Posted on 07/26/2012 6:56:19 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Speaker John Boehner and Representative Michele Bachmann have never been close. Now, in the midst of the Huma Abedin flap, the question is whether there will be open hostilities.
After Bachmann’s presidential campaign fizzled earlier this year, the Minnesota Republican returned to Capitol Hill unsure of her role in the House Republican conference. She had run and lost a race for a minor leadership post, and her Tea Party Caucus was idle. According to a couple of her friends, it was a personal and political low point. Fox News called sporadically, and a colorful bloc of conservative freshmen — Allen West, Rand Paul — were the Right’s new darlings.
But Bachmann had a political lifeline — a seat on the House Intelligence Committee — thanks to Boehner. Bachmann was tapped for the post in late 2010, and it has been a plum spot ever since then, enabling her to review classified material and enter the national-security debate as an insider. At the time of her appointment, many senior House GOP aides were wary of elevating the fiery backbencher, but Bachmann was vocal about her interest in foreign affairs, and Boehner assured them that it was an appropriate gesture.
Up until this month, having Bachmann on the intelligence committee has proved a good move from Boehner’s perspective. He has praised her in the past as a hardworking member, and he knew she would relish the opportunity to broaden her portfolio. Bachmann still may be a thorn in his side on various votes, aides explain, but she has usually avoided publicly railing against Boehner. That cold peace has ended, and the latest tensions may not end amicably, sources say.
Bachmann has generated national headlines for accusing Abedin, a top adviser to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, of tilting U.S. foreign policy in favor of the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist group. Four other lawmakers signed Bachmann’s letter, but many Republicans have criticized Bachmann’s finger-pointing. Senator John McCain of Arizona was the first to reject Bachmann’s claims, then Representative Mike Rogers of Michigan, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, did the same. But it’s Boehner’s cagey response to the kerfuffle that has made Bachmann and her allies nervous.
“I haven’t seen the letter, and I don’t know Huma, but from everything I do know of her, she has a sterling character,” Boehner told reporters last week. “And I think accusations like this being thrown around are pretty dangerous.” When a reporter followed up and asked about Bachmann’s intelligence-committee seat, Boehner didn’t rule anything out. “I don’t know that that’s related at all,” he said. According to a source close to Bachmann, the Minnesotan interpreted those remarks as a warning and a sign of Boehner’s tenuous support for her committee position. And from a procedural angle, her fears are warranted. Boehner may have picked her for the committee, but, as speaker, he could easily take that post away.
Several Republicans close to House leadership tell National Review Online that Boehner is not working to oust Bachmann from the committee or discipline her. If anything, one GOP source says, the entire episode has been a distraction for Boehner, especially since the speaker wants the conference to focus on jobs and the economy. If the situation festers, the leadership is keeping its options open, another aide says, but it expects Bachmann to eventually move on from the controversy.
There is a general sense among those close to Boehner, Majority Leader Eric Cantor, and Whip Kevin McCarthy that Bachmann is not so much a political threat to the leadership, but a member who needs to be better managed. Still, they say, because she does not consult with leadership on most of her initiatives and does not respond well to emissaries or private counsel, many aides feel that Boehner’s public statement was the best way to send a message — for now.
“If she’s not careful, she’s going to become irrelevant,” says Ed Rollins, the former campaign manager for Bachmann’s presidential campaign. “She’s on the intelligence committee and people assume that she has information that no one else has. So when she goes out and makes a charge, it has added weight. She’s close to crossing that ‘kook line,’ and Boehner and the others may be ready to dismiss her as a serious player.”
Bachmann doesn’t appear ready to back down. Instead, sources tell NRO, she is working behind the scenes to generate support for her intelligence-committee post. Conservative talk-show host Glenn Beck, who has spoken with Bachmann on his program about the Abedin story, has reported that Bachmann is “facing pressure to apologize for her comments” or risk being “removed from her position.” Republican House aides roll their eyes at the Beck story. No such pressure, they say, is being exerted on the congresswoman. If anything, a third leadership source reiterates, Boehner is doing his best to avoid spending time on the Bachmann matter, publicly or privately.
Yet the general goodwill that has existed between Bachmann and Boehner for the past year seems to be gone. Bachmann, long a force during closed-door conference meetings, is now a backbencher once again, at least in the eyes of many congressional politicos. Boehner may be pressured to kick her off the committee, but with her star power fading, he doesn’t seem in any rush to make her a martyr.
— Robert Costa is a political reporter for National Review.
In taking her eye off the House ball, she removed herself from the Tea Party caucus leadership role, and allowed Boehner to marginalize her, perhaps as the GOP-E intended. She's now lost a lot of her credibility, as the leaderless TEA Party freshmen have been coopted one by one, and is pretty much at Boehner's mercy.
“Boner has star power hisself?”
That’s the question I asked myself. I knew what this article by National Review would be like, as soon as I saw it was written by Robert Costa. I knew it would only parrot the liberal media’s side of the story, diminish Bachmann, and build up John Boehner. NRO’s reporters are in too tight with the GOP leadership. John Boeher, Eric Cantor, and Kevin McCarthy only have star power because of their titles; Speaker, House Majority Leader, and Whip. In reality, they don’t lead on anything and do nothing to build a relationship and/or trust with the public.
I am so sick of NRO carrying the water for their listless buddies who somehow got themselves into power in the GOP caucus.
So this normally means "Compromising" the candidates Conservative Principles.
No Ed, we know who the kooks are and it's you and your fellow traitors.
We will remember come election time.
From what I can tell, big donors use Rollins as a poison pill. They dangle the money to the candidate, stipulating that he be hired, and knowing that he'll torpedo the campaign.
Ed Rollins, Hit Man.
I think when new Republican US Representitives get to The House, they get one instruction from the speaker, “DON’T ROCK THE BOAT”. Michelle has been rocking the boat, won’t shut up, so the leadership will drag her to the bus and force her under it. The crying leader wuss will likely remove her from the Intelligence Committee after this election.
Hey, chump, that is NOT how you lead, GET FACTS before you make a decision!! This is about America and not some new guy to the golf course.
Please drop that cr*p! I hate it when libs do it against conservatives, and it isn’t any better in the opposite direction.
‘You were asking’ Ping!
“If anything, one GOP source says, the entire episode has been a distraction for Boehner”
Distracting him from his focus on caving into the Democrats on every issue. Its hard work thinking up excuses to backtrack on every promise you make the public to stand firm on the debt ceiling and de-funding Obamacare.
He did the same thing to Bill Simon's campaign in California, which up to that time had been wildly successful.
AMEN to that!
Ed Rollins, Hit Man, with establishment butt-kissing National Review driving his getaway car. NR loves the boys running the GOP show.
Can anyone answer this question? What is the procedure for removing boner and McConnell from their positions in the Senate and the House? Is it determined by the vote of the citizens of Ohio in boner's case, or?
Also, how can the rest of us help to remove these two ineffective leaders?
The only difference between Rollins and that snake Rove is about 200 pounds of blubber.
Rubio has lined up with those claiming Michelle Bachman is wrong that or government is being compromised by islamist infiltration. Rubio is either stupid or he’s in on it. To my mind there is no other possibility.
Her star power isn’t fading, its just starting.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.