Bachmann Leads Two Polls in a Row -- Seriously, Iowa?

COMMENTARY | Ever get the feeling somebody isn't paying attention? Or perhaps they're paying attention, but with blinders and earphones on? That's the feeling one gets when looking at the second consecutive Iowa poll that shows Rep. Michele Bachmann in the lead.

In a recent survey, American Research Group saw Bachmann with a 3-point lead over national GOP frontrunner Mitt Romney, polling 21 percent to Romney's 18 percent. The Minnesota Congresswoman, who has shown a surge in the polls since her well-received debate debut in New Hampshire in early June. In fact, she's moved into second place among Republican presidential contenders in many of the national polls.

The American Research Group poll follows just a day behind a poll conducted by IowaRepublican.com, which saw Bachmann with a 4-point lead, 25 percent to 21 percent. Just last week, Bachmann polled 22 percent in a Des Moines Register survey, drawing within just 1 point of Romney.

It is almost as if Iowans are not paying attention to the news at all...

Bachmann is a gaffe-making machine, much like her Republican colleague and possible co-contender for the presidency Sarah Palin. But she makes a lot of speeches and statements in public, sometimes on the fly. Mistakes and misstatements are bound to be made.

However...

Bachmann has been hammering the President -- and Congress -- about raising the debt ceiling for some time, basing her opinions on an unknown. What is known, and what Secretary of the Treasury Geithner and President Obama (and a hundreds of Democrats, Republicans, and economists) keep saying, is that the debt ceiling, if not raised, will cause a government shutdown, and if left static too long, could cause catastrophic economic hardship not only for the government and the economy of the U. S., but also for the rest of the world. Bachmann is preaching irresponsibility, while others prompt caution.

She misrepresents the truth. The Congresswoman constantly fires off numbers and percentages far out of proportion to reasonable extrapolation or prediction, such as her continuing series of percentages of the estimated future tax burden that will be shouldered by those entering the work force today. Even though the estimates are ridiculously and incredibly high, she continues to use the numbers as if they were facts.

The fact-checking arm of the St. Petersburg Times, Politifact, has found only one of 27 statements (that they've checked) made by Bachmann to be "true," while finding 19 "false" or "pants on fire" lies.

And Bachmann has a problem backtracking or admitting she is wrong, which does not bode well for any confronting her in her political future. Politics in a democracy is a game of compromise, leverage, and bargaining. With Bachmann, it is her way and there's no changing it. Recently, when confronted by George Stephanopoulos on ABC's "Good Morning America" about some statements made that the Founding Fathers had worked tirelessely to end slavery (many owned slaves and were against abolition), Bachmann stood by her remarks, elevated John Quincy Adams to the status of a Founding Father (he was just a boy), and attempted to rewrite history.

Then there is Bachmann's political record, of which there is very little. She has served in political office for a little over ten years, six of which were as a Minnesota state senator. Going on five years as a U. S. House member, she has become an important fundraiser for Republicans but has offered next to nothing in meaningful legislation. When fellow GOP presidential candidate and former governor Tim Pawlenty attacked her "nonexistent" record of accomplishments, she countered by saying that she has been a force of opposition to big government but produced no past legislation to deny his claim.

Irresponsible governance. Misrepresents the truth. Lies. Never wrong. Has done next to nothing in Washington and stands by it. Republican presidential candidate and poll leader Michele Bachmann.

Perhaps the people of Iowa will begin paying a little more attention by the time the Straw Poll is taken in August.