Michele Bachmann: Who are the anti-Bachmann bloggers?

It’s time-consuming work; Young, who says she’s cut back recently despite Bachmann’s rise, often spent two hours a day on the subject over the years. But it’s paying off. Along with a handful of other outlets—including the Minnesota Independent and G. R. Anderson, a former writer for the Twin Cities alternative weekly City Pages now best known for being ripped off by Rolling Stone—Young and her fellow travelers have laid much of the groundwork for big national outlets, helping to establish a picture of Bachmann’s political past. Bremer also snagged an award from the Minnesota chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists in June.

With their influence has come the sinking sensation of seeing other, bigger outlets borrowing their work. The Wall Street Journal scored a neat scoop on July 11 about how the anti-tax Bachmann’s only stint in the professional world included collecting taxes for the federal government. But Dump Bachmann posted on the same case in March 2006. Bremer went so far as to contact the Los Angeles Times after that paper ran a story about Bachmann receiving government aid for a family farm without crediting earlier versions. “Bulls--t! I broke it in 2007,” Bremer says. “It’s frustrating seeing national media come in here and think they can scoop us for our work for the last 10 years. I’ve spent hours driving to the other side of the district to plow through court records that aren’t online, or staying up until 3 in the morning going through campaign reports on the FEC,” Bremer says. “I don’t care if somebody comes in and uses my research, but gimme a link or credit!”

Antipathy for the mainstream media gives the Dump Bachmann crew common cause with their quarry, who by and large keeps the national press at arm’s length. Like Sarah Palin, to whom she’s frequently compared, Bachmann is adept at using the press as a foil and punching bag. After she was mocked for mixing up Concord, N.H., and Concord, Mass., Bachmann told Laura Ingraham, “We all know there’s a double standard in the media … As we know, all 3,400 members of the mainstream media are part of the Obama press contingent.” Young’s frustration at what she sees as lazy and biased reporting by the Minnesota media has remained a unifying and inspiring force for Dump Bachmann. “I wouldn’t be doing this if the mainstream press had done its job,” Avidor says.

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