Michele Bachmann: Not ready for prime time?
Even as the presidential hopeful tops the polls, she can't help tripping herself up with high-profile gaffes. Can she possibly survive a full campaign?

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) officially launched her presidential campaign on Monday, and it's been a roller coaster ever since. The good news: Voters love her. Bachmann is soaring in the polls, even leading her GOP rivals in two states. The bad news: She's drowning in bad ink. Bachmann faced suggestions that she's a "flake," doubled down on her claim that the Founding Fathers "worked tirelessly" to end slavery, mixed up American icon John Wayne with clown-loving serial killer John Wayne Gacy, endured a "vitriolic" profile in Rolling Stone, and got in a spat with rocker Tom Petty for using one of his songs without permission. If this is just week one, can she survive the scrutiny of a serious presidential run?
Bachmann will do more than survive. She's a star: The sexist media is running Bachmann through the same "punishing gauntlet" to which it subjects all conservative women, says Mark McKinnon at The Daily Beast. But the media won't stop Bachmann merely by force-feeding us her "gaffes in 10-second fixes," while ignoring those of her male rivals and President Obama. She's "a rock star" among the social conservatives who vote in caucuses and primaries, and she's a fundraising powerhouse.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
And she already aced "the laugh test": Bachmann may have a "tenuous relationship with the facts," says Jonathan Capehart in The Washington Post. But judging from her TV appearances this week, "there’s no doubt that the newest official candidate for the Republican nomination is ready for prime time." Her "newfound discipline and focus" are impressive, and she showed she can "completely and convincingly" dodge any question about her spotty record with the truth.
"Michele Bachmann continues to pass the laugh test"
Wait until Bachmann's more serious liabilities emerge: Yes, Bachmann is already rising above her "well-earned reputation as a fringe character...," says Ed Kilgore at The New Republic. But now that she's a 2012 frontrunner, she'll face heightened scrutiny and a period of "enormous peril." She'll survive the "civics test" gotchas, like slavery and the Founding Fathers. But her "hard-core Christian Right" beliefs could hurt her among mainstream voters. That is, if the media dispenses with its wall-to-wall coverage of her silly gaffes and digs into Bachmann's far-Right past.
"Michele Bachmann: Can she survive being taken seriously?"
Plus, Republicans can do better: I agree with Bachmann "on 99 percent of the issues," but "she is not prepared to assume the White House in 2013," says former Bachmann chief of staff Ron Carey in The Des Moines Register. She is "unable, or unwilling, to handle the basic duties of a campaign or congressional office," and while she's a faithful conservative and great orator, she doesn't have "any leadership experience or real results from her years in office."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
The best shows to see at Edinburgh Fringe 2025
The Week Recommends The world's biggest arts festival is back with an incredible line-up
-
Wonsan-Kalma: North Korea's new 'mammoth' beach resort
Under the Radar Pyongyang wants to boost tourism but there won't be many foreign visitors to Kim Jong Un's 'pet project'
-
The 5 best TV reboots of all time
The Week Recommends Finding an entirely new cast to play beloved characters is harder than it looks
-
The last words and final moments of 40 presidents
The Explainer Some are eloquent quotes worthy of the holders of the highest office in the nation, and others... aren't
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?
Today's big question White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?
Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
-
Democrats vs. Republicans: which party are the billionaires backing?
The Explainer Younger tech titans join 'boys' club throwing money and support' behind President Trump, while older plutocrats quietly rebuke new administration
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?