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James Novogrod / NBC News
Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., addresses reporters Saturday in Estherville, Iowa, where she was campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination.
ALGONA, Iowa – A feud inside the GOP presidential field provoked Michele Bachmann to defend her hard line on Iran on Saturday while insisting that she doesn't "hate Muslims."
Bachmann repeated variations on that phrase in at least three cities during her 99 county bus tour of Iowa.
"I don't hate Muslims. I love the American people. And as president of the United States, my goal will be to keep America safe, free, and sovereign," Bachmann told reporters Saturday morning in Estherville.
The unusually personal self-defense is the latest element in a back-and-forth with U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, who criticized Bachmann on national television Friday night.
Appearing on NBC's "Tonight Show," Paul said Bachmann "doesn’t like" Muslims.
"She hates Muslims," Paul added. "She wants to go get 'em."
The origins of the feud go back to Thursday's Fox News debate, in Sioux City, where Paul and Bachmann locked horns over how to handle the prospect of a nuclear Iran.
"There's war propaganda going on," Paul said of pronouncements among the GOP about confronting the threat.
"To me, the greatest danger is that we will have a president that will overreact and we will soon bomb Iran," he added.
Kevin Winter / NBCuniversal / Getty Images Contributor
Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul appears on the "Tonight Show With Jay Leno" Friday at NBC Studios in Burbank, Calif.
Asked to reply, Bachmann said: "I think I have never heard a more dangerous answer for American security than the one that we just heard from Ron Paul."
She later added that the idea of not confronting Iran amounts to "the greatest under-reaction in world history."
(Bachmann's plan on Iran, unveiled in November, does not call for an immediate strike, but recommends "crushing" sanctions and covert activity to destabilize the regime.)
On Saturday, Bachmann used Paul's charge that she "hates" Muslims to advance her own assertions about Iran's leaders.
"Where the true hatred is coming from is the president of Iran and the mullahs," Bachmann told reporters in Algona.
"They’ve said unequivocally that they want to obtain a nuclear weapon for the express purpose of using it against our ally, Israel, to kill the Jews," she said, adding: "They also want to use it against the United States and kill Americans."
Related story: Pickets swarm Lowe's in Arab-American Michigan community for pulling ads from Muslim TV show
Leave a Comment:
well, Michele you lost my vote because I hate all of them!
You know it's a slow news day when an exchange between Ron "9.6%" Paul and Michelle "8.2%" Bachman rates a plug on msnbc.com.
"I don't hate Muslims" either. I don't care if they beat and treat their women like sh1t. As long as they don't touch ours. "I don't hate Muslims."
Good point: Christian men never beat their wives.
Hey STUPID...........If you do beat your woman..........You're not a Christian and most of all..................NOT A MAN!
So the non-muslim wife beaters are all non-christian women? Strange. Very strange.
DUH! Me thinks your mother raised a fool.
I believe that thinking is outside your experience.
You are a pathetic poster! Read again what you posted. What a Moron!
Angry white conservative
I just get angry because so many of the hawkish people in our nation only support the wars they advocate with their mouths. I remember during the 2008 presidential campaign some reporter asked Mitt Romney why if he was so supportive of the war effort hasn't even one of his five strapping sons enlisted in the service. His answer was "they are supporting the war at home". I'll bet there were thousands of soldiers on their fifth, sixth and seventh deployment that would have liked to have done their next tour of duty at home. If the hawks start another war I think the draft should be reinstated and nobody gets a deferment for any reason. Believe me the war wouldn't last long if that happened!!
I think it's called hypocrisy. The most ardent advocates of war always have no issue with sending others' sons to die, just not their own. This has been the case for a long, long time, and across all party lines.
I dunno, Michelle. At the debate when you were ranting about the caliphate and imminent nuclear attacks from Iran, it sounded pretty hateful. Psychotic, actually. You should try to spit a little less when the hate wells up in you. It's kind of a giveaway.
How about this time, instead of starting a war with another country based on hearsay, we wait until our country is actually threatened with a real attack? This might keep us from making the mistake we made in Iraq (which you thought was a good idea anyway). Oh, and one more thing: how about pledging not to start a war without a declaration from Congress, so that the people have at least some say in whether we want to sacrifice our young people and go further into debt. Thanks so much.
Another fine Republican example of Presidential material. Remember Palin
Please, before you chose who to vote for learn about the religion that Mitt Romney is so loyal to. The heads of his religion have very weird plans to hold secret rituals in the White House.
Go to youtube and search for the following titles:
The True Origins of Mormonism Part 1 (The Book of Mormon)
The True Origins of Mormonism Part 2 (The Masonic Influence)
The True Origins of Mormonism Part 3 (The Occult Connection)
The True Origins of Mormonism Part 4 (The Book Of Abraham)
DNA vs. the Book of Mormon
There are many more but if you watch these 5 you will want to pass them on to anyone else who might vote for Mitt Romney. The cult known as the Mormon church wants to get into the White House.
Well, at least he's not a scientologist. Then, we'd be battling space cooties all over the planet, and everyone would be required to spend their entire incomes learning how to eradicate space cooties. Of course, all of this money would flow to the top, under the guise of "protecting" us from the forces of evil cooties.
Mommy's Moron......Grow-up and get a life, loser!
Why is Obama so perfect? He's like another Jesus. I don't see him make any mistakes. He's perfect. Except for when he smoked the "rope a dope" in college, he's perfect. Free of all sins. Just perfect!
Stelazine scrip ran out, did it? You can get it in generic, you know. Might want to try thorazine, too.
You might try my sloppy end.
Bachmann doesn't hate all Muslims. She just hates the gay ones.
Obama/Biden 2012!
Stop the lies.
To do that, they'd have to call off the elections.
When you have to repeat saying you don't hate Muslims, is a convincing argument that you do.
its very unfortunate that ron paul would say that he lost my respect and my vote
Mine too.
Maybe Ron meant to say she hated GAY Muslims?????
I have listened very carefully to Michele Bachman and I do not recall one speech where she stated she hated any one.
As a veteran (Gulf War) it is scary to hear the warmongering talk from the Tea Pubs presidential candidates. They talk about going to war or war like actions against other countries (Iran, China, Pakistan, etc) as if it's a skip in the park. I still remember one of Romneys comment during a debate. He talked about taking the action to other countries. Any way you put it this is talk about invading other countries. If any of these idiots get in the white house we are in deep doo doo.
We need our troops at home. On our borders. Did you know there are thousands of Mexican Muslims?
I totally believe her. Hate is an emotion and emotions require a brain. Without it, expressing an emotion such as hate is indeed impossible.
Not convinced that Michelle doesn't hate muslims, blacks, jews and latino's
We know she hates gays
So much that she married one
Tell Marcus to get the heck outta that closet!!!
It's funny seeing Ron Paul continuously pump out negative ads, namecalling, and mudslinging about the other candidates, yet his supporters always praise him for being "classy" and "above that." He's just as dirty and weasely as the rest.
He is showing his colors and they are ugly.
Ron Paul should be very ashamed of his lies.
Thousands of Muslims dressed like Mexicans crossing our southern border (they look the same). And Eric Holder and clowns giving them free guns. I heard it on NBC news. We are in deep sh1t! I think they call it "Fast and Free Guns". Next, they will want our guns, and push for a law to take them. I'm stocking up on ammo.
Sounds like you need to save that last round for yourself.
Your Mommy is here with me.
I can not believe that Ron Paul would make up such blatant lies about another candidate, up till this point I liked Ron Paul now I find him disgusting, I would now never in a million years vote for this man.
Michele Bachman never said such a thing, shame on Ron Paul, maybe it is time for you bow out Mr. Paul.
Ron Paul is a liar and a slimeball, but he will not bow out. He still hasn't conceded the 2008 election, and his delusional supporters still maintain that he actually won and that "The Media" and Democrats and Republicans all worked together to keep it under wraps. The Ron Paul donor packet should come with a tin foil hat.
Go live in any of the Islamic Republics (Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, etc.) for at least one year as a civilian and then try to tell me whose culture is intolerant! ...been there, done that...you may not like her, but she is mostly right. Tolerance in those cultures only works one way, i.e., we must tolerate anything they want, but it is "against their culture" to tolerate anything they don't want, i.e., any non-muslim belief. Christians consider all people 'brothers.' Muslims only call other muslims 'brothers' (go check Karzai's speeches). Taqiya in Islam permits them to lie and deceive non-muslims for their benefit. Iran's gov't and PhDs that I've met from Pakistan believe in a muslim earth without borders via high birth rates and wars. They will lie for hours to convince you of any falsehood they want. As Thomas Mann said, "Tolerance is a crime when applied towards evil." Islam is not a religion, it is also a global political movement...wake up, America!
If the U.S. concentrated on solving our problems here at home, we wouldn't have to worry about what Muslim countries are doing. We need to mind our own business, and leave these people alone.
C'mon, folks,be honest. What's to like?
Nada.
The Pashtuns of southern Afghanistan have a saying, "Women are for children, boys are for pleasure." ...sick!
Ron Paul lies.
Obama 2012.
I don't know who or what Michelle Bachmann hates most
But the hate and anger that jumps out of her is very Real, scary and dangerous
Hate is what drives her...and Hate is what is going to prevent her from her illusion of ever becoming President os the USA
.......Sigh of relief!
A little thorazine would calm her right down.
Why is it that EVERY election, and EVERY politician - save Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich - MUST bring up Israel, and defend Israel's EVERY action, as if they were running for office in Israel.
It is time EVERY U.S. Citizen DEMAND that all American politician put the United States first, before Israel.
Soon, you will not be able to question anything that Israel has done, is doing, or plans to do - as there are supposedly lawsuits, pending bills, and actions being forced upon every Federal Office to prohibit anything being said about Israel that may cause "mental anguish or harm" for any Jewish person, in either a religious or ethnic form.
AP:
I may be too young to remember, but Israeli politics seems to be well aligned with US politics - when we are running conservative they are running conservative. Maybe you can recall when Reagan (I was in elementary school) was in power, Israel's conservative government held a hard line on their neighbors. At the time, their neighbors were at the peak of their hardline stances against Israel. Like the Iraqis and Iranians, Syrian schoolchildren (my generation) were praised for their warring tones against Israel, for lack of a more euphemistic way of saying it.
Friedman was right, the world is getting flatter. Hopefully, the sanctions will be enough to bring both Syria and Iran down soon, and that will leave the Palestinians and Israelis to work out their differnences in a peaceable manner, if only before 2016?
Ya I say, let's destroy Isreal. Then the US will not have a single friend in the Arab world. But then, who needs friends. The Arab world is simply moving to the US.