DFL Chair Calls on Paulsen, Kline and Cravaack to Denounce Bachmann’s Attack on Huma Abedin
"MNDFL"07/22/2012
ST. PAUL - DFL Chair Ken Martin released the following statement today in response to Michele Bachmann's attack on Huma Abedin:
"It's another general election season, so apparently it's time for another baseless witch-hunt led by Michele Bachmann. At risk of sounding like a broken record, it appears Bachmann has once again reached a new low in her endless quest for political relevance. But with her character assault on Huma Abedin this week, Bachmann has gone far beyond her usual inflammatory rhetoric to the level of persecution.
"It's ironic and unfortunate that for all her talk about religious freedom, Bachmann has turned to religion as grounds to try to undermine the integrity of someone of another faith. But it is this kind of duplicity that we've come to expect from Bachmann, who has shown time and again that she will do what it takes to remain in the limelight at any cost, even if it means viciously tearing down her own colleagues on the basis of faith.
"Bachmann's slander of an innocent public servant this week is just another obvious attempt to advance her own ambitions. This vile attack represents the worst kind of politics we have in this country: a politics of division and cynicism that America simply cannot afford. And with everyone from Speaker Boehner to Senator McCain to her own own former campaign manager condemning her actions, there can be no doubt that she's gone too far.
"Bachmann's attack on Huma Abedin, Rep. Keith Ellison and, by extension, millions of Muslim Americans, is both anti-freedom and anti-American. It is a disgrace to the office to which she was elected, and I am calling on her Republican House colleagues Rep. Erik Paulsen, Rep. John Kline and Rep. Chip Cravaack to join their leaders in denouncing this hateful act.
"We are looking forward to November, when the voters of the Sixth District will elect Jim Graves to replace Michele Bachmann and we will send a leader to Washington who's focused on the issues that matter: creating jobs and rebuilding the economic foundation for the Minnesota families Bachmann has consistently ignored."