Rep. Bachmann looks forward to 'limitless' future, but not in the House
Updated Wednesday 5/29 at 10:30 a.m. ET
(CNN) - U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, a conservative firebrand whose bid for president last year ended after the Iowa caucuses, will not seek re-election to her Minnesota congressional seat in 2014.
Making her announcement in a video posted to her campaign website early Wednesday, Bachmann stressed she had no plans to fade from public view.
"Looking forward, after the completion of my term, my future is full, it is limitless, and my passions for America will remain," she announced.
Bachmann, who's in her fourth term representing Minnesota's 6th District, promised that there "is no future option or opportunity" that she "won't be giving serious consideration if it can help save and protect our great nation for future generations."
Bachmann staved off a tougher-than-expected challenge for her seat last November against Democrat Jim Graves, winning re-election by just under 5,000 votes. Graves has announced he will seek the seat again in 2014.
In her video announcement, Bachmann said her decision was not influenced by any concerns about winning reelection.
"I've always, in the past, defeated candidates who were capable, qualified, and well-funded. And I have every confidence that if I ran, I would again defeat the individual who I defeated last year, who recently announced that he is once again running," Bachmann said.
Nor was her decision based on any concerns over an ongoing congressional ethics inquiry into the improper transfer of campaign funds, Bachmann said in her video. She is also facing a Federal Election Commission complaint about her former presidential campaign.
"This decision was not impacted in any way by the recent inquiries into the activities of my former presidential campaign or my former presidential staff," she said. "It was clearly understood that compliance with all rules and regulations was an absolute necessity for my presidential campaign. And I have no reason to believe that that was not the case."
Bachmann's run for president in 2012 reached its peak in August 2011, when she beat out a slate of other candidates to win the Ames Straw Poll in the early voting state of Iowa, where she was born. Her campaign lost steam in the fall to other conservative candidates like Rick Perry, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, and she eventually placed sixth in the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses. She ended her presidential bid the next day.
In the eight-minute long video, Bachmann, an early supporter of the Tea Party movement, touted her work on a variety of conservative issues, promising to "to work vehemently and robustly to fight back against what most in the other party want to do to transform our country into becoming, which would be a nation that our founders would hardly even recognize today."
Bachmann was one of the leading supporters of the emerging tea party movement in 2010, founding the "tea party caucus" in the House of Representatives and delivering her own "tea party response" to President Barack Obama's State of the Union address. Most recently she organized a tea party rally on Capitol Hill protesting the Internal Revenue Service's admitted targeting of conservative groups applying for tax exempt status.
In her video, she said she wouldn't let up on the causes she championed as a U.S. representative.
"I promise you I have and I will continue to fight to protect innocent human life, traditional marriage, family values, religious liberty, and academic excellence," Bachmann said.
In a polite statement, National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Rep. Greg Walden wrote Bachmann "has been a tireless advocate and dedicated Representative for the people of Minnesota’s Sixth District."
"Michele was the first Republican woman elected to represent Minnesota in the U.S. House of Representatives, and she has worked hard each day to ensure that her constituents’ voices are heard in the halls of Congress," he continued.
Democrats were less laudatory - the House Majority PAC, which works to elect Democrats to Congress, wrote Bachmann's decision was "good news for the people of Minnesota and our nation."
"Bachmann voluntarily removing herself from Congress is a victory we can all celebrate today," the group's executive director Alixandria Lapp wrote.
CNN's Kevin Liptak and Martina Stewart contributed to this report.
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I hope she gets a weekly sitcom. She can call it "These Are The Thing's I Said" It would be a riot.
I watched her long video twice. This woman was crazy even before she was born. She is saying bye, bye to people at the same time campaigning. What is the campaign for if at all she has decided to go? Thank god who gave her power to decide what is good for the majority and leave the seat vacant, I presume for someone who is more sensible than her.
Bachmann is an embarrassment to humanity, not just politics. If I was her child I would change my name and move to the other side of the earth.
People are dancing in the streets in Minnesota. Ms. Bachmann had some strange opinions and reactions to criticism.
thank you – for the first time she did something for MN and the country.
consider a future in denmark
wade
FEELING THE HEAT: Liberal Attorney Joins Calls For Holder to Be 'Fired'
One of the country's most prominent liberal legal scholars called Wednesday for Attorney General Eric Holder to be "fired," joining the growing list of left-leaning pundits slamming his department's pursuit of journalists' phone and email records
CNN as usual doing all they can to protect Obama refuses to report the news.
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faux noise knew about the investigation three years ago and nobody said anything about it. Most likely because the Justice Department acted within the confines of the law.
Her seat has been "vacant" since 2007.
So sad, did the authorities finally commit her? Now if all the rest of the Republicans would follow we could move forward.
Inspired by Sarah Palin.
Her district had been so jerrymandered that it would be almost impossible for a Republican to lose there, and yet she almost did last election, and probably would lose the next one. She still thinks God has Big Plans for her and doesn't want to lose an election before she springboards to...what, exactly? It will be fun to see what she tried next. I do think there's a FOX in her future, and because she's (marginally) smarter than Sarah, she might last there a while.
Rhonda, NO, please NOT OREGON! We're a BLUE state and I moved here from Minnesota! PLEASE, don't suggest Bachmann might want to move to OREGON!
And as a Congresswoman, what did she ever accomplish? Exactly.
She is an embarrassment to this Great Country. It's about time someone investigated her and her spouse also
Sounds like she wants some of that Palin action...opinions, making money from fools who will pay to hear her speak, throwing grenades without the accountability.
McDonalds is hiring......or, she could work at the Bachman Clinic converting people from gay to straight......or, maybe the other way round.
So Bachmann will now pursue "academic excellence" by writing a book on evolution and explaining in detail why the planet is only 6000 years old, and that there is no such thing as climate change. I can't wait for the English translation.
" "It was clearly understood that compliance with all rules and regulations was an absolute necessity for my presidential campaign. And I have no reason to believe that that was not the case."
Ah, but paying Senators in another state to peddle you as President, using their influence, is not "compliant" and obviously, you did not pay your top aides enough to buy their silence, so, now they are "disgruntled" employees willing to testify that you were aware of all matters taking place in your bid to steal money from gullible cons, uh, I mean your "presidential bid".
All in all, I would say the moderates in the GOP are the winners, you cons, know them as RINOs.
Sure, this has nothing to do with federal investigations your using campaign funds for personal expenses, does it?
This is GOOD NEWS to hear Bachmann will not run again for the House of Rep's, she been a joke for fare to long in politics in our Country. What is sad she has imprinted in the minds of lots of citizens her ideas an beliefs an these ideas an beliefs will be around for some time. Hopefully now these citizens will be come better informed on how to think an vote for the betterment of us all on issues in front of them at election time.
This will leave room for Minnesota to elect another left wing nut job to drive the country into the dirt.
This might be the most rational decision she's ever made. The tea-party mentality is becoming less relevant by the day & Michelle symbolizes that group perhaps better than any other. Hopefully Santorum & other such intellectual giants will follow suit.
wade
Really CNN two days of this yet no real news about the disasters of Obama and Holder? Liberal biased much CNN?
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Every single so-called "scandal" that the rethugs have trotted out over the last few weeks has turned out to be nothing more than lies and innuendo created by the reichwing. The "librul" media is trying to back away quietly from these so-called "scandals" because they're embarrassed that they ran with them without checking sources.
Thanks for keeping Fox News in the limelight.
It's people like you helping us to stay #1 in the ratings.
Heh Heh
Thanks for keeping F0x News in the limelight.
It's people like you helping us to stay #1 in the ratings.
Heh Heh
I don't blame her for wanting to leave behind that cesspool called Washington!