I have already given my perspective of Herman Cain, a best friend to bankers. Since Michele Bachmann is moving up in the polls, it is now time to take a look at her from a libertarian point of view.
Bachmann has only been in Congress since January 2007. She is from Minnesota and is considered a supporter of the Tea Party movement. Some libertarians are sympathetic towards her and her views.
She may actually be the worst of all worlds for libertarians. The problem is that she has some libertarian rhetoric and she sounds like she is a supporter of capitalism most of the time. She even throws in states' rights on some economic issues. The problem will come if she is elected to the presidency. Just like George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan, I am fairly convinced that her policies would not reflect her rhetoric.
When she favors special interests and big business and she does nothing substantial to help the average American who is being choked by big government, then capitalism will get the blame. We hear it now with previous presidents. We can even go back to the 1920's and 1930's and people talk about Herbert Hoover as if he was a big supporter of the free market when it is just about the opposite.
Bachmann sounds just good enough to appeal to conservatives (and even some libertarians). I have heard her say that she wants to get rid of the Department of Education. I don't hear her say it often though. But why should we believe her? She is part of the Republican establishment. If she gets the Republican nomination, she will be surrounded by insiders (if she isn't already). Just how the Republican revolution in 1994 turned out to be nothing, so will Michele Bachmann.
The Republicans tinkered around the edges after their major victory in 1994. They were less disastrous than other congressional periods before and after. But overall, there was no significant change that took place in the direction of liberty.
The last debate on CNN was horrible. The candidates were only given 30 seconds to answer the questions, which is not a lot of time for someone wanting to become President of the United States. But all of the candidates talked about cutting taxes and cutting spending. Other than Ron Paul talking about the military, none of the candidates offered anything specific of substance.
That is the question I want posed to Michele Bachmann. How will you balance the budget? Where specifically will you cut $1.5 trillion from the federal budget. In fact, every candidate should be asked that question. It is impossible to balance the budget unless you cut military spending and/or so-called entitlement spending.
Of course, when it comes to foreign policy, Bachmann is a nightmare for libertarians. She is a typical pro-war Christian who wants to bomb the Middle East and spread democracy throughout the world. She doesn't quite put it in those terms, but you can certainly tell that she will not be ending any major wars any time soon. She never seems to explain how she will spend trillions on military spending and yet remain a fiscal conservative.
Libertarians, beware of Michele Bachmann. With Obama in the Oval Office, it is easy to see what he stands for (bigger government). It is a little trickier with Bachmann, which makes her more dangerous. Do not mistake her for a friend of liberty.