During a June 13, 2011, debate on
CNN, Bachmann announced that she had filed to run for president, skipping the
exploratory committee process. Bachmann performed well in the June 13 debate, held in
Manchester, New Hampshire.
USA Today described her as "lively, confident, personable". On
Fox News Sunday on
Fox News on June 26, 2011, show host
Chris Wallace said to Bachmann, "The rap on you here in Washington is that you have a history of questionable statements, some would say gaffes, ranging from talking about anti-American members of Congress [to] on this show a couple of months ago, when you suggested that
NATO airstrikes had killed up to 30,000 civilians. Are you a flake?" Bachmann responded, "Well, I think that would be insulting, to say something like that, because I'm a serious person." Wallace later apologized, saying, "I messed up, I'm sorry. I didn't mean any disrespect." Bachmann became the first woman to win the
Iowa Straw Poll, winning with 4,823 votes (28.55%) out of about 16,892 cast.
Personal health history Bachmann has stated that she has suffered migraines, but that they have been controlled by prescription medicine, have not affected her service in Congress, and would not affect her ability to serve as president.
Politico reported that the migraines had caused Bachmann to miss multiple Congressional votes. On July 19, 2011, according to the Bachmann campaign, when attempting to question Bachmann about her migraines,
ABC News reporter
Brian Ross "rushed toward" Bachmann and her staff and "disregarded repeated requests to stay back". According to
Michael Crowley, a reporter for
Time who witnessed the resulting intervention by Bachmann staffers, the staffers "pounced on [Ross], grabbing and pushing him multiple times with what looked [...] like unusual force. In fact, [Crowley had] never seen a reporter treated so roughly at a campaign event, especially not a presidential one."
Victory at Ames Straw Poll Bachmann performed well in mid-2011 polling of the Republican presidential primary. By late July 2011, a
PPP poll of national Republican primary voters found her in the lead with 21%; her nearest competitor,
Mitt Romney, received 20% in the poll. On August 13, 2011, she won the Iowa
Ames Straw Poll with 28.6% of the vote, one point more than her nearest competitor, Ron Paul. Bachmann was featured on the cover of
Newsweek magazine in August 2011, dubbed "the Queen of Rage". The photo of her was perceived as unflattering, as it portrayed her with a wide eyed expression some said made her look "crazy". Sources called the depiction "sexist".
Newsweek defended the cover's depiction of her, saying its other photos of Bachmann showed similar intensity.
Vaccination commentary Bachmann attacked
Rick Perry's record as governor of Texas in a televised debate, saying he trampled parental rights by vaccinating all teenage girls statewide with the
human papillomavirus vaccine. She cited a friend, whose daughter suffered health problems after taking the vaccine, as saying the vaccine caused mental retardation. The
American Academy of Pediatrics denied it by saying that there is "absolutely no scientific validity" to Bachmann's assertion.
Public reception Bachmann has been the subject of criticism by the media for factual inaccuracies and gaffes in her speeches. In a speech in
New Hampshire, Bachmann stated that New Hampshire was "the state where the
shot heard round the world in Lexington and Concord."
Lexington and Concord are located in
Massachusetts. In an interview, Bachmann stated that the last
swine flu outbreak had occurred under
President Carter, and suggested that there was a relation between Democratic presidents and swine flu outbreaks. In fact, the last two swine flu outbreaks occurred under
President Ford and
President Reagan, both Republicans. In a speech in
Iowa, Bachmann referred to
John Quincy Adams as a
U.S. Founding Father. Adams was eight when the
Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776. And while he contributed much to the early development of the United States, he does not meet the strict definition of a "founding father". Commentators suggested that Bachmann had confused John Quincy Adams with his father,
John Adams, a Founding Father and the second president of the United States. During her campaign announcement, she likened her spirit to
John Wayne, who she said was from Waterloo, Iowa. Although Wayne's parents had lived in Waterloo and met there, after they were married they moved to
Winterset, Iowa, where Wayne was born. Commentators suggested that the error originated in that similarly named serial killer
John Wayne Gacy was from Waterloo. In a June 26, 2011, interview,
Bob Schieffer summarized Bachmann's critics as saying she was "very fast and loose with the truth", and noted that only one of twenty-three Bachmann claims analyzed by
PolitiFact.com was found to be completely true while seven statements were rated "pants on fire". At the
2011 Iowa GOP debate,
Byron York asked whether "As president would you be submissive to your husband?" referring to a comment made in 2006. Bachmann responded by stating that "What submission means to us—if that's what your question is—it means respect." The question has raised concerns of sexism, while Bachmann's deflection of the question has been criticized. At a campaign stop in
South Carolina on August 16, 2011, Bachmann wished
Elvis Presley a "Happy Birthday", apparently believing that it was the anniversary of his birth. Instead, it was the anniversary of his death; Elvis Presley was born on January 8, 1935, but he died on August 16, 1977.
Campaign suspension Bachmann announced the suspension of her campaign for president on January 4, 2012. Despite winning the Iowa Ames straw poll, she received only 5% of the vote in the
Iowa caucuses. ==Endorsements==