Bachmann Invokes ‘Charge Of The Light Brigade’ (Note: They Lost!)

Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)
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At today’s conservative “Code Red” rally against the health care bill, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) rallied the faithful with a fun historical and literacy reference: “It’s the charge of the light brigade!”

The fun part here is that the Light Brigade lost that famous battle of the Crimean War — they lost it badly, sustaining heavy numbers of deaths and injuries. They are celebrated not for victory, but for their bravery in taking on truly insurmountable odds in a military disaster. It’s hardly the sort of positive example that could truly rally the political faithful to success, is it?

Had Bachmann actually read about the Light Brigade, she might have understood this reference from the famous poem by Lord Tennyson:

Storm’d at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.

When it comes to appreciating Tennyson, Bachmann is no Rod Blagojevich!

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