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Bachmann's Stretch (re)Marks
Author: Raine    Date: 06/20/2011 13:33:36

Over the weekend, CBS' Political HotSheet asks the question : Did Michele Bachmann "Raise" 23 Children?
After her speech at the Republican Leadership Conference, I asked GOP presidential candidate and Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann about her repeated claims that she has "raised" 23 foster children, a comment she reiterated in an interview with CNN following her speech.

Writing in the Daily Beast this week, Michelle Goldberg quoted Kris Harvieux, who worked as a senior social worker in the foster care system in Bachmann's county, who said at least some of Bachmann's placements were likely short term.

"Some of them you have for a week. Some of them you have for three years, some you have for six months," he said. "She makes it sound like she got them at birth and raised them to adulthood, but that's not true." ---snip---

Asked to explain her situation with her foster children, Bachmann said "we took children in as teenagers."

"Their family was facing a challenge and they weren't going to be able to be at home with their parents and so we took them in as teenagers," she continued. "And our job was to see that they graduated from high school and were successfully launched into the world."

Asked how long they lived with her, she said "it varied."

I asked Bachmann to explain the parameters of how long the children lived with her - was it as short as one week? As long as three years?

"It varied, it really varied depending on the children," Bachmann responded. "And we've never gotten into specifics about the children because we've always wanted to observe their privacy and that of their families. As I'm sure you can appreciate."

I want to preface the following by stating that I believe Foster Parents do amazing work, and I am not questioning the kindness it takes to take a child, even a young adult and bring them into your home. What I am questioning is the legitimacy of this claim. Information found in this article says the Minnesota State Department of Human Services says she held a Foster Care license for 7 and a half years. 23 foster children, along with 5 biological children are a lot to raise in that period of time - which is why this statement is important:
"Some of them you have for a week. Some of them you have for three years, some you have for six months," says Harvieux, who also served as a foster parent herself. "She makes it sound like she got them at birth and raised them to adulthood, but that's not true."

Yet Bachmann clearly had some of her foster children long enough to enroll them in local schools, and it was through them that she got involved in school politics. While she taught her own children at home before sending them to private Christian schools, state law required foster kids to go to public school.
Bold face mine, as I want to make that point clear -- She did have the right to send her biological children to private school. What I found interesting about this is something she said in her 2007 testimony to the House Ways and Means Committee in Congress regarding disconnected youth:
They weren't your typical foster children. They were in need of greater depth of services. Many of them had lived in numerous homes throughout their lives and again had experienced various levels of abuse. We were honored to be able to bring these children into our home, Mr. Chair. What we saw is that what these children needed more than anything was love, acceptance and stability. While we were by no means a perfect family one thing that we could offer to these children was just a little bit of a picture of what the word normal looks like.

Here's a mom and a dad who love each other. Here is a fairly regular schedule. Here's a mom who cooks a meal, a dad who goes to work. This is what normal, a snapshot of normal might look like for the life of a child. ---snip---

Oftentimes, without exception our foster children all had an IEP, an individualized education plan. Without exception, they had a social worker assigned to them, a counselor assigned to them. They did have support systems but oftentimes they were in a situation where they were seen as transient and temporary.
Ms. Bachmann no longer fosters children, and her testimony seemed earnest and sincere. What I am left wondering is how many of those 23 children felt a sense of security and how many she fostered at once, how many did graduate under her care and how many were shuffled around more after they left?

I would say that her claim raising these children is a bit of a stretch. It would be far more honest in the year 2011--- the one where she is now Candidate for President Michelle Bachmann --- to claim she helped to raise these children. It should be noted that an unsubstantiated report from 2006 (in an overly snark piece) in Wonkette claims that she received a $30 Dollar a day stipend for each child. The number most likely isn't correct but I am going to put it out there anyway.
So if Bachmann has fostered 23 children, let’s say for an average of five years, that would come out to a non-taxable $1,259,250,”
I would like to see the records on this, especially considering her husband has for a longtime been running a Christian counseling center. I would also like to see the timeline of these children because according to her testimony, 'If their parents, their biological parents would agree, if the social workers would agree, if there might be an option, whether it's a public school, a charter school, of which--my husband and I began a charter school in our city; it's the oldest charter school in the United States for K-12 at risk youth--or if they would choose a private school so that they could--if they changed homes they could still stay in the same school, so that they could have that sense of stability." She resigned from that School board under allegations that she was trying to impose Christianity into the curriculum.

I believe that being a foster parent is a noble thing. My mother and Grandmother were both foster parents. My 2 uncles were adopted after being foster children. Some of our own 4F family members are currently helping the shape the life of a young person as foster parents. This is not an easy thing to do.

I have to question how stable it is -- if this is all true -- to have so many children in one house (I doubt that it was all 23 at one time) and how stable it was for the time they were there. I don't need to know who the children are unless they choose to come forward, but something literally and figuratively isn't adding up.

and

Raine
 

47 comments (Latest Comment: 06/21/2011 03:37:25 by livingonli)
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Comment by wickedpam on 06/20/2011 13:17:28
I'm still sleepy



Morning

Comment by Scoopster on 06/20/2011 13:35:18
Mornin' all.. ...and BLAH Mondays!

Wouldn't ya know it... walked in this morning to find out the server was overheated.

Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 13:37:11
Blog is now up! Sorry it took so long, finding testimony from 2007 took a little longer than I thought.

Comment by TriSec on 06/20/2011 13:51:24
Don't know what to make of this...

I've dealt with foster children throughout my career in Scouting. For the most part, foster parents would take on one child, or perhaps a set of siblings, and for my experience, I'd see them stay through a school year before moving on to whatever was next in store. Very rarely, there would be some that stayed a calendar year or more with the foster parents.

So for those 23 kids Ms. Bachmann is claiming...the math doesn't work.



Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 13:58:08
Quote by TriSec:
Don't know what to make of this...

I've dealt with foster children throughout my career in Scouting. For the most part, foster parents would take on one child, or perhaps a set of siblings, and for my experience, I'd see them stay through a school year before moving on to whatever was next in store. Very rarely, there would be some that stayed a calendar year or more with the foster parents.

So for those 23 kids Ms. Bachmann is claiming...the math doesn't work.

That is what I am trying to figure out as well. By claiming she raised them indicates that they were there for far longer than they may have been. She had her license for 7.5 years, but I believe I read someplace that she fostered for 5 of them. I would like to get verification of all of this.


Comment by TriSec on 06/20/2011 14:18:07
Oh yes, and TriSec is doubly-miffed today.

Looking over our office coffee station today, everyone missed my new term last week - "Office Santorum" (That brown, pasty material that results from repeatedly dipping the communal spoon into sugar, creamora, and coffee...)

And I show you how deep my aviation depravity is on Saturday, but of course, I'm up against DC Party competition, so



Comment by TriSec on 06/20/2011 14:19:32
Oh, and don't forget Keith is back on tonight!

Comment by BobR on 06/20/2011 14:43:24
Quote by TriSec:
Oh yes, and TriSec is doubly-miffed today.

Looking over our office coffee station today, everyone missed my new term last week - "Office Santorum" (That brown, pasty material that results from repeatedly dipping the communal spoon into sugar, creamora, and coffee...)

And I show you how deep my aviation depravity is on Saturday, but of course, I'm up against DC Party competition, so


I missed neither (and commented on your blog), so to you too

Comment by TriSec on 06/20/2011 15:02:20
TriSec Bad.

http://www.dongrays.com/btd/alone/solitary.jpg


Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 15:11:46
for TriSec.

Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 15:28:43


Comment by wickedpam on 06/20/2011 15:32:27
Quote by Raine:



same here - and yet I have the continuing drama to bleed into the day to keep me from snoozing under my desk

Comment by TriSec on 06/20/2011 15:38:25
On the plus side, though....Mr. Bean paid me to sit by the lake in the sun all Saturday morning. (There was a parade, nobody went kayaking. We did have an afternoon class.) And I had a houseful of people, pizza, and beer yesterday.

Anyway...

Comment by wickedpam on 06/20/2011 15:41:41
Oh Raine - its Aveeno Baby Soothing Relief Moisture Cream that I was talking about. Love the stuff.

Comment by wickedpam on 06/20/2011 15:57:02
Quote by TriSec:
On the plus side, though....Mr. Bean paid me to sit by the lake in the sun all Saturday morning. (There was a parade, nobody went kayaking. We did have an afternoon class.) And I had a houseful of people, pizza, and beer yesterday.

Anyway...


Sounds like it was still a nice weekend


Comment by wickedpam on 06/20/2011 15:59:50
I'm actually surprised that the Dixie Chicks haven't come out to support Chely Wright, then again they dont' want to be called "country" anymore thanks to what that listening segment did to them.

Comment by Scoopster on 06/20/2011 16:01:12
Hmm.. it seems Ryan Dunn (of the Jackass gang) has died in a really nasty car crash.

Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 16:05:48
Quote by Scoopster:
Hmm.. it seems Ryan Dunn (of the Jackass gang) has died in a really nasty car crash.

I just saw that news.

I dunno what to say. I am sorry he has died, but he never seemed to have much common sense. This sight has a picture he tweeted earlier in the evening.

Comment by Scoopster on 06/20/2011 16:23:43
SCOTUS ruling about gender discrimination at Walmart is in..

The main decision was unanimous - basically stating the class action was too large. However there was a split decision on another matter in this case, which was broken down over at el gran satan de naranja

Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 16:36:26
Well this looks suspicious.. I personally am not pleased with this use of Taxpayer money.
According to House expense reports, Bachmann and three conservative GOP colleagues — Reps. Tom Price (Ga.), Steve King (Iowa) and Todd Akin (Mo.) — each paid $3,407.50 that day, a total of $13,630, to a sound and stage company called National Events, apparently for the sound system used at the rally.

The money came from the Members' taxpayer-funded office accounts, despite House rules prohibiting the use of these funds for political activities. Bachmann's office insists the expense was a proper use of official funds.

Bachmann billed the event as a "press conference," which can be funded from official accounts. But no questions were taken from the press and, unlike most press conferences, it opened with a prayer, the national anthem and a recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.


Comment by wickedpam on 06/20/2011 16:43:38
how do they think crazy eyes knows how to handle money?

Comment by livingonli on 06/20/2011 16:51:09
The modern GOP has become certifiable. And I'm recovering from my 15-hour Sunday at the salt mine.

Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 16:57:17
Please have tissues ready.

A community came together to grant a homeless man his last wish. That dying wish was to see his dog one more time. It was a simple request, but one that meant the world to him in his final days.

People involved with the man’s last wish describe it as something they’ll never forget. Now that he’s gone, they’ll always cherish the memories of the man and his best friend.
Video at the link.

Comment by wickedpam on 06/20/2011 17:12:48


stupid dust

Comment by TriSec on 06/20/2011 17:39:48
Hey now, here's something.

Reported by my friends on the East Coast Conservative Podcast, of all places.

Anthony Weiner is considering running as an independent in the supposed special election for his former seat.

So why did he resign again?

(off to look for a source)


Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 18:06:15
Quote by TriSec:
Hey now, here's something.

Reported by my friends on the East Coast Conservative Podcast, of all places.

Anthony Weiner is considering running as an independent in the supposed special election for his former seat.

So why did he resign again?

(off to look for a source)

As of today, Weiner has not officially resigned.

Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 18:11:39
BBL!

Comment by trojanrabbit on 06/20/2011 18:27:20
Quote by Raine:
Quote by Scoopster:
Hmm.. it seems Ryan Dunn (of the Jackass gang) has died in a really nasty car crash.

I just saw that news.

I dunno what to say. I am sorry he has died, but he never seemed to have much common sense. This sight has a picture he tweeted earlier in the evening.


Especially if according to rumor he was doing 110 in a 45 zone.

Meanwhile, the electronics world lost 2 legendary analog designers in the past few days, Jim Williams and Bob Pease

Comment by Scoopster on 06/20/2011 18:57:57
Comment by livingonli on 06/20/2011 18:59:51
I feel hung over and I haven't had anything to drink. These hours are wearing me down.

Comment by TriSec on 06/20/2011 19:17:55


Hoo boy! Why, we might need to do some live-blogging!




Comment by TriSec on 06/20/2011 19:19:36
Wait, strike that.

BLOG MEETUP NEXT YEAR AT NN12!!!



Comment by TriSec on 06/20/2011 19:41:26
OK, I can't get any more av-dork than this.

I was watching a show last night about the "Gimli Glider" incident (circa 1983). So naturally I had to peek at the Wiki. I am familiar with the story, so I was digging for more info about the ram-air turbine that provided backup power.

Well...it turns out that the 'RAT' is manufactured by Hamilton Sundstrand Corp...which is the descendant of the WWII-era Hamilton Standard Co. that manufactured nearly all of the propellers for our combat aircraft.

I find something incredibly right about that.

Anyway, I'll go see if I can find my pills now.



Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 20:02:08
Yes you DID!!!

This is good reason to have that NE meetup!


Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 20:09:16


This one is for the cat lovers out there....

Comment by BobR on 06/20/2011 20:20:54
Quote by TriSec:
Wait, strike that.

BLOG MEETUP NEXT YEAR AT NN12!!!


YES!

Comment by BobR on 06/20/2011 20:21:47
Quote by livingonli:
I feel hung over and I haven't had anything to drink. These hours are wearing me down.

Try to get some exercise, and drink water. Don't neglect yourself.

Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 20:59:15
Comment by wickedpam on 06/20/2011 21:25:09
Quote by Raine:
Yes you DID!!!

This is good reason to have that NE meetup!




hmmmmm you just never know

Comment by Raine on 06/20/2011 22:08:56
Click on the transcript at 02:21.... Then watch the dude get escorted off the stage.

They loved the race jokes, but were NOT gonna tolerate reggie brown ... Wowser.

Comment by Will in Chicago on 06/20/2011 22:49:27
Hello, bloggers!!

I hope that everyone is doing well.

Bachmann's candidacy brings to mind an article in the nation.

]Republicans Reject the Middle—Again
Melissa Harris-Perry
June 15, 2011

This morning I had the pleasure of talking with Pulitzer Prize–winning columnist and fellow MSNBC contributor Clarence Page. Motivated by Monday night’s debate in New Hampshire, he and I discussed the current field of GOP candidates. I indicated my distress at hearing so many of them parrot the talking points of the Tea Party and my surprise that the new litmus test for being prolife required the candidates to reject a right to abortion even in the case of rape, incest and threat to the life of the woman. In response, Page reminded me of the 1964 Republican National Convention when Nelson Rockefeller was booed by Goldwater delegates. It was a useful reminder.

In 1964 the Republican Party was at war with itself and the convention highlighted the fronts of the battle. Rockefeller largely derailed his own opportunity for the nomination when he divorced his wife of three decades and married a much young woman. By 1964 standards this behavior violated the basic rules of ethical personal conduct expected of serious contenders for national office. But it was not his personal life that was booed by conservative convention delegates. They shouted at Rockefeller when he insisted on the need for “honest Republican liberalism that has kept this party abreast of human need” and warned that “the Republican Party is in real danger of subversion by a radical, well-finaced, highly disciplined majority.”

Republicans booed Rockefeller as the civil rights movement was marching toward greater equality for African-Americans. They booed Rockefeller as American women were challenging centuries of narrow, repressive social and economic practices. They booed Rockefeller as Americans rattled with fear over a Communist threat to American domestic security and international hegemony. They booed Rockefeller as the changing world evoked a heightened sense of vulnerability for those who had wielded power and privilege for so long. It is almost laughable that someone of the family legacy and monied heritage of Rockefeller could stand in as symbol of the changing world of 1964. But the very fact that he was interpreted as frighteningly left of the GOP center is an indication of how far right the party had moved. So in 1964 the GOP rejected Rockefeller Republicanism and embraced Goldwater extremism.

I couldn’t help but notice similar patterns of rejecting traditional conservatism in exchange for radical rightism in the GOP candidates on Monday night. They seemed intent on vaulting over most reasonable responses in a rush to position themselves as far to the right as the stage would allow.



I think that history may be repeating itself.

Comment by trojanrabbit on 06/20/2011 23:17:27
Quote by Raine:
Click on the transcript at 02:21.... Then watch the dude get escorted off the stage.

They loved the race jokes, but were NOT gonna tolerate reggie brown ... Wowser.


Things were OK (well no, it was heading downhill in a hurry) until he was going to go after St. Michelle.


Comment by Scoopster on 06/21/2011 01:03:37
Ahhh.. so good to have Keith back.

I dunno how long it'll be until I get burnt out though.

Comment by livingonli on 06/21/2011 02:08:28
Now if only Cablevision would add Current TV (and BBC America which is still at the top of the list for that matter), I may still bolt to FiOS if I love my cable benefit for those channels, although I still need Cablevision for a few HD channels that are not on FiOS.

Comment by Raine on 06/21/2011 02:21:01
I enjoyed seeing KO back tonite.

I was very happy with how Michael Morre framed his debate -- better than I had the last time I saw him on Dr. Maddow to be honest -- far less hyperbolic than he has been in the past.


I did have a real head scratching moment with his interview with Markos. I understood the conflict back then, but I found it a bit of a firebomb for Kos to mention Ed and Rachel to the dispute as to why He was never appeared back on MSNBC.

I think it put them both in a very uncomfortable position. It made me feel uncomfortable. Had he said that other guests were not allowed to choose as a result of Joe Scar and Phil griffin, I think that would have been far more diplomatic. Kos/Keith in the way the conversation went -- made them both look like patsies to MSNBC.

Comment by Raine on 06/21/2011 02:22:11
Liv, You know you can watch the Show Online? pretty sure it isn't blocked there.

Comment by livingonli on 06/21/2011 03:37:25
I'll have to check when I get home tonight since that will be the only way to watch it unless they put it on satellite radio unless my provider either adds Current TV or I switch to one that carries it.