Bachmann rebuts Obama
WASHINGTON - GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann made the unusual move of offering a different rebuttal to President Obama's State of the Union speech. Bachmann appeared via weblink on a Tea Party website (which CNN carried live) after Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan delivered the GOP response.
Bachmann criticized President Obama for a large amount of spending and criticized him for not working to find budget cuts.
"After the $700 billion bailout, the trillion-dollar stimulus and the massive budget bill with over 9,000 earmarks, many of you implored Washington to please stop spending money we don't have," Bachmann said.
"But, instead of cutting, we saw an unprecedented explosion of government spending and debt. It was unlike anything we have seen before."
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Bachmann, a possible candidate for the White House in 2012, has repeatedly said the federal government needs to cut spending. She didn't offer specifics during the address but outlined ways that President Obama could help improve the economy like repealing the federal health care law and supporting a balanced budget amendment.
A key question is whether her ideas have as high a likelihood of gaining approval from President Obama and a divided Congress.
You can listen to Bachmann's full speech here: