Michelle Bachmann: Hawkeye Down

From Ames straw poll winner to seventh place finish in the Iowa Caucus. That was the candidacy of Michelle Bachmann.

There was no future in this contest for Bachmann without a victory in Iowa. If your home state doesn’t believe you’re the best person for the job, than you have no hope nationally. Even a post-scream Howard Dean was able to win the Vermont primary, where he had been a two term governor.

Michelle Bachmann brought a unique voice to the campaign trail that will be sorely missed. Bachmann is still a powerful voice for the Tea Party within the halls of Congress and is best suited to return to that role.

This will probably be her one and only shot at the presidency, unless something drastic occurs. I don’t believe her views are mainstream enough to win the job, ultimately.

Bachmann: Tea Party Sinker?

Is Michelle Bachmann sinking the Tea Party? That’s the question as Ned Ryun- head of the Tea Party Group American Majority has written a blog calling on Bachmann to go, amid falling poll numbers, staff shakeups, and other scandals. But are such things damaging to the Tea Party itself?

Not really. Republicans and Democrats run dog candidates all the time, usually in seats they have little chance of winning, and no one questions their strength on the basis of one or two uninspiring candidates.

The Tea Party themselves had this experience previously with Christine O’Donnell and Sharon Angle among others, who were defeated by more experienced and/or mainstream candidates.

 The Democrats lost Ted Kennedy’s Senate Seat to a Republican Scott Brown after running a lackluster Martha Coakley. My overall point is: As long as the message doesn’t get bogged down, the Tea Party will remain a force on the political scene.