Is Michele Bachmann the new Sarah Palin?
Is Michele Bachmann the new Sarah Palin?
After all, Ms. Bachmann is talkative, telegenic, and a big tea party backer. Plus, she鈥檚 used to cold and snow. She鈥檚 a GOP member of Congress from Minnesota, after all.
And 鈥� here鈥檚 the crucial part 鈥� she鈥檚 avoiding the question of whether she will run for president in 2012 in much the same way that Ms. Palin skirts it. In other words, she鈥檚 issuing non-denials that may be intended to keep her options open.
Got all that?
Let鈥檚 start at the beginning 鈥� there鈥檚 been a lot of media gab in the last several days about a possible presidential bid by the outspoken Rep. Bachmann. This stems from the fact that she is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at a political fundraiser in Des Moines, Iowa, on January 21. She鈥檚 going to make other public stops in that early 2012 caucus state while she鈥檚 there.
And as Bachmann herself said on Thursday, 鈥渋f you speak in Iowa today, most people think you鈥檙e running for president.鈥�
Bachmann鈥檚 been directly asked by a number of interviewers whether she鈥檚 contemplating a run, and she does not say she isn鈥檛. Instead, she says that she is focused on the issues. (She is very big on shrinking the federal government. Just in case you wondered which issues she is talking about.) She says she is not concerned with what happens to her. She says the whole discussion is boring, and that it鈥檚 too early to focus on the question of who鈥檚 running for the GOP nomination.
鈥淚 just think that鈥檚 the wrong question to ask for the next year,鈥� she told Greta Van Susteren on Fox News Wednesday.
OK, Sarah Palin is a little further along on this, in that she at least admits she鈥檚 thinking about the whole thing. But the way Bachmann talks about the question today is just the way Palin talked about it a few months ago.
Is the GOP ready for two female tea party candidates from the frozen north? Probably not. Most presidential fields get winnowed down to candidates from different niches vying with each other 鈥� a southerner versus a westerner versus a religious right candidate versus a moderate, and so forth.
So Bachmann might just be enjoying her moment. Or she might be biding her time to see if Palin runs after all. If the ex-governor of Alaska decides she鈥檇 rather focus on her lucrative media activities, Bachmann could present herself as a shovel-ready Palin alternative.
In some ways, Bachmann might be the better candidate. Sure, she鈥檚 said controversial things in the past, and her phrasing isn鈥檛 always crisp.
But Bachmann is focused like a laser beam on the tea party鈥檚 favorite issues. She鈥檚 got that politicians鈥� gift of driving home a central message in an interview, using the word 鈥渞epeal鈥� to refer to the health care vote, the 鈥渞epeal鈥� of Nancy Pelosi from the Speakership, and the possible 鈥渞epeal鈥� of Obama in 2012, for example. She currently holds political office, so she鈥檚 got motive and means to stay in the national spotlight.
In fact, Tina Fey鈥檚 probably practicing a Michele Bachmann impersonation right now. Just to keep her comedic options open.
