Bachmann slams Cain for inconsistencies on issues

Republican presidential hopeful U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., speaks during the Iowa Republican Party's Ronald Reagan Dinner, Friday, Nov. 4, 2011, in Des Moines, Iowa. / Iowa,Michele Bachmann

Republican presidential hopeful U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., speaks during the Iowa Republican Party's Ronald Reagan Dinner, Nov. 4, 2011, in Des Moines, Iowa.

/ Iowa,Michele Bachmann

Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann says she won't comment on rival candidate Herman Cain's sexual harassment scandal, but criticized him in a radio interview for flip flopping on a host of policy issues.

Speaking to conservative radio host Scott Hennen, in an interview that's scheduled to air on Monday, Bachmann avoided discussing the sexual harassment story that has rocked Cain's campaign for several days, and instead turned the conversation to Cain's changing stances on a variety of issues.

"There's been 10 instances in the last month where he's changed his positions on significant issues," Bachmann told Hennen.

"On the issue of pro-life, he said government shouldn't intervene to protect life and then he switched and said 'no they should.' He wasn't for the marriage amendment, and then he said he was. Then he said that he would allow the terrorists to go out of Guantanamo Bay. In other words, he would release the terrorists. Then he changed his mind and said 'no,'" said the U.S. House member from Minnesota.

"He just said this week that China was developing a nuclear weapon. They've had one for 47 years. He said that 9-9-9 would be equitable and fair, and then he changed it to 9-0-9 after people called out his errors," she said.

Bachmann argued that once Cain realized his positions weren't popular with American voters, he changed them. The real issue is not the sexual harassment scandal that's captured the attention of the national media for a week, but whether the former top executive of the Godfather's Pizza chain is ready to be president, she said.

"This is the leader of the free world we're talking about," Bachmann said. "We're in very dangerous times when it comes to our national security and very dangerous times economically. We need to know that our president of the United States is going to go in there and do bold things and know what they're talking about and be consistent."

Bachmann is battling to make a comeback in Iowa, where Cain has overtaken her as the favorite of tea party voters and cultural conservatives. That could change if his campaign continues to be hammered by allegations of inappropriate comments and behavior with female subordinates when he headed the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s.

[winemaster2]

Too bad that mamba Cain did not buy the ding a ling Bauchmann a family size pizza to accommodate that good old boy Bachmann and his brood and play a little footsie. For that he may have sings of them warts that often leak out of the ding bat and her good old hypocrite evangelical hog wash.

[Rebrog]

Cain is an idiot, he hasn't been able to stay with one cohesive platform since day one. He doesn't have any understanding of foreign policy. And he wants to institute an extra tax, the national sales tax, on top of the huge burden of taxation which our government has subjected Americans with. Perhaps he is just unhappy that he can't have Ben Bernanke's job of printing money and handing it out, so he's trying for next best... POTUS

[2happy2ride]

At least we know he's consistent in one area...shhh we're not supposed to talk about that.

Cain is a poser with no substantive solutions, just a slogan and some sound bites. If you watched the Gingrich-Cain debate it was apparent he's incapable.

[hadrake]

I like Herman Cain and all but he has no political experience and I have already see him doing some weird decision making on his part. I saw him on The O'reilly Factor and when asked about Iran I feel he really fumbled on the answer.

[Kenny777_y]

she must of had her ear pluggs in when she was listing to ROMNEY,,,,,,, talk about inconsistent, lol.

[montani42]

Michelle is the only true conservative running. She has little chance of winning due to the GOP not supporting her. She is honest, smart, conservative, and dependable.

[zenia5]

@montani42...."she has little chance of winning" due to her outrageously insane ideas and comments.

Bachmann is a dangerous, irrational zealot. Not only is she contributing to the defamation of truth and logic, but she's setting a horrible example for women in politics and women in general. Thank goodness she will never get near the presidency.

[Dreadnut]

All of a sudden Michelle Bachmann becomes CBSnews' choice for sound and erudite political analysis?

[antoniof123]

Bachmann slams Cain for inconsistencies on issues.

Wow, the kettle calling the pot black.

[Jaylah54]

Well, at least Michele Bachmann is consistently an idiot.

[zenia5]

So very true!

[zenia5]

Fewer and fewer people are taking Michele Bachmann seriously. After all, she has totally flunked History 101 (thinks the founding fathers worked to end slavery and that John Quincy Adams was one of the founding fathers), confuses John Wayne with John Wayne Gacy, thinks that ALL wives should be totally submissive to their husbands, blames the swine flu outbreak on President Obama, thinks carbon dioxide is not at all harmful, thinks that eliminating minimum wage will wipe out unemployment, thinks that recent earthquakes and hurricanes were messages from God to the President, thinks that the movie "Lion King" is gay propaganda, thinks that she and her husband can "pray away the gay" in their government subsidized clinic, thinks scientists support intelligent design, claimed that Glenn Beck could solve the debt crisis (big belly laugh on this one), suggested that a gay singer was stricken with breast cancer because she is gay and should repent, compared a visit to Iraq to a visit to the Mall of America (preposterous) .... the list of her outrageously insane thought processes is endless.

And there are STILL some in the lunatic fringe who think this bimbo is qualified to be President of the United States. Amazing.

[zenia5]

@pksd....nice try, but ALL of the above is very TRUE and can be easily proven.....videos of Bachmann's idiotic statements are available and free for perusal....they don't lie. If you need help finding them, I would be happy to help.

Too bad you have such a blind obsession with Bachmann that you cannot see what a dangerous zealot she really is. Not only is she contributing to the defamation of truth and logic, but she's setting a horrible example for women in politics and women in general. Thank goodness she will never get near the presidency.

[cntrygirl3]

And Mrs Bachmann of course has always been coherent, consistent and clear. Something about people in glass houses