Rural MN GOP Incumbents Sit Out Farmfest Debate – Full Video

Click to Play

Republican Representatives John Kline, Michele Bachmann were invited, but did not attend the Minnesota Congressional debate at Farmfest on Tuesday. However, Republican and Independence Party challengers to Representative Tim Walz and Collin Peterson did make the trip to a very steamy farm field near Redwood Falls,Minnesota for the one-hour forum on agricultural issues.

Kline’s opponent in the November election will be either DFL endorsed candidate Dan Powers or Powers’ August 10th primary opponent Shelley Madore. Madore participated in the Farmfest debate. Powers was invited, but declined because he had a prior commitment.

Bachmann’s opponent is DFL endorsed candidate Tarryl Clark who commented after the debate on Bachmann’s absence.

Clark On Bachmann Skipping Debate

Click to Play

Congressional Candidates Debate at Farmfest

Congressional Candidates from across the state debate at Farmfest. Watch here.

To read the live blog, click on the headline or read the live blog in a pop-up window by Clicking Here

… Continue Reading

Clark:Michele Bachmann not fighting for Minnesotans

Click to Play

MN CD6 Debate – Bachmann, Tinklenberg, Anderson 10.1.2008

Republican Michelle Bachmann is running for re-election in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District.  Democrat Elwyn Tinklenberg and independent Bob Anderson are running for her seat.  Tinklenberg is endorsed by both the Democratic and Independent political parties.  Tinklenberg is a former Mayor in the district and was also Minnesota Transportation Commissioner under Gov. Ventura.  Rep. Bachmann is a former tax attorney.  Until recently, Bachmann was known for her passioante support of a constiutional ban on same-sex marriages and civil unions in Minnesota.  This past week she has become a vocal spokesperson for House Republicans opposed to the financial crisis bailout bill.  This debate was held in Stillwater, MN.

*http://uptake-editorial.groups.theuptake.org/en/videogalleryView/id/887/

Rep. Bachmann Glad Wellstone Mental Health Equity Act Will Pass Despite Her Earlier “No” Vote

Congresswoman Michele Bachmann probably didn’t realize The UpTake’s microphone was still on when she started talking to one of her opponents after Wednesday night’s debate.

She told Bob Anderson, an independent candidate running for Bachmann’s seat, that she was “sure” that the $700 Billion bailout bill was going to pass the House due to the sweeteners added to the bill by the Senate on the night of Wed. Oct. 1st.

One of the primary sweeteners of the final passage is the Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act, a bill that was heavily supported by deceased MN Democratic Senator Paul Wellstone and retiring MN Republican Representative Jim Ramstad among others. The Act would “require equity in the provision of mental health and substance-related disorder benefits under group health plans, to prohibit discrimination on the basis of genetic information with respect to health insurance and employment”. Candidate Anderson is a passionate supporter of the Mental Health Equity Act mentioning it several times throughout the debate.

Rep. Bachmann said repeatedly that the passage of the Mental Health Equity Act, despite its attachment to the bailout, was a “positive”. See the transcript below.

However, Rep. Bachmann voted against the Mental Health Equity Act earlier this year in the House. The House version passed 268 – 148. The bill enjoyed a large degree of bipartisan support in the Minnesota delegation receiving votes Republicans Rep. Jim Ramstad and Sen. Norm Coleman in the Senate.

During the debate and again right after the debate she said she was probably going to vote against the bill since the core of the bailout had not changed. Over the past week, Rep. Bachmann has emerged as one of the prinicpal spokesperson of the House Republicans who are fundamentally opposed to the bailout – Bachmann has made several appearences on nationwide news programs advocating opposition to the bailout on free market principles.

Transcript: [emphasis added]

Rep. Michele Bachmann: Hey Bob, so glad I got to meet you. (crowd noise covers up conversation) And I don’t know if I told you, that, that bill is the vehicle that they’re putting it all on. So that’s what they’re going to …. The positive is it is going to pass. It’s for sure. That’s the positive on this that its for sure going to pass because tonight it passed in the Senate. The Senate has 70 votes. So the Parity bill [Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act], that’s the bill they pulled the ban out into. So that’s going to pass in the Senate and then come over to us. So it’s going to have that other piece in it, but it’s for sure going to pass.. So that’s the positive.

Bob Anderson: You think it will?

Bachmann: Oh yeah…

Anderson: But it’s going to have to pass with the bailout.

Bachmann: There’s no way Nancy Pelosi would have this happen a second time.

Anderson: No.

Bachmann: It is not going to happen. She is going to make sure that she has the votes. I don’t know where she got them from, but she got ‘em. She had to have gotten them. I’m sure….

Anderson: I’m not going to waiver on what I originally stated.

Bachmann: What?

Anderson: I’m not going to waiver on what I originally stated on this bailout.

Bachmann: Oh, oh, even though it’s folded in.

Anderson: Because it [Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act] passed in the House on a stand alone.

Bachmann: Oh yeah it did. And it actually had a really strong vote too.

UpTake Senior Political Correspondent Noah Kunin: Rep. Bachmann, I just have a quick question on the bailout and I think you already gave part of the answer. Right now you’re going to be voting against the Senate language of the bailout?

Bachmann: From what I understood, I haven’t read it yet, so I can’t say definitively how I’m going to go, but from what I’ve seen so far I’ll probably [stick to the same vote]

VIDEO: Noah Kunin
TEXT: Noah Kunin and Mike McIntee

**http://the-uptake.groups.theuptake.org/en/videogalleryView/id/882/

Rep. Bachmann Blames Mortgage Crisis On Rules Designed To Help Minorities

Minnesota 6th District Congresswoman Michele Bachmann is placing the blame for the current mortgage crisis on actions by the Clinton administration 15 years ago.

At a hearing Thursday she read portions of a story by Investors’ Business Daily’s Terry Jones which said the rules were written to allow more lending to minorities. (CSPAN video clip to right)

“Loans started being made on the basis of race, and often little else.” said Bachmann reading from the article.

Earlier this week Bachmann told MPR “too much government intervention” was to blame for the nation’s financial crisis

Democrats Respond

DFL Spokesman Eric Fought said “Bachmann owes the people of Minnesota, especially her Sixth District constituents, an apology. At a time of great economic crisis, Minnesotans look to their elected officials to lead the charge, finding solutions. Instead, Bachmann has let us down once again.”

Rep. Michele Bachmann: ANWR “Most Perfect Place On The Planet To Drill”

(Please note the audio on this is bad at the beginning but gets better shortly into the video)

Norm Coleman cheer leads the crowd before a rally for John McCain in Blaine, Minnesota.

Rep. Michele Bachmann goes after Obama for writing his biography twice and then blames Democrats for blocking reform that could have prevented the current financial mess.

She says McCain wanted reform three years ago that would have prevented the economic collapse of the last week.

Bachmann says Obama hired the man who was the head of Fannie Mae the “corrupt organization that backed the mortgages” to head up his VP search committee. But she neglects to mention that Jim Johnson resigned from that position months before Obama picked his Vice President.

Bachmann also said the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) is the “most perfect place on the planet to drill.”

“We believe first always and last that it’s about the United States of America, about God and country” Said Bachmann. She did not elaborate about which God she was referring to.