Bachmann accuses Obama of debt-ceiling ‘scare tactics,’ dodges question on clinic

Rep.Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) took a day off the campaign trail Thursday to swing through Washington to vote against raising the nation’s debt ceiling, declaring that she refused “to be a party to deceiving the American people yet again.”

The Republican presidential contender, appearing at the National Press Club, was at ease swiping at President Obama, calling him “out of touch,” accusing him of using “scare tactics” and saying the debacle over the debt limit was a “failure of leadership.”

“As we debate the debt ceiling, the players seem to have lost all sense of proportion,” she declared.

She was less comfortable, however, navigating questions about House Speaker John A. Boehner, whose debt-limit proposal she vowed to oppose in a floor vote later Thursday. While she praised the speaker’s “faithful effort” in talks, she side-stepped when asked if he should be ousted if the debt ceiling is raised

“I am running for president of the United States,” she said, after a pause. “I am not running for speaker of the House.”

Bachmann later bristled at a question about the counseling business of her husband, Marcus Bachmann, who was in attendance. She was asked if his clinic engaged in work to persuade gay patients to become heterosexual, and if she believed such a change was possible.

“My husband is not running for the presidency, neither are my children, neither is our business,” she said, declining to answer.

She also addressed a recent Washington Post report that she took out a government-backed home loan from one of the entities, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, that she has heavily criticized. She did not confirm the report but said that, “It’s almost impossible to buy a home in this country today without the federal government being involved” and added that is the problem.