It is too good to be true. In the middle of the night the numbers are still too close to call in the race between challenger Jim Graves and Congresswoman Michele Bachmann. The crazy Tea Party lady is clinging to her seat ...
After watching close Bachmann re-election races in years past, St. Cloud State University professor Julie Andrzejewski and her husband attended the Graves election night party at a hotel in St. Cloud hoping to see a Bachmann upset. They said many of their Republican friends voted for Graves this year. "They're really embarrassed and tired of being represented by someone like Michele Bachmann," said Andrzejewski.
The Star Tribune recently raked her across the coals and concluded she really has accomplished little but self-promotion and actually blocking progress to show for her career thus far:
Bachmann’s positions and self-promotion have alienated colleagues on both sides of the aisle. In 2010, the Republican leadership of the U.S. House denied her a key leadership position. This year, Bachmann’s embarrassing accusations about a Muslim Brotherhood infiltration sparked denouncements by U.S. House Speaker John Boehner and Republican Sen. John McCain. This lack of respect undercuts her ability to pass bills. While Bachmann touts the St. Croix River bridge as an achievement, the heavy lifting on its passage was done by others in the state delegation.
Bachmann’s extreme opposition to raising taxes and the debt ceiling also undermine her fiscal responsibility claims. Her absolutism runs counter to every credible debt-reduction plan, including Simpson-Bowles. She is a roadblock to the “grand bargain” sorely needed to rein in red ink and reassure the markets.
Bachmann's Tea Party-supported extremism seems to be wearing thin at home, remember this smear campaign against an aide to Hillary Clinton?
Was the birther conspiracy just not working anymore?
That would be one explanation as to why a cadre of House Republicans, led by former GOP presidential candidate Michele Bachmann, has smeared a senior aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The group of congressmen has written letters to various inspectors general asking for an investigation—including the bizarre accusation that State Department Deputy Chief of Staff Huma Abedin has some connection to the Muslim Brotherhood.
It's bad enough when such unsubstantiated and hateful allegations are made against a candidate. Those individuals, at least, are somewhat used to navigating lies and rumors and distortions of their views and backgrounds. To go after a widely respected and hard-working State Department staffer is unconscionable.
Ohhhh wouldn't it be nice if she were shown the door?