Bachmann Calls Ron Schara a Liar, but Uses Schara's Picture

E. Nelson at Op Ed News:

Recent weeks have found Minnesota Representative Michele Bachmann in a war of words with Minnesota Bound host Ron Schara. The topic of debate revolves around how each one remembers the Minnesota Game Fair of 2008. According to Schara, a Minnesota sportsman of almost legendary fame, Bachmann displayed support for the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment not only in an interview with Schara, but by wearing a pin as well. According to Bachmann, Schara is lying. She never was, and never will be in favor of using sales tax to support environmental causes and wildlife conservation that benefits hunters.

So, if Bachmann says Ron Schara is a liar, why does Bachmann have this photo up on her campaign Flickr site?

Tarryl Clark Goes After MIchele Bachmann's "Truthiness"

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Carrie Lucking,
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
St. Cloud, MN
THE BACHMANN AGENDA: TRUTHINESS FAIL
It's time to hold Congresswoman Bachmann to a reasonable standard of honesty

Congresswoman Michele Bachmann received a special distinction yesterday, but not the kind that the voters of the 6th District might expect: PolitiFact, a non-partisan fact-checking organization, announced that Bachmann "continues to hold the rare distinction of an all False/Pants-on-Fire record."

Bachmann has been put to their truth test eleven times, and eleven times she has failed, due to comments that PolitiFact said are "sensationalized" and are "misrepresentation taken to a ridiculous extreme."

This isn't the first time Bachmann has failed the truthiness test. Congresswoman Bachmann's radio and television ads in the 6th District Congressional race are no more honest than her "pants-on-fire" statements that failed the Politifact tests.

• Bachmann ran radio ads in August railing against a state aid package which kept teachers on the job and police officers on the streets in her district. Her claims were "not true" according to MPR's PoliGraph.

• The sales tax claims made in Bachmann's second TV ad, "State Fair," which was plagued by legal challenges for trademark violation, received a D+ from KSTP's Truth Test and was called a "distortion" by WCCO's Reality Check. The claims were also deemed "wrong" by MPR's PoliGraph.

• The false claims in Bachmann's third ad, "Back to School," were based on the same vote - a vote that put the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment on the ballot in 2008. This is particularly egregious because Bachmann herself supported the Legacy Amendment, as reported by the Star Tribune in 2008 and recently confirmed by respected outdoors advocate Ron Schara. Her campaign did not dispute the 2008 story at the time. However, Bachmann's spokesperson, Sergio Gor, now claims that she "never" supported the amendment, which received over 30,000 more votes in the 6th District than Michele Bachmann in 2008 and was enthusiastically supported by hunting and fishing groups.

• Bachmann's latest ads focus primarily on people that the Congresswoman is not running against, and continue to distort Tarryl's positions on the issues.

"It's time for Michele Bachmann to start speaking honestly to the people she was elected to represent," said Zach Rodvold, Tarryl Clark's Campaign Manager. "Voters deserve an honest debate on the issues, not misleading claims or outright lies. Bachmann has spent well over a million dollars spreading misinformation over the radio and on TV in order to hide the fact that she's done nothing for her constituents in four years in Congress. The people of the 6th District deserve better, and we call on Michele Bachmann to begin holding herself to a higher standard of honesty."

###

Michele Bachmann is a Pathological Liar

There's no other explanation for Bachmann's habitual lying. She can't help it - it's pathological.

being such to a degree that is extreme, excessive, or markedly abnormal.

More corroboration of Bachmann's pathological condition from Politifact regarding Bachmann's recent claim about House Speaker Pelosi and an imagined, excessive bar tab:

It's fair game to argue that buying liquor for lawmaker jaunts is an unjustifiable taxpayer expenditure even if perfectly legal. However, if Bachmann wanted to criticize these outlays, she should have read the Judicial Watch news release more closely. Since Bachmann (or her staff) didn't do so, she ended up citing a figure for alcohol expenditures that was close to the much larger number for all non-plane costs of the trip. We rate her statement Pants on Fire.

Yep, "Pants on Fire" again, that's a grand total of 5 Pants on Fire awards and 6 "False" rulings for Bachmann.

Bachmann Lies About Not Going to Wine and Cheese Parties.

Bachmann lives in a swanky million dollar house on a golf course, but she wants people to think the Bachmanns are just plain folks.

Dr. Habib Siddiqui at the Asian Tribune:

Many political pundits see the win of the tea party candidates in recent primaries as an intra-party rivalry within the Republican Party. Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, who chairs the House congressional Tea Party Caucus, however, defends the tea party and predicts a Republican takeover of Congress in 2010.

Speaking at the Values Voter Summit last Friday morning, she said, “I am so eager for November to come I can’t wait!” Not surprisingly, she lashed out at Democrats, pointing out excesses by President Barack Obama and speaker Nancy Pelosi. “These high and mighty types, part of the ruling class here in Washington, D.C. — they live at wine and cheese parties. As for me, I prefer tea parties, just so you know.” Like most politicians, Bachmann is a liar and neglected to mention the $500-per-person fundraiser she held in July 2009 at Washington’s Sonoma Restaurant and Wine Bar. It’s worth mentioning here that when Sarah Palin appeared at the National Tea Party Convention she was apparently paid $100,000 for her appearance.

And that's not all...

The Sunlight Foundation has a website called Party Time:

From the early hours of the morning until late in the evening, politicians are partying. Sunlight's PARTY TIME can help you find out who is partying, where and when.

Here's their list of Michele Bachmann's parties at fancy restaurants like Finemondo:

Chef Savino Recine has "returned back to the basics," with Italian flavors and a refined touch; dishes such as roasted guinea hen with caramelized cauliflower and whole roasted fish and beef -- a dinnertime feature -- are among the results....

... the swank Capitol Hill Club:

The Capitol Hill Club is one of the most popular gathering spots in Washington for lawmakers, government officials and other members of the political establishment. (The Democrats have their own club just a few blocks away.) The Presidential Dining Room–menu favorites include the $32 Filet Mignon with gorgonzola sauce and the $29 tuna steak with balsamic thyme glaze–is “a favorite place for Senators, Representatives, and their guests to dine and discuss the day’s political agenda...”

... and the Capitol Grille:

Rich African mahogany paneling and warm lighting from one-of-a-kind art deco chandeliers set the tone for a comfortably elegant evening (unless it’s a lively, social atmosphere you seek, in which case our sophisticated bar might be your destination).

Our impressive menu of nationally renowned dry aged steaks and the freshest of seafood will ignite your culinary imagination as our award-winning wine list of more than 5,000 bottles awakens your inner sommelier. And as our gracious, knowledgeable servers delight you with their uncanny ability to anticipate your every need...

... and the Sonoma Restaurant and Wine Bar:

We strive to integrate sustainable practices in all our restaurants: from sourcing local ingredients, to our use of renewable energy sources, we aspire to be more than just a culinary trend-setter.

... and the " Bartlett & Bendall Townhouse".

The website even has copies of the invitations... like this one (click to make bigger):



Karl Bremer has more about Bachmann's wining and dining at the expense of her constituents in this Dump Bachmann post.

Bachmann makes the "wine and cheese party" remark at about 2:20 into this video:

Michele Bachmann Spokesperson Sergio Gor Contradicts Purseholder and Bachmann Campaign Advisor Andy Parrish

From the Strib (last updated 8:30 PM, September 17, 2010):

U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann ended a brief flirtation with presidential politics on Friday by removing her name from the 2012 presidential straw poll at this weekend's Values Voter Summit.

The decision came amid attacks from her Democratic challenger, state Sen. Tarryl Clark, who accused Bachmann of pursuing national ambitions and turning her back on the Sixth Congressional District that she's represented for two terms.

Bachmann's spokesman, Sergio Gor, said Bachmann's name was taken off the ballot because "she's running to represent the Sixth District. That's her No. 1 focus right now, her No. 1 goal. She's not running for president."

Bachmann and Gov. Tim Pawlenty were included in the poll along with more than a dozen other top GOP figures. But Pawlenty, who is wrapping up a trade mission in Asia, withdrew his name earlier this week, and Bachmann had her name taken off the list by Thursday evening.

Their withdrawals averted what would have been an awkward showdown between the two leading Minnesota Republicans with national profiles. Only Pawlenty, however, is gearing up openly for a potential run in 2012.

Clark's campaign sent out a fundraising e-mail Friday morning soliciting donations off Bachmann's summit appearance. The e-mail declared: "Michele Bachmann is considering running for president."

Gor said the decision to remove Bachmann from the straw poll was made before Clark's e-mail was sent, though the e-mail went out before it was publicly known Bachmann wasn't on the ballot.

But Michele Bachmann campaign staffer Andy Parrish claims on the Bachmann campaign website:

She [Tarryl Clark] falsely claimed Congresswoman Bachmann appeared on a presidential preference ballot at the Values Voters Summit.

So who is telling the truth? Andy Parrish or Sergio Gor? Or will the Michele Bachmann people claim that Strib Washington Bureau reporter, is lying?

Developing....

Purseholder Asked to Comment on Whether Bachmann Supported the Legacy Amendment

KARE:

At the same time, more controversy is brewing over whether or not Bachmann ever supported the Legacy Amendment -- the 2008 measure approved by voters that raised the sales tax by 3/8 of one percent. Bachmann attacked Clark's support for the act in ads featuring "Jim, the Election Guy." But sportsmen's groups say Bachmann also supported the measure.

"I think it was all of our understanding after 2008 that she was a supporter of the amendment," said Paul Austin with Conservation Minnesota.

"There's no doubt in my mind that she supported the constitutional amendment," said Minnesota Bound host Ron Schara about Bachmann's comments at the 2008 Game Fair in Anoka.

Bachmann's campaign spokesman, Andy Parrish, said he could not comment without an actual statement, adding that the "congresswoman has a clear record of fighting tax increases."

Parrish added that Bachmann voted against a similar amendment proposal as a state senator in 2006.

Bottom line, analysts say, the debate and current ads prove this race is heating up.

"There's no question, this is a race that's degenerating and getting nastier and nastier," said David Schultz, a Hamline Law School professor.

Commenter Anna notes:

Anna
Anna
Sergio wasn't on Bachmann's staff (he was hired just 5 months ago) during the 2008 Game Fair, so he doesn't have any personal recall of the event.

Staff (or what is often referred to as "institutional") memory is a big problem for Bachmann because nobody stays for long. It must be difficult to work in that revolving door office, you know, constantly having to support lies and misrepresentations for the boss. The cognitive dissonance doesn't work for anyone who isn't afflicted with an amoral personality disorder.

Lack of memory in the staff ranks would account for a lot of these gross errors -- they simply don't know Bachmann's historic positions on an issue because they weren't there. Also, without consistent and persistent efforts by staff she can't craft meaningful policy or write bills. In short, you can't do anything to support the needs of your district without committed, long-term staff. Her highest level people turn over (usually with a year or less service), and I suspect it's even worse at the lower levels. Every time I call her office I get someone different, and often they say "I'm new here".

Clark campaign is pointing this out, but I don't know if half the district is listening. Bachmann's office is a huge waste of taxpayer money. Ineffective and always thrashing.

The Shadow

LOCAL SLEUTH LAMONT CRANSTON CLEARS THE AIR ABOUT MICHELE BACHMANN’S ALLEGED SUPPORT FOR RAISING TAXES

By Karl Bremer © 2010

Local sleuth and wealthy young man about town Lamont Cranston today called a press conference to explain the mysterious happenings at the 2008 Game Fair in Anoka, where thousands of attendees and two of Minnesota’s leading outdoor writers were led to believe that Congresswoman Michele Bachmann supported an increase in the state sales tax to support the outdoors and the arts.

“It was The Shadow,” Cranston said, as a collective gasp emanated from the anxious crowd of reporters assembled in the State Capitol.

Cranston, accompanied by his faithful sidekick Margo Lane, explained:

As reported on the http://dumpbachmann.blogspot.com/2010/09/big-taxin-michele-bachmann.html DumpBachmann blog Sept. 12, Bachmann has been attacking her opponent Tarryl Clark for supporting the “Legacy Amendment,” a constitutional amendment that was passed overwhelmingly by Minnesotans—and by voters in the 6th Congressional District—and raised the state sales tax by .375 percent on such items as State Fair corn dogs and children’s back-to-school crayons and backpacks. Clark’s support for the popular amendment has led Bachmann to dub her opponent “Taxin’ Tarryl.”

But an Oct. 23, 2008 column by Star-Tribune outdoor writer Dennis Anderson reported that Bachmann herself publicly supported the amendment at the Game Fair sportsmens’ extravaganza in Anoka that year.

“In fact, Coleman and Bachmann support the proposed amendment, as do most, if not all, of the Minnesota congressional delegation,” Anderson wrote. “Coleman, Bachmann and Franken spoke in August at Game Fair in Anoka of their support of the Clean Water amendment. Coleman and Bachmann also displayed blaze orange "Sportsmen vote yes" placards in their Game Fair booths …”

However, in a Sept. 12 St. Cloud Times article, Bachmann apologist Sergio Gor flatly denied that Bachmann supported the Legacy Amendment:

“The Clark campaign said this week that Bachmann also supported the sales-tax amendment, citing a newspaper article from 2008. But Bachmann spokesman Sergio Gor said she never supported the tax,” the Times reported.

When informed that Bachmann claimed he was lying about her support for the amendment, Anderson responded in an email:

I'm telling the truth, as a thousand or so other people can attest. She expressed her unqualified support for the amendment over the PA system at Game Fair in August 2008. (Star-Tribune outdoor writer) Ron Schara was the interviewer … Of course, that doesn't mean she didn't tell other people just the opposite.

Schara, one of Minnesota’s most revered outdoor writers and host of the tv show “Minnesota Bound, concurred:

“I did ask Michele if she supported the constitutional amendment,” Schara said Tuesday. “She very clearly said yes.”

During that interview, Schara also said Bachmann was wearing a “Vote Yes” button distributed by Sportsmen for Change-Minnesota, a group that lobbied for passing the amendment.

Many others supported Anderson’s contention that Bachmann supported the amendment as well.

Ken Martin, who led Vote Yes Minnesota, another group organized to support passage of the Legacy Amendment, told the Star-Tribune this week that Bachmann “indicated her strong support” for the amendment to enthusiastic applause from the Game Fair attendees. Martin’s group then trumpeted her apparent support as evidence that, despite some Republican Party opposition, the measure had bipartisan support in the Minnesota delegation in Congress.

Paul Austin, executive director of Conservation Minnesota, which also backed the amendment, told the Star-Tribune that Bachmann's expression of support was “widely discussed” among sportsmen's groups. “We thought, wow, that's great,” he said.

And the Star-Tribune reported that “Game Fair organizer Chuck Delaney said that while he didn't hear Bachmann's remarks, her presence at one of the nation's largest sportsmen's events was taken as tacit endorsement of the amendment.”

“These people are asking for the votes of sportsmen,” he told the newspaper. “So I'm sure they wouldn't come out here if they're against anything that sportsmen are for.”

In fact, Schara told the Star-Tribune, for whom he wrote for decades, Bachmann's booth at the 2008 event displayed a blaze orange “Sportsmen vote yes” placard, and that he “vividly” remembers the congresswoman wearing a “Vote Yes” button prepared by Sportsmen for Change, which led the campaign to pass the amendment.

Don McMillan, president of the Minnesota Outdoor Heritage Alliance, told the Star-Tribune: “I don't understand why there would be a dispute about it. She had a sign in her booth supporting it.”

But Bachmann mouthpiece Sergio Gor continued to insist that his boss, widely known for her truthfulness, never supported the amendment.

The placard all these people reported seeing in Bachmann’s Game Fair booth, Gor claimed, was simply a misunderstanding. “A lot of times people just come up and throw stuff on our tables,” he said. “If we don't take it off in time, someone can ... snap a picture or see it there.”

So how did thousands of Game Fair attendees and some of Minnesota’s leading sportsmen and outdoor writers come to believe that Bachmann supported the Legacy Amendment, sported a “Vote Yes” sticker and displayed a “Vote Yes” sign in her booth?

“The invisible Shadow has the ability to cloud men’s minds, and make them see and hear things that didn’t really happen,” Cranston explained to the throng of reporters. “He wanted Minnesota’s sportsmen and sportswomen to vote for Michele Bachmann, so he convinced them that Bachmann supported one of the most important ballot initiatives to ever come before them.”

But how did The Shadow infiltrate the Game Fair?

“He assumed the body of Ron Schara’s famous black labrador, Raven,” Cranston continued. “That way, no one would suspect his presence and he could go about his business of lies and deceit.”

“Well, now that that’s cleared up, we can get on with the business of re-electing my wife, Michele,” Marcus Bachmann told reporters as they gathered up their notepads and cameras.

But as the media began to shuffle out the door, their heads shaking in disbelief, a chill crept over the Capitol press room and a dark voice came out of the rafters:

“Who knows what evil lurks in the heart of Michele Bachmann?” the voice boomed. "The weed of lying bears bitter fruit. Lying does not pay. The Shadow knows.”

Strib Covers Michele Bachmann's Legacy Amendment Lies

Read it here.

Ken Martin ran the Vote Yes Minnesota campaign in support of the Legacy Amendment and said he heard Bachmann's remarks at Game Fair. She "indicated her strong support" to enthusiastic applause from the group, he said. Martin's group then trumpeted her apparent support as evidence that, despite some Republican Party opposition, the measure had bipartisan support in the Minnesota delegation in Congress.

"It's bizarre that now that this whole thing has come up, she's trying to have her cake and eat it too," Martin said.

Paul Austin, executive director of Conservation Minnesota, which also backed the amendment, said Bachmann's expression of support was "widely discussed" among sportsmen's groups. "We thought, wow, that's great," he said. "If she was offended, she didn't say so."

Campaign ad

The issue was raised indirectly in a Bachmann campaign ad during last month's State Fair featuring "Jim the Election guy," a fictional character who criticized Clark, a state senator, for raising taxes "on your corn dog, and your deep-fried bacon and your beer."

The charge was based in part on Clark's vote in the Legislature to put the Legacy Amendment on the ballot. But the ad appeared shortly after Bachmann returned to the Game Fair in Anoka last month and, say the sportsmen, backed the Legacy Amendment.

"She brought it up," said "Minnesota Bound" TV host Ron Schara, who interviewed her over a public intercom. While he could not recall her exact words, Schara, a retired Star Tribune outdoors columnist, said she "inferred again her support for what this has accomplished."

Game Fair organizer Chuck Delaney said that while he didn't hear Bachmann's remarks, her presence at one of the nation's largest sportsmen's events was taken as tacit endorsement of the amendment. "These people are asking for the votes of sportsmen," he said. "So I'm sure they wouldn't come out here if they're against anything that sportsmen are for."

Schara and others say Bachmann was more explicit in her support at the Game Fair in 2008, when the Legacy Amendment was going on the ballot.

"As clearly as I remember anything, I remember Michele speaking in favor of the constitutional amendment," said Schara, who was hosting a public candidate forum that year as well. "I don't remember her exact words, only that she supported the effort because of her family. They do hunt and fish and enjoy the outdoors."

Read the whole thing.

BACHMANN FLIP-FLOPS HER WAY THROUGH TAX TALK, TURNS BACK ON MINNESOTA HUNTERS AND FISHERS

Press Release from the Tarryl Clark campaign:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Carrie Lucking
September 14, 2010
St. Cloud, MN
BACHMANN FLIP-FLOPS HER WAY THROUGH TAX TALK, TURNS BACK ON MINNESOTA HUNTERS AND FISHERS
Bachmann was for sales tax increase -- before she was against it

Over the last three weeks, Michele Bachmann has spent over half a million dollars to have her paid actor, Jim (Beau) the Election Guy falsely accuse Tarryl Clark of voting to raise the state sales tax.

But what Bachmann and her paid Election Guy neglect to mention is that Bachmann actually supported the very same measure in question. That is, before she was against it - the ultimate flip-flop.

The sales tax in question is the Minnesota Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment, an amendment voted on and approved by taxpayers - not legislators -- in 2008 to dedicate a fraction of a percent of the sales tax in order to fund clean water and conservation efforts. The amendment was supported by dozens of hunting, fishing and outdoors groups, and passed overwhelmingly.

Back in 2008, Bachmann expressed her support for the Legacy Amendment before an audience of more than one thousand sportsmen and hunters at Game Fair. Her personal statement of support in this public forum was reported by Minneapolis Star Tribune, and confirmed by reporter Dennis Anderson to the blog Dump Bachmann just yesterday. The article also noted that her campaign booth displayed a "Sportsmen Vote Yes" sign, encouraging support of the Legacy Amendment.

But this week, a spokesperson for her campaign said she "never" supported it.

Bachmann's ads have already failed independent truth tests, so it's not surprising that she'd continue to try and mislead voters. But it is surprising that she'd turn her back on Minnesota's sportsmen, hunters, and outdoors enthusiasts. In fact, the Legacy Amendment passed Bachmann's own 6th District with 53% of the vote - 30,000 votes more than Bachmann herself received in 2008.

"Michele Bachmann continues to mislead voters," said Zach Rodvold, Campaign Manager for Tarryl Clark's campaign for Congress. "From her inaccurate ads to her flip-flopping on the Legacy Amendment, Michele Bachmann is not being honest with the people of the 6th District. Instead, she hides behind a paid actor to sling false and misleading accusations. Michele Bachmann's constituents - especially the thousands of outdoors enthusiasts - deserve to know where she really stands. Did she lie to them, or has she turned her back on them? Which one is it, Congresswoman?"

###

UPDATE: Commenter Karl suggests:

Tarryl Clark needs to make an ad based on this press release, use Ron Schara's quotes from the Strib and run it on Ron Schara's tv show "Minnesota Bound."

Palin Rally Speaker, Ron Schara Confirms that Michele Bachmann Publicly Supported Legacy Amendment to Increase Taxes

The St Cloud Times has the story.

Another observer says U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann spoke publicly in 2008 in support of a tax increase that she has since criticized her election opponent, Tarryl Clark, for backing.

Journalist Ron Schara interviewed Bachmann, R-Stillwater, before a crowd at the 2008 Game Fair, an annual late-summer gathering in Anoka for outdoor and hunting enthusiasts.

That interview became an issue last week after a Bachmann spokesman said she never supported Minnesota’s Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment. The amendment to Minnesota’s constitution raised sales taxes to finance outdoor and arts projects.

Schara is a Star Tribune contributor and retired columnist who hosts the “Minnesota Bound” TV show. He said Bachmann told the Game Fair crowd in 2008 that she supported the Legacy amendment. Newspaper columnist Dennis Anderson reported the same in October 2008.

“I did ask Michele if she supported the constitutional amendment,” Schara said Tuesday. “She very clearly said yes.”

During that interview, Schara also said Bachmann was wearing a “Vote Yes” button distributed by Sportsmen for Change-Minnesota, a group that lobbied for passing the amendment.

Schara and Game Fair organizer Chuck Delaney said they aren’t aware of audio or video recordings of the interview.

Incidentally, Scharra spoke at the McCain/Palin rally in Blaine 2008. Look True North:

Ron Schara just gave a well received speech.

The St Cloud Times continues:

Bachmann spokesman Sergio Gor reiterated what he told the Times last week. Bachmann “has made it clear she did not support the Legacy Amendment,” Gor said.

Then why did she tell the Game Fair people she supported the amendment?

Who lied? Michele Bachmann or Star Tribune Writer Dennis Anderson?

MICHELE BACHMANN SAYS STAR-TRIBUNE OUTDOOR WRITER DENNIS ANDERSON LIED ABOUT HER SUPPORT FOR 2008 LEGACY AMENDMENT; ANDERSON SAYS IT’S BACHMANN WHO’S NOT TELLING THE TRUTH

By Karl Bremer © 2010

Michele Bachmann has been caught lying redhanded—again. This time it’s about her support for the 2008 “Legacy Amendment”—the constitutional amendment passed overwhelmingly by Minnesota voters that raised the state sales tax by .375 percent to provide a dedicated fund for the outdoors and the arts.

Bachmann has used Tarryl Clark’s State Senate vote to put the amendment on the 2008 ballot as evidence that Clark “loves taxes” and voted to raise taxes on State Fair corn dogs and deep-fried bacon. The charge is the basis for Bachmann’s latest ad that claims Clark also voted to raise taxes on color crayons for kids.

But as first reported on the Dump Bachmann blog, Sept. 6, Bachmann herself supported the corn-dog-tax-raising amendment. Respected Star-Tribune outdoor writer Dennis Anderson stated in his Oct. 23, 2008 column:

“Lawn signs advocating the campaigns of candidates for various offices are strewn across Minnesota in these concluding days of the election cycle.

Perhaps none imply a more incorrect message than those of Sen. Norm Coleman and U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann when they are grouped, side by side, with signs advocating "Vote no" on the proposed Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment.

--snip--

The combination of signs suggests that Republicans Coleman and Bachmann, both of whom generally support low taxes, oppose the amendment (the amendment, if approved, would increase the state sales tax three-eighths of 1 percent).

In fact, Coleman and Bachmann support the proposed amendment, as do most, if not all, of the Minnesota congressional delegation...”

Anderson continues:

“Coleman, Bachmann and Franken spoke in August at Game Fair in Anoka of their support of the Clean Water amendment. Coleman and Bachmann also displayed blaze orange "Sportsmen vote yes" placards in their Game Fair booths …”

But in the September 12 St. Cloud Times, Bachmann mouthpiece Sergio Gor flatly denied that Bachmann supported the Legacy Amendment:

“The Clark campaign said this week that Bachmann also supported the sales-tax amendment, citing a newspaper article from 2008. But Bachmann spokesman Sergio Gor said she never supported the tax.”

When informed that Bachmann claimed he was lying about her support for the amendment, Anderson responded in an email:

"I'm telling the truth, as a thousand or so other people can attest. She expressed her unqualified support for the amendment over the PA system at Game Fair in August 2008. (Star-Tribune outdoor writer) Ron Schara was the interviewer … Of course, that doesn't mean she didn't tell other people just the opposite.”

Once again, the truth and Michele Bachmann appear to be perfect strangers.

A footnote: The Legacy Amendment garnered 217,501 votes in the 6th Congressional District in 2008, while Bachmann herself received only 187,814 votes. In other words, 29,687 more 6th District voters voted to raise taxes on themselves than voted for Bachmann.

If anyone has photographic or audio evidence of Bachmann expressing her support for the 2008 corn-dog-tax-raising Legacy Amendment, feel free to forward it to DumpBachmann.

Michele Bachmann Now Claims Strib Outdoors Columnist is Lying About Her Support for Legacy Amendment

As Dump Bachmann noted, the Strib's Outdoors columnist Dennis Anderson reported that Michele Bachmann publicly supported the legacy amendment while at the Game Fair in 2008.

Now in the St Cloud Times, her spokesperson Sergio Gor is denying this:

"The Clark campaign said this week that Bachmann also supported the sales-tax amendment, citing a newspaper article from 2008. But Bachmann spokesman Sergio Gor said she never supported the tax."

If Bachmann felt that Dennis Anderson was misrepresenting her views in his column, why didn't she attempt to get an on the record correction at the time?

Developing...

Tarryl Clark Responds to Michele Bachmann's Latest Ad

From the Tarryl Clark campaign:

STATEMENT FROM ZACH RODVOLD, CAMPAIGN MANAGER, ON MICHELE BACHMANN'S LATEST MISLEADING ATTACKS, RECYCLED IN NEW AD
Bachmann again attacks Clark for a voter-approved measure that she herself claimed to support

"For the third week in a row, Michele Bachmann is on the air with a misleading attack ad featuring a paid actor calling himself 'Jim.' And for the second week in a row, Bachmann is using Minnesota's Legacy Amendment - which passed with widespread support in 2008, receiving 30,000 more votes in the 6th District than Bachmann herself - to attack Tarryl Clark. This line of attack has already failed the truth test, as have countless other claims made by Bachmann in the past year.

Voters in this district and across the state are fed up with misleading, false, and over-the-top partisan attacks, which is all that Bachmann has offered her constituents to date. By contrast, Tarryl Clark has spent months speaking honestly to voters about the challenges we face. Tarryl is building a winning coalition of police officers, teachers, business leaders, nurses, fire fighters, farmers and working families from St. Cloud to Stillwater. They all know that the 6th District deserves better, and that's why they're backing Tarryl Clark for Congress."

###

FACT CHECK

LINE: Hi, It's Jim again. It's back to school time here in Minnesota and you guessed it, Taxin' Tarryl Clark has a tax for that.

Wanna buy some crayons? She's got a sales tax increase for that ... Buy a backpack? She's got a tax for that, too.

• This is a reference to the voter-approved Legacy Amendment, a connection dubbed misleading and wrong by Politifact and KSTP's Truth Test, which gave Bachmann's last ad an overall D+. [http://minnesotaindependent.com/64505/mpr-bachmann-ad-wrong-on-corn-dog-tax AND http://kstp.com/news/stories/S1731503.shtml?cat=1]


• In fact, Bachmann herself apparently supported the Legacy Amendment, so Bachmann is attacking her opponent for an Amendment that she herself supported. "Coleman, Bachmann and Franken spoke in August at Game Fair in Anoka of their support of the Clean Water amendment. Coleman and Bachmann also displayed blaze orange "Sportsmen vote yes" placards in their Game Fair booths," according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune on 10/23/08. [http://www.startribune.com/sports/33174964.html]


• The Legacy Amendment was approved overwhelmingly by voters in the 6th District - 55%. It received nearly 30,000 more votes than Michele Bachmann did, according to the Minnesota Secretary of State. [www.sos.state.mn.us]

LINE: Drive your kids to school? She's got a gas tax hike for that.

• Tarryl voted in favor of the bipartisan transportation veto override in 2007 [HF 2800]. The price of gas at the end of 2007, prior to the gas tax increase was $3.02 per gallon. The price of gas today is $2.76 per gallon. People are NOT paying more for gas as they take their kids to school.


• The bipartisan bill was negotiated with the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce as well as hundreds of groups representing thousands of 6th District voters.


• Funds from this bill were used to rebuild the Hwy 23 bridge without federal support and despite Bachmann's objection.
  [Catherine Richert, MPR PoliGraph, September 3, 2010]

Big Taxin' Michele Bachmann

Well, well, well, look who supported raising the state sales tax by .375 percent to support the outdoors and the arts in 2008: Michele Bachmann. That’s right — the same constitutional amendment that Bachmann has been tearing into Tarryl Clark for supporting — you know, the one that raised taxes on your State Fair corn dogs and fried bacon — was supported by none other than Ms. Teabagger herself.

According to Star-Tribune outdoor writer Dennis Anderson’s Oct. 23, 2008 column:

Coleman, Bachmann and Franken spoke in August at Game Fair in Anoka of their support of the Clean Water amendment. Coleman and Bachmann also displayed blaze orange "Sportsmen vote yes" placards in their Game Fair booths (Franken also might have, but I was unable to confirm it).

So why haven’t our astute Minnesota political press reported on this fact in their fact-checking of Bachmann’s ad? Could it be because the real reporting on Michele Bachmann comes from the unpaid bloggers at DumpBachmann?

Maybe it’s time for a new name for Michele: “Big Taxin’ Bachmann.”

WCCO's Pat Kessler Puts Michele Bachmann's State Fair Ad Through the Reality Check. Ad Found Wanting

Watch it here.

Michele Bachmann Gets Nominated for Lie of the Year

Read all about it and vote at Politifact here.

City Pages Fact Checks another Michele Bachmann Lie

Check it out here.

Michele Bachmann Claims "Sex Clinics" in the Public Schools Will Whisk Girls Away to Have Abortions

This gets on discussed on Countdown in the first segment.

Commenter Lady sent a link to the transcript:

But there's something that hasn't been talked about much, and it's the whole idea of school-based clinics in schools all across America. And that's in H.R. 3200.

Now, this would raise the hackles on the necks of school parents all across this country when they understand section 2511 of H.R. 3200. The House government takeover of health care bill has a section called school-based health clinics. It would allow a nonprofit health agency--just say Planned Parenthood because that's what this is written for. Again, we need to be serious. Planned Parenthood is an organization that is the largest abortion provider in the United States. And written into this
bill is a provision whereby Planned Parenthood could become the proprietor for school-based clinics in every school across the United States. These have been more accurately called school sex clinics.

One of the very first school sex clinics that was put into this country was in St. Paul, Minnesota. And it was told to the families and the parents that this would actually reduce pregnancy. Of course we knew it wouldn't reduce pregnancy. It increased pregnancy. It increased sexually transmitted diseases. It was a disaster for young women in St. Paul public schools.

The greatest, kindest, most compassionate gift we could give to our young people--whether it's young girls or young boys--is to teach them and tell them the travesty that they can encounter with early onset of sexual activity. It really is an epidemic now in this country.

For so many girls across this country now, 25 percent of girls have sexually transmitted diseases, potentially life-threatening sexually transmitted diseases. Boys as well.

This isn't the kind of country that we grew up in, but today where we have almost a patting on the back of telling young people, It's your choice; do whatever you want to do. Now the Federal Government is going the final step, and they're saying, Let's put sex clinics in our schools.

Can you believe this, Mr. Speaker? Let's put sex clinics in our schools, and let's put Planned Parenthood in charge of these sex clinics, because the bill requires under this provision, Planned Parenthood would be authorized to serve as a sponsoring facility for the Nation's schools. As a matter of fact, the bulk of this health care bill is scheduled to go into effect in 2013. Remember, all the taxes will start this coming January, Mr. Speaker. Right away, at the time we can least afford it,
the taxes will go into place, but the provisions of this bill actually go into effect in 2013.

Not the school-based sex clinics. They would go into effect next summer so that these clinics would appear in public schools next fall, and it would require that the school-based sex clinic would provide on-site access during the school day when school is in session and have an established network of support and access to services with back-up health providers when the school is closed. Can you imagine what this would cost, Mr. Speaker, if every school in the United States had a built-in health
clinic? And this health clinic, parents won't have access to.

How do we know that? Parents are going to be excluded from Planned Parenthood as they write these clinics because the bill orders that these clinics protect patient privacy in student records.

[Time: 18:45]


What does that mean? It means that parents will never know what kind of counsel and treatment that their children are receiving. As a matter of fact, the bill goes on to say what's going to go on--comprehensive primary health services, physicals, treatment of minor acute medical conditions, referrals to followup for specialty care. Is that abortion?

Does that mean that someone's 13-year old daughter could walk into a sex clinic, have a pregnancy test done, be taken away to the local Planned Parenthood abortion clinic, have their abortion, be back, and go home on the school bus that night? Mom and dad are never the wiser. They don't know any different.

As a matter of fact, the bill also provides for mental health planning. This is very concerning. In our State in Minnesota we've done a lot of research on this. Mental health; mental health assessments; crisis intervention; counseling; treatment; referral to a continuum of services, including emergency psychiatric care, and mom and dad can't know what's going on?

Mr. Speaker, I am almost without words to think that we have come to the time when the Democrats that control Washington, D.C.--and, make no mistake, they control every level of power in this city. Now they want the taxpayers, if they haven't been beleaguered enough, to pay for sex clinics all across the United States.

Planned Parenthood, which takes in a billion dollars a year, $300 million of which is taxpayer subsidies--hey, that was just the prologue. This is the gravy train. Because now it would be billions and billions and billions on into the future.

What did the President say earlier this week or last week? He wants America's schools to have longer school days and longer school years. Where in the Constitution does it say that the President decides how long the school day is or how long the school year is? And now we're going to have the sex clinics in the schools and they're essentially going to take over the health care services of our kids?

I don't know about you, Representative King, but this is highly offensive to me as a parent to think the audacity--the audacity of the President and of this Congress stepping into this area of privacy of family life.

UPDATE: Politifact gives the claim that School Based Clinics provide abortions a "Pants on Fire" nomination. Huffington Post fact checks Michele Bachmann's speech.

Sloppy Coverage of Michele Bachmann by MPR

Here.

A profile of Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel refers to an allegation made by Congressman Michele Bachmann.

Commenter Karl points out:

Shouldn't that read "A profile of Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel refers to a FALSE allegation made by Congressman Michele Bachmann."

This is from the NYT news (not opinion)article:

Largely quoting his past writings out of context this summer, Betsy McCaughey, a former lieutenant governor of New York, labeled Dr. Emanuel a “deadly doctor” who believes health care should be “reserved for the nondisabled” — a false assertion that Representative Michele Bachmann, Republican of Minnesota, repeated on the House floor.

Posted by Karl | August 25, 2009 11:17 AM

Michele Bachmann news links tonight

Tonight, it looks like journalists with real jobs are just recycling the same Politico article. They keep talking about a Bachmann staffer named "Michelle Martson", mentioned in the Politico article that these reporters seem to be re-typing. (Bachmann chief of staff gives out her name to the public as "Michelle MARSTON, so tonight we have a chance to see how quickly a Politico spelling and story get recycled by other reporters.)

Here is the original Politico article, which is actually pretty good. It claims that Michele is now "Public Enemy Number 1," with Dems--and explains why.

Then we have an article that seems to have been based on that article. According to the Examiner, she may be the new Sarah Palin. This one's kind of amusing, because the writer's tone indicates that she just heard of this person Bachmann. (The author reports that Bachmann has emerged as a "possible" target of the left's ire. And the author uses the mindless label "social conservative" to describe Bachmann's politics; always a bad sign.)

One of the "Godzillas" of news gathering, the United Press International, lobs in the report from Politico, noting that Michele's in for a fight next year. UPI reports on the Sixth District:

Bachmann's chief of staff, Michelle Martson (sic), said the congresswoman likely holds a high spot on Democrats' list of possible political targets given her open stances on key issues such as global warming, the Politico reported Saturday.

"She's definitely somewhere up there," Martson said.

That's right, she is, "Martson." In the same article, Minnesota Republican political mastermind Michael Brodkorb opines on *why* Democrats don't like Bachmann:

"I think she probably frustrates them because she's able to win every time," he told the Politico.

That's one reason she frustrates Dems, Michael--the other reason is that she's a notorious nut, bigot and liar serving in the U.S. Congress. That, too, pissed Dems off.

The UPI article also identifies Mr. Brodkorb as "Minnesota Republican Party of Democratic deputy chairman." I have never heard of such an office, and I don't understand this title they have given to him. But they spelled his name right, I think.

Finally: Harold Pollack, a New Republic's special correspondent on health care issues writes a thoughtful piece called "Have You No Decency?" (The title of the article compares the integrity of Bachmann and Palin to that of McCarthy.) Pollack takes Sarah Palin and Michele Bachmann to task for spreading disinformation about what's in the health care reform bill. It's a good article that tries to refute the lies. Excerpts:

...To be clear, it is downright evil to establish a “death panel” that decides who is allowed to live based on their “level of productivity in society” (as Sarah Palin claims the health care plan does.) Less clear is what the heck Palin or Bachmann are talking about. I can’t find the words “death panel” in any administration position paper, the stimulus package, or the House and Senate draft health reform bills. Don’t take my word for it. Read the bills...

Another excerpt:

...Palin and Bachmann remind no one of Hillary Clinton in their success in grasping complex policy issues, or in their desire to do so. It may be too much to expect them to trace the origin and veracity of these talking points. These originate in a New York Post op-ed by Betsy McCaughey, which Bachmann essentially recites on the House floor...

...and the article has a link to Bachmann's speech on the House floor. Finally:

...publicity-seeking politicians subtract a lot from these conversations. Palin, Bachmann, and others score cheap points by scaring people and by spreading falsehoods. Their disrespect goes beyond their own political base to those whose views they so recklessly misconstrue...