Give Michele Bachmann an angstrom of credit, irrespective of your political stripe. In an era in which our polarized populace has become largely desensitized to inflammatory political rhetoric, the former Congresswoman is still something of a show-stopper.
As an outspoken star of the rightmost end of the American political spectrum, Bachmann is known for incendiary quips and analogies, including a 2009 comment implying that Democrat presidents were responsible for swine flu outbreaks and a 2011 interview in which she suggested that the HPV vaccine causes mental retardation. Now she’s rattling cages by comparing U.S. President Barack Obama with Andreas Lubitz, the 27 year-old German co-pilot who allegedly crashed a Germanwings plane on purpose, killing all 150 people on board.
The Huffington Post reports that Bachmann posted the incendiary comments on her official Facebook page on Tuesday.
“With his Iran deal, Barack Obama is for the 300 million souls of the United States what Andreas Lubitz was for the 150 souls on the German Wings flight — a deranged pilot flying his entire nation into the rocks. After the fact, among the smoldering remains of American cities, the shocked survivors will ask, why did he do it?”
In her post, Michele Bachmann was ostensibly referring to the Obama Administration’s ongoing efforts at negotiating a deal with Iran which would curtail that country’s nuclear program.
Ben Dreyfus of Mother Jones noted that the post went largely unnoticed by national media outlets for about 24 hours. The backlash via social media was swift and certain. Although some folks supported her sentiments, the most vociferous replies were highly critical of her comments.
I’d call her an idiot but I don’t want to offend idiots! #michelebachmann
— Ann Marie Barry (@AnnieMarieBarry) April 1, 2015
What a horrible woman #michelebachmann
— ting noble (@mariternoble) April 2, 2015
@BruceBourgoine she seems to have no brain #michelebachmann
— Erika Vick (@egvick) April 2, 2015
What a horrible thing to say #michelebachmann
— Antonio Arch MCIPR (@antonioarch) April 1, 2015
The post remains on Bachmann’s Facebook page, garnering over 9,000 likes, more than 2,300 shares, and a slew of both kudos and rejoinders from Facebook users.
Bachmann’s opponents likely see her recent comments as a form of business as usual for a high-profile political voice set on retaining her place in the country’s ideological milieu. After all, the 58 year-old former U.S. Representative might still have some gas left in her proverbial tank as the country heads into another high-states election cycle.
But with respect to the loved ones of those who were killed in the crash of Germanwings Flight 9525, they likely know little—and care little—of Michele Bachmann’s ultimate political aspirations. Unfortunately, grief and sorrow often find an unsympathetic audience when cast into the proving grounds of the political arena.
[Image from Mark Wilson/Getty Images]
