Community Corner

Bachmann Tells Orange County She's 'Obama's Chief Critic'

The Minnesota congresswoman addresses her supporters at the Orange County Fairgrounds.

A week after Republican presidential hopeful Rick Perry made his first California stop in Corona del Mar, tea party star Michele Bachmann paid a visit to Orange County to make her case for the Republican nomination.

In front of a substantially smaller crowd than the nearly 1,000 supporters that showed up to Perry’s rally at Roger’s Gardens, the Minnesota congresswoman spent nearly half an hour speaking to her followers at the O.C. Fairgrounds, touching on the economy, the national deficit and job creation.

“I’m thrilled about the future of our country and believe we have everything we need to get our country financially stable,” Bachmann told the crowd of about 200, most of whom were women.

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A majority of Bachmann’s time on stage was spent questioning the economic policies of President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden.

“Its bad enough we don’t have jobs. It’s bad enough we haven’t seen the economy grow, but now, the money we have is valued less than when Obama came into office,” Bachmann said.

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Bachmann, who referred to herself as a politician with a “titanium spine,” did her best to get the crowd involved, soliciting responses from the crowd through several questions, namely concerning Obama.

At one point, as she talked about the U.S. economy, Bachmann was handed a dollar from a member of the crowd, to which she responded, “So this is what they look like? I almost forgot.”

Similar to those at Perry’s rally, shouts from the crowd included “I want my country back!” and “Obama must go!”

And despite the relatively small turnout, those who were in attendance rallied behind her.

“She seems to be a strong leader, and she’s a fresh face,” said Rose Arroyo of Costa Mesa. “I’m under the belief that this country needs to take a step in a completely different direction, and I think she can help us do that.”

“She’s well-spoken, and she’s strong-minded,” said Antoinette Owens of Huntington Beach. “Everything she spoke about, I agreed with. We are all feeling the ill effects of the economy, and, frankly, we’re all fed up with it.”

Bachmann was relentless in her attack of Obama and the state of the economy, saying the deficit is the largest it has ever been under Obama.

She elicited a chant of “One-term president!” from the crowd and maintains that she feels privileged to be recognized as one of Obama’s most outspoken detractors.

“In Washington, I’ve been called Barack Obama’s chief critic,” Bachmann said. “I want you to know I wear that like a badge of honor.”


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