MINNESOTA BLOGGERS FILE ETHICS COMPLAINT AGAINST REP. MICHELE BACHMANN FOR PARTISAN USE OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS
ST. PAUL, MINN – Jul. 29, 2009 – Minnesota bloggers Dusty Trice, Brian Falldin, and Aaron Landry filed an ethics complaint with the House Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) requesting an investigation into whether Rep. Michele Bachmann’s office has violated House franking rules pertaining to proper e-mail usage.
The complaint points out that an e-mail sent by Representative Bachmann’s office on May 26, 2009, advocates for the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), a political organization, which is in violation of the House Franking Rules.
Aaron Landry, who first began investigating the story said, “Michele Bachmann is no stranger to NADA, they’ve been a strong donor to her congressional campaign committee.” According to campaignmoney.com, Rep. Bachmann has received approximately $13,000 from NADA since 2006. Thus, Rep. Bachmann’s ties to the organization establish a potential quid-pro-quo scenario.
Brian Falldin, who began looking into filing the ethics complaint said: “While Michele Bachmann tends to moonlight on national news shows, she apparently spends little time following the rules of the road while at her day job, which is unfortunate for the 6th District and America.”
Dusty Trice, who is well known in Democratic circles for his firebrand commentary, stated: “It’s clear that Michele Bachmann cares about one thing – and that’s making sure she rewards those who give her the most money, regardless of the rules she needs to break in the process.”
Aaron Landry summed up the reasons for filing the complaint best: “There’s a reason why ethics rules exist: to keep our representatives ethical. I believe the Office of Congressional Ethics will continue to protect the taxpayers of Minnesota against the kind of activity Representative Bachmann’s office participates in.”
Dusty Trice, Brian Falldin, and Aaron Landry are well-known writers in the Minnesota political community. For more information or press inquiries, please visit www.dustytrice.com, www.brianfalldin.com, www.s4xton.com or call 612-234-5614.
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As a follow-up from yesterday’s post, Dusty Trice, Brian Falldin and I have filed an ethics complaint with the Office of Congressional Ethics. A copy of the complaint is here and the press release is below.
Did anyone try contacting Bachmann’s office, requesting that she remove the link?
Why would they do that, DTM?
I guess in the common sense world I live in, you first politely request for someone to change something that bothers you before you report it to Congress and creating a Press Release.
One is a decent, stand-up way of doing business.
The other is politics as usual.
DtM — When obsession and hate are the motives, your plan of action is not an option.
Clarvoiant, eh?
But the multiple frivolous lawsuits filed by Norman Coleman didn’t stop you from supporting him. Why is that?
The day you can point to a single instance in the last 20 years of a Republican doing what you suggest for a Democrat, I’ll agree you have a point. As is you are just a cruel parody of a thinking person to pretend that “gotcha” politics is a Democratic exclusive. How many Republican made up scandals have I had to hear about… Kerry didn’t sit with the troops, Bill Clinton had an affair, Obama wasn’t wearing a flag pin…. the list is endless.
Obama not wearing a flag pin — no big deal.
Kerry not sitting with the troops — no big deal.
Had Bachmann had an affair, in her congressional office, I would have had a huge problem with it.
I hold D’s and R’s to the same standard. Can’t speak for the GOP. I’m not them.
Dan if you of the constant Republican support are not “them” then who the fuck are they? Why is it that all of a sudden no one is a Republican even as they spout Republican talking points? Strikes me like the old joke about Custer’s Indian Scouts…”What do you mean by we whiteman?”
And Dan you do not hold Ds and Rs to the same standard, I read your posts and bluntly you give me a run for my money on most partisan poster.
amuseinc -
I’m a pro-choice conservative. I’m not against gay marriage. I thought the government getting involved in the life of Terri Schaivo was terrible. I even supported the State of MN raising income taxes for two years to balance the budget, if only the Dems would have committed to it being a temporary, 2-year increase (something they didn’t seem to want to discuss).
Can you point out an important position you’ve taken that is at odds with your Democratic leadership? I’m guessing that if you can, it is a position that is even further left of Pelosi, not in the direction of the average American.
Aaron, two things.
First, why do you continually feel the need to delete comments that you do not like?
Second, this is a frivolous retaliation to the issues swirling around Congressmans Ellison and Peterson over the past two weeks. Period.
Dear Ryan,
Hi there, we’ve never met, but perhaps if it was frivolous you’d just ignore it — perhaps you are a bit worried this may take away from your frivolous pursuits to waste Republican Party money on silly attack ads? Then again, if I was the talking head for a dying blog like MDE and I was in a party whose brand was in the toilet, I’d probably do the same finger pointing.
Cheers!
What color is the sky in that world you live in, DTM?
Here on terra firma, it’s blue.
Say, Ryan? First, Aaron deleted that comment, because: a) - it wasn’t mine, and b) - I asked him to.
Second, only in the GreedOverPrinciples world is a legitimate issue concerning alleged rules violations by a GOPer a “retaliation.”
@DtM
“I hold D’s and R’s to the same standard.”
No, you don’t.
Example?
I think the Collin Peterson thing is overblown. I was quick to say that we were making too big a deal of Obama’s reaction to the Gates incident.
If anything, I’ve been more critical of Bachmann than of many D’s.
Never saw you suggest that compulsively litigious Norm Colman “simply ask” Franken about his ads. And yet, Dusty and Aaron should simply ask Bachman about her clearly unethical use of her office to promote the agenda of donors?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/the-uptake/al-franken-sued-by-sen-no_b_139306.html
Never saw you suggest that compulsively litigious Norm Colman “simply ask” Franken about his ads. And yet, Dusty and Aaron should simply ask Bachman about her clearly unethical use of her office to promote the agenda of donors?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/the-uptake/al-franken-sued-by-sen-no_b_139306.html
So, did anybody ever find out if they tried to contact Bachmann’s office?
Saul Alinsky and obambi. A match made is Socialism Heaven. Quite a following he has. Good to see the Radicals exposed.
It will however, backfire as all evil eventually does.
I guess they learned from the nuts in Alaska, they turned it into a science aginst Palin
Time to go after all the threats to the democratic party. Sad, sick and evil is the words to describe the new low by the powers that be.
We all know who is behind pushing for the attempts to destroy anything conservative, and it is not just the Alinsky techniques.
While these are alinsky techniques, we are leaving one thing out. George Soros, multi billionare is the money behind all of this. He is also the source of ACORN, SEIU, The Tides foundation etc. I also suspect he is one of the people benefiting from our fed dollars. He has always had a hand in buying the opinion of Judges and lawmakers alike. Why do you think all the charges against ACORN keep getting dropped, and any audit of the fed will never see the light of day?
Expect more ethics charges to come from the lawmakers that support auditing the fed or charging acorn, like Ron Paul. Soros is pure evil and will stop at nothing to keep our money flowing into his pockets.
I am saddened that the democrats have sold their souls to the devil.
Wait, let me get this straight.
Democrats are complaining about a Republican violating the franking rules?
It’s too funny.
How soon they forget.
wow…way to take that out of the bloggers handbbok from Alaska…at least come up with your own tactic of destroying a person instead of just copying someone else….you ethics complaint people make me sick
The timing of release is suspect. what with Bachmann’s attacks against Obamacare, and the Left’s foolish belifs they have driven Sarah Palin from office, then we see more Asul alinsky tactics here in the lower 48. In the case of both women, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Both have an army of supporters. Fact is Bachmann is 100% ethical.
Liberal bloggers doing what they do best……….abusing legitimate avenues of voter redress in order to attack and destroy political adversaries. It was disgusting in Alaska, and it’s disgusting in Minnesota.
Wow…The blog made the republitroll roll.
Please God let Sarah Pallin be the 2012 Republican candidate. Timmy can be her VP candidate. Please….
She even has the links on her “issue” pages without notification.