Liberals and the media had better stop laughing, said David Weigel in GQ. Michele Bachmann, the evangelical Christian Minnesota congresswoman who recently declared her candidacy for president, has a real shot to become the Republican nominee. The Republican establishment may not like her, but she’s “whip smart,” has made a visceral connection to the Tea Party and the social conservative base, and could easily win early primaries in Iowa and South Carolina. Bachmann, a sharp-spoken, 5-foot-2 dynamo, has injected some real electricity into a lackluster Republican field, said Thomas Fitzgerald in The Philadelphia Inquirer. Conservatives love that she calls global warming “a hoax,” has assailed President Obama’s “anti-American views,” and has even attacked the government’s insistence that consumers buy new, energy-efficient lightbulbs. With Republican front-runner Mitt Romney leading by default, Bachmann may become the “anti-Mitt” for those who prefer stronger medicine.
Liberals aren’t laughing—they’re terrified, said John Cassidy in NewYorker.com. Bachmann is an extremist, Bible-thumping crusader against the “gay lifestyle,” abortion, and taxes. Her husband runs a Christian counseling center that tries to turn gays straight through therapy. Worst of all, she can’t be dismissed, because she’s an attractive woman with a compelling story and a dynamic public speaker, and, as of last week, she’s running dead even with Romney in Iowa and gaining in New Hampshire. With $13.6 million in campaign funds, Bachmann is “a serious threat—to the other Republican candidates, to the Democrats, and to the country.” She’s also a phony and a hypocrite, said Timothy Egan in The New York Times. While publicly condemning “socialism” and government spending, Bachmann and her family have collected $251,000 in farm subsidies over 14 years. Her husband’s clinic has collected Medicaid payments of $137,000 since 2005.
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