On CNN this past weekend, Tim Pawlenty–apparently in his new, unplugged let-Tim-be-Tim mode–more or less taunted the President, saying that Obama’s been “hiding in the basement” and being “chicken” in the debt limit debate, and needs to act more “courageously.” (Any similarity here to Michele Bachmann’s recent television ad denouncing …
2012 Election
Troubled Rep. David Wu Faces Ouster After Allegations of Sexual Misconduct
An allegation that Oregon Rep. David Wu engaged in sexual misconduct with the teenage daughter of a friend has forced the Democrat out of next year’s election and renewed questions about his fitness for office. An Oregon paper broke news of the allegation on Friday, and by Sunday night, a senior Democratic official said the seven-term …
Sizing Up Rick Perry
Other-Michael’s swell piece on Rick Perry is a reminder that a GOP presidential race which feels well underway may be in for a complete reboot before long. And while we know some things about Perry, he remains under-covered in proportion to the enthusiasm a lot of Republican establishment insiders feel about him. That’s why this rundown …
2012 Scramble: Who Loses If Rick Perry Gets In?
With each passing week, Texas Governor Rick Perry seems to be inching closer to a run for the presidency. His supporters have been calling around to social conservatives urging them to keep their powder dry. Conservative kingmakers have begun to discuss Perry as the only one who checks both the “conservative” and “electability” …
Michele Bachmann’s Life On and Off the Campaign Trail
A look at the Minnesota Congresswoman’s career from her days as student council president (and cheerleader) to her never-boring bid for President.
Who’s Changed More: Romney or Huntsman?
A day after changing campaign managers, Jon Huntsman’s team takes a new shot at Mitt Romney’s: A Huntsman spokesman notes that, as a candidate for Massachusetts governor in 2002, Romney disdained Grover Norquist’s anti-tax pledge as “government by gimmickry,” but has happily signed it this time around. “So, what’s changed?,” asks …
Staff Shakeup for Huntsman
Jon Huntsman’s presidential campaign manager resigned on Thursday, just a month after the former Utah governor kicked off his bid for the White House. The departure of Susie Wiles, a former campaign manager for Florida Governor Rick Scott who helped guide the decision to base the campaign in Orlando, comes as Huntsman has struggled to …
Michele Bachmann, True Believer
You might have caught my dispatches from South Carolina this week, where I saw Michele Bachmann take her act to that important southern primary state. In this week’s print issue of TIME, you can read a longer, richer story on how Bachmann was received there, what comes next for a campaign suddenly under intense scrutiny, and the …
Charges of Sexism, Ties to Biker Mag Resurface in Wake of Allen West E-mail
It’s never a good sign when congressional staffers feel the need to reassure reporters that their boss does not hate women. But that’s where Florida Republican Rep. Allen West’s staff have found themselves on Thursday. “He has been married to a Ph.D. for 20 years, he has two teenage daughters,” spokeswoman Angela Sachitano told …
The Looming GOP Split
The next 96 hours could determine the future of the Republican Party. If the Tea Party is coronating its own third-party candidate next summer, the moment of schism will likely be traced back to this week of debate on raising the …
For Grassroots Conservatives in Debt Fight, the GOP Is Now the Enemy
Followers of NewsMax, the enterprising conservative website, woke up Wednesday morning to an e-mail with the subject heading: “Urgent: GOP Senators Want $1 Trillion in Taxes, Help Us Stop Them.”
It was an e-mail designed …
Reporter Accosted After Bachmann Comments on Migraines
It’s not easy to get to Michele Bachmann. Her appearance at a rally on Tuesday in Aiken, S.C., attended by perhaps 150 people, featured three uniformed police officers and two plainclothes bodyguards. One of those guards spent much of the day preventing reporters from getting too close to the candidate. After her speech, as she greeted …
In South Carolina, Bachmann Mum on Migraines
Columbia, S.C.
Michele Bachmann spoke on Tuesday morning to a Christian group here, whom she told about growing up poor and her devout Christian faith. (“The most important thing is eternity, and what we can do for eternity.”) The Minnesota Congresswoman is looking awfully strong in Iowa, but as one GOP operative put it to me …