Michele Bachmann’s New Hampshire campaign team has now publicly confirmed via press release that they have quit en masse. And what’s more, they blame the separation on Bachmann’s national campaign team.
As the press release (via National Journal) explains, the team ” holds no ill will towards the candidate, but not [sic] longer feels relevant based on their poor relationship with the national team.”
The press release says that certain unspecified “incidents” happened during Bachmann’s recent trip to the state, and the team was unable to deal with these problems through the national team, and that their concerns were not communicated to the candidate. In addition, members were asked to temporarily go off payroll in mid-September, due to “financial concerns” within the campaign, and the situation has not yet been resolved.
Key quote:
The manner in which some in the national team conducted themselves towards Team-NH was rude, unprofessional, dishonest, and at times cruel. But more concerning was how abrasive, discourteous, and dismissive some within the national team were towards many New Hampshire citizens. These are our neighbors and our friends, and some within the national team treated them more as a nuisance than as potential supporters.
Through all this chaos, Team-NH was never involved in the shifting strategy discussions. Team members were repeatedly ignored regarding simple requests, sometimes going weeks with little or no contact with the national team. Yet the members of Team-NH remained committed to Congressman Bachmann, often at peril to their own personal and professional reputations within New Hampshire.
Sadly, all of this could have been avoided. It saddens this team to see a dedicated patriot – a person so desperately needed in the White House – sequestered behind a wall of pretense, guarded by political operatives consumed by their own egos.
