Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), who had attempted to leverage her superstar status among Tea Party activists into a role in the House Republican leadership as GOP Conference Chair, instead ended her bid tonight and endorsed the leadership’s favored candidate, Rep. Jeb Hensarling of Texas.
Bachmann had argued that her role in mobilizing Tea Party activists for the Republican Party: “I have been able to bring a voice and motivate people to, in effect, put that gavel in John Boehner’s hands, so that Republicans can lead going forward.”
However, she only picked up the public support of five other House members: Her close ally Steve King of Iowa, Louie Gohmert of Texas, and her fellow Minnesotans John Kline, Erik Paulsen and Chip Cravaack.
As such, this was one insurgent bid that didn’t quite take off.
Here’s Bachmann’s statement, issued tonight:
Congresswoman Michele Bachmann released the following statement today upon her decision to bring her candidacy for Republican House Conference Chair to a close:
“Jeb Hensarling has my enthusiastic support for his candidacy to become Republican House Conference Chair. Jeb has demonstrated his commitment to limited government, reduced spending and lower taxes and he will be a strong voice for the Tea Party’s call for these values.
“I look forward to continuing my consistent support of the Tea Party. I plan to advance the Tea Party ideals through their listening arm, the Tea Party Caucus. It is my wish to bring new faces to the caucus, including freshmen members.
“The new Congress will have great opportunities to lead our country into the direction our founders intended. I spoke with Mr. Boehner and other members of leadership and I am convinced they will wholeheartedly work towards the issues the American people are calling for such as fiscal responsibility, ending the bailouts and repealing Obamacare.”
