Issue #265 Possibly violating election laws not being enough, Bachmann really upped the ante once she got to D.C. Following the 2007 State of the Union speech, she got an autograph from President Bush as he was exciting the House Chamber and then infamously held onto his shoulder for over 30 seconds until she could lean back in for a kiss on the lips. Bachmann personifies just how haywire House conservatives have gone lately, particularly on energy issues. Bachmann began this week with their tactic du jour, a malicious attack upon Nancy Pelosi (e.g. Minority Leader Boehner recently said that the American people would "hang" Pelosi over offshore drilling). Bachmann followed this up later in the week, appearing on CNN to say that following a trip to the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, she thinks that it’s "the most perfect place on the planet to drill." Two months ago she claimed that caribou would just love more drilling and pipelines, saying that pipelines have "become a meeting ground and 'coffee klatch' for the caribou." And it's not just drilling that Bachmann is confused about. Last month during an appearance on harpy cum right-wing radio host Laura Ingraham's show, she complained that the Democrats were hypocrites when it comes to renewable energy:
It is of course actually Senate conservatives, led by Senator John McCain, that have blocked the clean energy tax incentives, forcing Congressional leaders to hold more than a dozen votes on the issue in the hopes of avoiding 116,000 layoffs in the wind and solar industries (pdf) alone. Conservatives blocked the Senate from even taking up the incentives twice in as many days the week just before Congress went on recess. What's more, Bachmann herself joined 159 other conservatives in voting against the Renewable Energy and Job Creation when it last came up in the House. She also voted against repealing Big Oil's tax breaks (several times), against a Renewable Electricity Standard, and against the first increase in fuel economy standards in over 30 years (twice). Knock on wood that Nancy Pelosi is in charge of the House and doesn't take such "hoaxes" lying down. |