Michele Bachmann

Michele Bachmann was born on April 6, 1956. After finishing high school in Anoka, Minnesota in 1974, she graduated from Winona State University. She later attended Oral Roberts University, where she earned a law degree, and the College of William and Mary for a degree in tax law.

After helping with her husband’s mental health practice and raising a family including over 20 foster children, Bachmann and a group of like-minded parents started a publicly funded charter school in 1993. After it was found that they wished to institute Christianity based teachings into the school’s curriculum, the local school board called them in for questioning. Incensed, Bachmann and four other parents immediately quit the charter school’s board. She then practiced tax law for 5 years.

In 1999, she came out as an outspoken critic of Minnesota’s School-to-Work program and of public education in general. In 2000, Bachmann ran for, and won, a seat in the Minnesota state senate. After winning re-election in 2002, she co-proposed a state constitutional amendment banning same sex-marriages twice. The measure was rejected and failed to come up for a referendum both times. She won a re-election bid again in 2004.

Heavily supported by local and national religious leaders such as Dr. James Dobson, Bachmann ran for the United States House of Representatives, winning a 50 percent majority in a three way race. She promptly voted against raising the minimum Pell Grant and opposition to a troop surge in Iraq in 2007, as well as bailouts for financial institutions and auto makers in 2008 and 2009. She opposes golden parachutes for executives and favors breaking up Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Bachmann has voted to repeal the switch to compact fluorescent light bulbs and for legislation that would end frivolous lawsuits against small businesses. She is highly in favor of increasing offshore drilling and oil and natural gas exploration in the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge, and is a staunch supporter of a national constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage or any legal equivalent. In October of 2008, she called for investigations of members of Congress to seek out those who were “anti-American” or held “anti-American” views. She specifically mentioned Barack Obama by name as one who she felt held “anti-American” views and later associated the views of Obama with socialism. Her comments were condemned by state Democrats and were cited by Colin Powell and former Minnesota Governor Republican Arne Carlson as motivation for their support of Obama for president.

She won re-election to the House in 2008. In March 2009, she made controversial statements on a local AM radio show, saying she wanted Minnesotans “armed and dangerous on this issue of the energy tax because we need to fight back.” She went on to say that Thomas Jefferson told us that “having a revolution every now and then is a good thing.” In April 2009, in speaking about her opposition to cap and trade legislation, she stated, “Carbon dioxide is not a harmful gas, it is a harmless gas. Carbon dioxide is natural; it is not harmful…. We’re being told we have to reduce this natural substance to create an arbitrary reduction in something that is naturally occurring in the earth.”

Bachmann has also been one of the most outspoken opponents of health care reform, holding several public rallies against the proposed legislation. At an August meeting she stated, “This cannot pass. What we have to do today is make a covenant, to slit our wrists, be blood brothers on this thing. This will not pass. We will do whatever it takes to make sure this doesn’t pass.” She is currently the 21st largest recipient of contributions from the insurance industry of the 435 members in the United States House of Representatives, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.