CNN: Did Bachmann wound front-runner Perry at CNN/Tea Party Debate? (w/video)

[Renew Deal]

Tampa (CNN) -- Perhaps it was because Rep. Michele Bachmann was in her element at the CNN/Tea Party Republican Debate. With her campaign flagging, the founder of the Tea Party Caucus in Congress delivered a surprise body blow to the GOP front-runner, Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

Challenging Perry on his 2007 executive order that required Texas schoolgirls to receive vaccinations against the sexually transmitted HPV virus, Bachmann suggested the governor acted for purely political reasons.

"I just wanted to add that we cannot forget that in the midst of this executive order there is a big drug company that made millions of dollars because of this mandate. We can't deny that," Bachmann said.

She went on to point out that at the time of the executive order, Perry's former chief of staff was a top lobbyist for Merck, the manufacturer for the HPV vaccine.
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http://www.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/09/13/bachmann.perry.debate/index.html

I just watched this for the first time. Bachmann did an awesome takedown job of Perry on this. It's a substantive attack from the right on Perry and very enjoyable to watch.

[thereismore]

1. Good point. Perry likes mandates if it makes Merck rich. nt

[demwing]

2. Bachmann scares the hell outta me in a way that Palin never did

that was pretty cold debating...

though I wish she would have followed up his "I raised $30 million. If you think I could be bought for $5000, I'm offended" with the obvious:

"$30 million dollars is a lot of contributions, with a lot of promises made to get that money. I apologize that I believed you could be bought for so little money, Rick. But what offends me..."

And then right back to where she ended. Damn. Bachmann is feral...

[Jim__]

3. Yes, because Perry lied about the contributions from Merck.

From the Texas Gov. Rick Perry bristled at accusations during Monday’s GOP debate that he had done the bidding of a corporate donor by ordering schoolgirls to use a new vaccine.

“The company was Merck, and it was a $5,000 contribution that I had received from them,” Perry said. “I raised about $30 million. And if you’re saying that I can be bought for $5,000, I’m offended.”

But campaign disclosure records portray a much deeper financial connection with Merck than Perry’s remarks would suggest.

Perry’s gubernatorial campaign, for example, received nearly $30,000 from the drugmaker since 2000, most of it prior to his decision in 2007 to order young girls to obtain Merck’s vaccine against the human papillomavirus, or HPV.

[AngryAmish]

4. SHe took a giant dump on him