Michele Bachmann not running for re-election to House
WASHINGTON Four-term Minnesota congresswoman Michele Bachmann says she will not run for another term in the U.S. House.
The tea party favorite and conservative firebrand, who ran for the Republican presidential nomination last year, announced her decision in an almost nine minute video on her website Wednesday morning.
"The law limits anyone from serving as president of the United States for more than eight years," Bachmann says in the video. "And in my opinion, eight years is also long enough for an individual to serve as a representative for a specific congressional district."
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Bachmann says her decision not to run again in 2014 was "not influenced by any concerns about ... being re-elected."
She narrowly won a fourth term in 2012 over Democrat Jim Graves, a hotel chain founder who is running again in 2014.
She also says recent inquiries into her 2012 presidential campaign did not affect her decision.
In January, a former Bachmann aide filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission, claiming Bachmann made improper payments to an Iowa state senator who was the state chairman of her 2012 presidential run. The aide, Peter Waldron, also accused Bachmann of other FEC violations.
Taking a shot at what she calls "the mainstream liberal media," she says she "fully" expects them to "put a detrimental spin on my decision not to seek a fifth term. ... They always seem to attempt to find a dishonest way to disparage me. But I take being the focus of their attention and disparagement as a true compliment of my public service effectiveness."
Leaving the door open for future runs for office, Bachmann says, "I want you to be assured that there is no future option or opportunity, be it directly in the political arena or otherwise, that I won't be giving serious consideration if it can help save an protect our great nation for future generations."
A vocal opponent of the health care overhaul and other policies of President Obama, Bachmann promised her supporters she "will continue to work overtime for the next 18 months in Congress defending the same Constitutional Conservative values we have worked so hard on together."
She continues, "I proudly have, and I promise you I will continue, to fight to protect innocent human life, traditional marriage, family values, religious liberty and academic excellence."