As printed in the Daily Times of Delaware County on July 13, 2011 (http://www.delcotimes.com/articles/2011/07/13/opinion/doc4e1cf6d2b2c41245877473.txt?viewmode=fullstory)
Former White House press secretary Scott McClellan once commented, “polls are snapshots in time.” If so, the current picture features Congresswoman Michele Bachmann of Minnesota flying high as a legitimate candidate for the Republican nomination.
Zogby’s national poll July 7 put Bachmann in command with 34 percent to just 14 percent for Mitt Romney. A shocking Communication Concepts poll released July 6 put Bachmann at 23 percent in Pennsylvania, seven points ahead of Romney.
A PPP poll early last week has Bachmann at 18 points in New Hampshire. She’s climbed 14 points there and is within striking distance of Romney, who is only seven points ahead. Real Clear Politics reported June 28 Bachmann now leads all candidates in Oregon and Montana. Predictions are she will do exceptionally well in the Ames Iowa straw poll later this summer, which serves as a bell weather of sorts for activists in that state.
These numbers don’t just represent a significant spike for Bachmann. They show a massive movement in her favor. This data likely comes as welcome news at the White House where President Obama is reeling from another month of disastrous job creation numbers and hoping for a weak challenger. Meanwhile, they should be a distress signal for Republicans everywhere.
Republicans should be scared to death of Bachmann’s rapid rise from oblivion to first place. Candidates from either political party nominated in the modern era of presidential elections who are located (or perceived to be) on the fringe of the far right or far left of the political spectrum get buried. Just ask Barry Goldwater, George McGovern, and Walter Mondale how that works.
Tea party stalwarts argue that Bachmann is the right candidate to defeat Obama because her message is the opposite of Obama’s and can catapult the GOP to victory. While she does present a completely different agenda, her views are also far from the mainstream in American society and will drive swing Democrats, independents and moderate Republicans toward Obama.
Just how far out of the mainstream is this candidate? Bachmann signed a pledge last week in Iowa stating she would ban all pornography, oppose divorce, disallow rights for gays and lesbians, and enforce a federal marriage amendment. In October 2008 she went on MSNBC and called for McCarthy-style witch hunts into anti-Americanism among her fellow members of Congress.
While claiming to be “pro-life,” she’s signed a pledge that she’s opposed to allowing abortion in the rare instances when it is necessary for saving the life of a mother or in cases of gruesome rape or incest. Sensible people who are genuinely pro-life should be horrified.
Ronald Reagan in 1984 commented, “If we’ve learned any lessons during the past few decades, perhaps the most important is that preservation of our environment is not a partisan challenge; it’s common sense. Our physical health, our social happiness, and our economic well-being will be sustained only by all of us working in partnership as thoughtful, effective stewards of our natural resources.” Bachmann favors killing the Environmental Protection Agency and weakening environmental safety laws.
She favors repealing the minimum wage, falsely believes Obamacare finances abortions for minors, denies the theory of evolution, and claims climate change is a government ploy. She’s signed the Grover Norquist anti-tax pledge that says no matter how large the national emergency or how severe the economic consequences, Bachmann will never sign into law any increase in any tax, anytime, if elected.
As for race-relations, Bachmann has signed onto another pledge stating, “a child born into slavery in 1860 was more likely to be raised by his mother and father in a two-parent household than was an African American baby born after the election of the USA’s first African-American President.” Aside from being absurd and inaccurate, such a statement sullies the reputation of Republicans everywhere and ignores the GOP’s heroic efforts in American history to end slavery and lead the charge for civil rights laws in the 20th century.
The GOP is in a bind. If Bachmann is nominated they face a guaranteed defeat for the presidency, loss of House seats captured in 2010, and a slim chance of winning the Senate. Down-ballot Republican candidates for offices like Attorney General and the General Assembly in Pennsylvania could be toast. Most importantly, the GOP could also lose credibility as a national party by nominating someone who makes Sarah Palin and Newt Gingrich look like Nelson Rockefeller and John Heinz.
Republicans should get serious if they want a shot at the presidency. Regular Republicans must do everything in their power to defeat the movement toward a Bachmann candidacy by rallying around the single strongest non-Bachmann candidate. The stakes are high for Republicans as Bachmann’s nomination would render the party impotent as a viable alternative for a generation to come.
