more often.
posted by COBRA! at 5:33 AM on May 29, 2013
posted by COBRA! at 5:33 AM on May 29, 2013
There's probably a good post to be made about this subject. This isn't it.
From the title to the tags this post is beyond problematic into total suckage.
posted by cjorgensen at 5:39 AM on May 29, 2013
From the title to the tags this post is beyond problematic into total suckage.
posted by cjorgensen at 5:39 AM on May 29, 2013
A few gut reactions from up here:
Bachmann's office has gotten a reputation for being run in a sloppy manner, at best. Branching out to run a Presidential campaign brought a little more light onto her team's way of doing business. There are questions around the Presidential campaign, you can follow up on them elsewhere in mainstream reporting, but there's also been a longer reputation of her office being, well, sloppy, unprofessional, and treating first-line staff badly. Probably nothing that would build a big-time scandal, but enough to put a weight on further ambitions.
Bachmann lost by only a few votes in 2012, in what should have been a cakewalk for her based on the partisan makeup of her district. It's not out of the question that Republican movers, shakers, funders, may have pressured her to step aside.
She's also been an excellent lightning rod for Democratic/DFL fundraising, so her stepping aside removes that, too.
There've also been reports that after her "near death" election victory last time--the results weren't called until the early morning--that there's been pressure on her to do the sorts of things that members of Congress actually supposedly do: constituent service, going to ribbon cuttings, you know, work. She may have reacted with a simple "This sucks, I quit."
There are other right-wing extremists up in Bachmannistan in the 6th (Mary Kiffmeyer has already been mentioned as a potential replacement in 2014), so things might not change all that much. On the other hand, any DFLer who wins in the 6th will have to move pretty strongly to the center, and be constantly campaigning in advance of the next election challenge every two years.
Senator Franken is up for re-election in 2014. Polling is showing that in a potential Franken/Bachmann Senate race, Franken would wallop Bachmann by many, many, many points. The reaction to this possibility from DFLers is "oh please oh please oh please".
posted by gimonca at 5:40 AM on May 29, 2013 [1 favorite]
Bachmann's office has gotten a reputation for being run in a sloppy manner, at best. Branching out to run a Presidential campaign brought a little more light onto her team's way of doing business. There are questions around the Presidential campaign, you can follow up on them elsewhere in mainstream reporting, but there's also been a longer reputation of her office being, well, sloppy, unprofessional, and treating first-line staff badly. Probably nothing that would build a big-time scandal, but enough to put a weight on further ambitions.
Bachmann lost by only a few votes in 2012, in what should have been a cakewalk for her based on the partisan makeup of her district. It's not out of the question that Republican movers, shakers, funders, may have pressured her to step aside.
She's also been an excellent lightning rod for Democratic/DFL fundraising, so her stepping aside removes that, too.
There've also been reports that after her "near death" election victory last time--the results weren't called until the early morning--that there's been pressure on her to do the sorts of things that members of Congress actually supposedly do: constituent service, going to ribbon cuttings, you know, work. She may have reacted with a simple "This sucks, I quit."
There are other right-wing extremists up in Bachmannistan in the 6th (Mary Kiffmeyer has already been mentioned as a potential replacement in 2014), so things might not change all that much. On the other hand, any DFLer who wins in the 6th will have to move pretty strongly to the center, and be constantly campaigning in advance of the next election challenge every two years.
Senator Franken is up for re-election in 2014. Polling is showing that in a potential Franken/Bachmann Senate race, Franken would wallop Bachmann by many, many, many points. The reaction to this possibility from DFLers is "oh please oh please oh please".
posted by gimonca at 5:40 AM on May 29, 2013 [1 favorite]
She may have reacted with a simple "This sucks, I quit."
She went full Palin?
posted by gjc at 5:42 AM on May 29, 2013 [1 favorite]
She went full Palin?
posted by gjc at 5:42 AM on May 29, 2013 [1 favorite]
For those of you who were disappointed or expected this to feel more cathartic, I've taken the liberty of rewriting her statement:
My good friends: after a good deal of thought and deliberation, and after realizing the profound error of my ways, I have decided next year I will not seek a fifth congressional term. After serious consideration, I am confident that this is the right decision. Our Constitution allows wide powers of free speech-- powers I have consistently abused to scare, manipulate, harm not only my constituents here in Minnesota, but all citizens of our republic. I have increased divisiveness in an already polarized system. I have ignored or flat-out fabricated science to fit my political agenda. I have doomed thousands of young women to cervical cancer, and thousands more to poverty. My decision to not seek reelection will not undo any of these sins, but I feel that it is a necessary first step of a new life dedicated to reversing the harms I've done with the few talents I possess. I will not be so brash as to beg your forgiveness; I ask only for mercy, patience, and understanding-- virtues I had long forsaken in my delusional quest for power-- virtues I hope to develop on my new road to reconciliation, healing, and redemption. -Michele Bachmann, Brightest Timelineposted by The White Hat at 5:44 AM on May 29, 2013
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My second thought: "people would have been stupid enough to actually vote for her, or at least support her on bumper stickers, and that would enrage me."
posted by Foosnark at 5:22 AM on May 29, 2013 [1 favorite]