Share

Email Print Comments Share

INDIANOLA, Iowa -- Amid growing fallout from the revelation that Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann suffers from chronic migraine headaches -- which in the past have caused her to take several days off from work at a time -- former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty on Wednesday appeared to inch closer toward raising questions about her fitness to be commander in chief.

"As to Congresswoman Bachmann . . . I don't know enough about the facts about her particular case, and we defer to the medical professionals and their judgment and knowledge about her particular condition," Pawlenty told reporters after a town-hall meeting here. "But as a general statement, all of the candidates are going to have to be able to demonstrate they can do all of the job of president, all of the time."

Asked twice whether he would feel comfortable with the idea of Bachmann having control over the nation's nuclear arsenal as president, Pawlenty reverted to his previously espoused talking point that Bachmann has a "nonexistent" record in Congress.

But although he took pains not to challenge directly Bachmann's medical readiness for the job, Pawlenty did seem eager to stir the pot.

"There's no real time off in that job," Pawlenty said of being president.

As he seeks to close in on Bachmann's lead ahead of next month's Ames Straw Poll here in the nation's first voting state, Pawlenty again appeared to allude to his fellow Minnesotan in making the case that she would not be a viable candidate in a general election, if she were to become the Republican nominee.

"One of the messages we're trying to convey to Iowa is they've got this deserved status and important status as first in the nation, but Iowa doesn't just want to be first, they want to be right," Pawlenty said. "They've got to pick somebody who can unite the Republican Party -- not just a part of it. I can unite the party. And number two, you've got to pick somebody who can actually be the nominee, who can actually beat Barack Obama."