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Subscribe to RSSMichele Bachmann campaigns on her family roots in Waterloo, Iowa. And she used those roots and a family reunion as the reason she was late to Sunday night’s high-profile dinner and speeches featuring her, Rick Santorum, and new presidential candidate Rick Perry.
But a family source tells NBC News, Bachmann was not at the event.
"About 10 years ago was the last time I saw Michele at a reunion," Shirly Movick, 76, who said she is Bachmann’s first cousin, told NBC News. She added that she hadn't seen Bachmann, or her family, come to the reunion "since she's been involved in politics."
Movick confirmed that Bachmann’s husband, Marcus, and the couple's three daughters, did attend the event, however. The reunion, in Lake Mills, IA, is held annually on the second Sunday of August. Movick said she has been going all her life.
The revelation, first reported by Politico, raises questions about a response Bachmann gave a reporter Sunday evening. While taking questions from reporters following her appearance at the Black Hawk County GOP dinner, Bachmann was asked why she had not arrived earlier to the dinner, in time to see Perry's speech.
"We had a full day today," Bachmann responded. "I was doing a number of things down in Ames. And we had a big family reunion just north of Waterloo."
The Bachmann campaign maintained she was with family.
"There were a few family reunion events that weekend,” campaign spokeswoman Alice Stewart told NBC. “She attended one on Friday. Marcus and the kids went to one on Sunday, and Michele met with family members on her own."
Asked to clarify why Bachmann missed Perry's speech, and why she did not mix-and-mingle before her own speech, Stewart said, "Like I said -- she was with family members before AND she mixed with the crowd for half an hour after she spoke."
But how Bachmann comported herself at this event -- and others -- also raises questions about her level of dedication to real retail campaigning. This one, like others, have been more rally than retail. Unlike Perry and Santorum, she did not sit and chat at tables before the speeches during the dinner portion. Instead, she signed autographs on stage for about 30 minutes, as music blared from speakers.
That rankled organizer Judd Saul, spokesman for the Black Hawk County GOP and the self-proclaimed leader of the area’s Tea Party.
"If you claim Waterloo,” he said, “come and dine with Waterloo.” (Bachmann was born in Waterloo.)
Saul was also irked that the party wasn’t able to capitalize on having two big-name speakers and raise the kind of money they could have because of Bachmann.
"We had a couple speakers scheduled to speak after her,” he said, “and we were going to do our big ask for our fundraiser, but as soon as she was done, the music blasted up; she started signing autographs, and … people just started leaving. So two speakers missed their chance to speak, and we missed our ask to the Republicans here for our fundraising -- extra money that we needed to carry for the caucus."
At her speech at the Des Moines Register’s “Soap Box” at the Iowa State Fair this weekend, she was half an hour late, gave just a 2-minute, 45-second speech -- far shorter than other candidates, some of whom took up their full 20 minutes of allotted time and also took questions. Bachmann did not. Toward the end of the speech, she said, "I'm coming out to shake your hand.” She shook some hands, but made a beeline about 50 feet to a waiting golf cart and was driven off.
There have also been examples of reporters being manhandled by her security staff – at the Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans in June, at a South Carolina event in July, and then again at the State Fair.
Sunday's Republican dinner was closely watched, because it marked the first time Bachmann, fresh from her win Saturday at the Ames Straw Poll, would share an event with Perry, who is likely to compete for many of the same kinds of voters. And with Perry’s entrance into the race, how Bachmann does retail -- in states where it matters like Iowa and New Hampshire -- is likely to get more scrutiny.
*** UPDATE *** Stewart contacted NBC to emphasize that security at the RLC, when the incident occured with a reporter, was provided by the hotel.
*** UPDATE 2 *** On security, Stewart says: "Michele Bachmann is a high-profile congresswoman. On the heels of the Gabby Giffords shooting, security is of the utmost concern to our campaign. We have a former Secret Service officer who's protected presidents and vice presidents, and if someone gets too close to the candidate, he warns them."
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If her brains were made of gun powder, Bachmann couldn't blow her nose, nor could Palin. God they're lame.... "Happy Birthday, Elvis!" Big duh... again!!!!! Who coaches these women... Dan Quayle???
FoolKiller, alright, alright,- she didnt make herself clear. O.K.. Shes still a lier, you can count on at least one lie every time she speaks. I dont have time to make a list of them, and everybody who pays attention knows the lies as well as I do. Hope she does great for you, cant see it, she hasnt the money. Money dictates politics, the candidates, the winner and loser, so its aleady down to Romney and Perry, everyone else can go on home now.Perry may want to start packing too, the Bush people are going to see hes not the candidate. You baggers will have to settle for the waffling Romney, although I dont know how hes going to get out of the south alive. The southern baptist, ( or the baptist baggers, as I call them), cant stand Romney, cultist , you know. Good luck, I am voteing Obama.
Marty I find it hilarious that you don't consider southern Baptists to be a cult. All religions are cults by definition.
Bachmann did not say she was at a family event - or that she personally was at an event - She said "we" had a family event (family collectively had a family event).
Right: we were supposed to just not connect the dots then. I get it. The ROYAL "we".
Well, where was she? Is she fooling around? Is she ill? Does she have a second job? Was she attending to her foster children? Was she fundraising? If what is written is true, she does not seem particularly trustworthy. Is this the kind of person you want as President?
She has a "campaign style"? I thought these were revival meetings.
Pray the Dems Away is the mantra for our Diva Atty., Ms. Bachmann, mixing her words like a mouth wielding judge, creating her own world of revisionist history at the Oral Roberts School of diviinity with the founding fathers deciding the black issue before it happened; a birthday even Elvis can not deny on a wrong date, and associated inadvertently with a serial killer from Waterloo, Iowa, John Wayne Gacey as her home town. She is a calamity of errors who can excuse herself out of a outhouse, and edge the uninformed into her emotional madness that is backed up by her husband's government payed entitlements psycho babbo business. 180 degree turn happened as she hired the right presidential advisor to 'say the right thing' in front of the cam. Pretty from a distance, but crazy up close and supported by the 'nutties,' or tea ditties.
My experience with tea baggers is that when there mouth is open they are lying.
That leads me to believe she lied.
She lied it's really not Elvis's birthday?
Read the story, J.
Did you see the bug-eyed bitch go after that corn-dog. She has a future! I think she has shown she can lie,steal, separate the people as any man can and I would like to see the bitch president.
I will always have an illusion of that corn-dog no matter if she knows Elvis birthday or not.
Sounds like Bachmann is a narcissist as well as a liar or fool, whichever you desire. Me thinks she and miss you betcha hae a lot in common. ;-) ;-)
Stop giving Michele a hard time! She will be president soon. Let's show some respect.
When Elvis comes back to life....... for real.
Money from government to screw with homosexuals ar their clinic.
Money from government for their farm.
Money from government is o.k. for her just not everyone!
Her husband knows homos can change cause he can go three days without sucking a cock.
Can someone please clarify for me - The Tea Party advocates Americans regaining freedom and liberty as well as the reduction of government, yet they want government to enforce bans on abortion, gay marriage and other social issues. This is hyper-hypocritical. And whatever happened to separation of church and state? I never hear the media probing Tea Party candidates about these inconsistencies in philosophy. BTW, very undecided here because I'm currently frustrated with out entire political system - and the inability of both parties to get anything done besides offering tax breaks and loop-holes to big corporations who continue to sit on their "hard earned" cash instead of re-investing it in the job market.
mitch ~ sorry, there is no way to clarify the Tea Party! I sure understand your frustration about our political system.
So left-wing. If this is all you got get lost. Obama lies on a daily basis. Joe foot in mouth Biden is almost as inept as Odumbo. And aren't Reid and Pelosi a beautiful pair. Between the 4 it will take Bachmann 20 years to repeat that many lies.
I would like to see a Bachmann-Palin ticket. Just think of the comedic relief.
Bachman/Perry or Bachman/Palin lets see who can invent the most lie in 30 seconds.
Yep dirty rotten Koch Suckers! Believe it....
Yep. Next thing you know she'll be trying to lie us into another war.
It is clear that Bachman is inept and seems to plant her foot squarely in her mouth every time she opens it. She is avoiding meaningful questions and confrontation because she is unable to think on her feet and comes off looking like the idiot she really is.
Well, she approaches politics much like teaching Sunday School to little kids. Actually pretty much like all of the TV evangelists talk to America. They can all be considered to be experts at taking some thought from the Bible and massaging it up a little to make it fit into their message. They aren't much for going back and learning from the original Hebrew text to try and understand what the spirit of the message means. Just take the literal meaning using today's vernacular to spread the word. Pure fiction. Always been a believer that if you weren't smart enough to get into a real divinity school and study religion, the Hebrew translations of the Bible, and spend as much time becoming a minister as a medical student spends to become a physician, you have no business getting up in front of people and preaching the word. It's not enough to have Elvis sideburns, or set up in a country kitchen setting wearing a plaid shirt and jeans and sell that down home crap to people. That's not God, that's Jerry Lee Lewis combined with a snake oil salesman from Del Rio working a tent show.
Perry/Bachmann 2012!!! LET god DO IT!!!
I feel so sorry for you. You are so ignorant.
Oh, Michele, Michele, Mee Shell . . . when are you going to learn that you have to quit fabricating stories and excuses for yourself? You weren't at a family reunion at all missy!!! Where were you anyway? Sitting in a hotel room somewhere with your homosexuality-curing husband trying to "pray the gay away", or perhaps dreaming up mindless drivel about what you can come up with next to bullsh** the American people into thinking you are what you're not? . . . Aside from the radical wing nuts on the far right, you're not fooling anybody sweetie. You may want to consider making an appointment at your husband 's government funded "clinic" yourself -- perhaps you can "pray the dumb away". Highly unlikely, but maybe. And you might want to take Palin with you.
First the John Wayne (Gacy) flub, now the Elvis flub! HA! If she or one of her zookeepers spent 3 seconds verifying what she planned to say she could avoid these awesome gaffs. I like them though, they are funny. Please keep them coming! If she says Happy Easter on Christmas Day she will lose her tea party base.
i know she has @!$%# on 2 symbols of America already... (much more if you count her interpretation of the Constitution as @!$%#ting on all of the founding fathers)
Now does anyone really think good ol Michelle would Lie? In her crazed Tea Bag mind it was not a lie. She just stretched the truth a bit...naw...she lied!!!!!!.....Isn't the first time..and won't be the last..........picture on Newsweek shows it all....
Look, with Bachmann what you see (and hear) is what you get. You need to expect bloopers like the Elvis thing. No matter, she has no chance. I do wonder, though what Mama Moose is up to.
She and Palin both think Africa is a country.....Happy Birthday Elvis?.....Hmmmm....Elvis has left the house...along with Bachman's mind.
Happy Birthday Elvis!
I wonder if she know when his next Vegas show is so I can get me some tickets!
Let's see - a politician caught lying - well color me shocked.
If you're going to get her for the Elvis comment - then you better be prepared to get "57 states" thrown up in your face.
THIS is news? Really? God its going to be a lonnnnnngggg campaign season.