Accepting conservative award, Bachmann decries ‘Obamacare,’ socialism

Rep. Michele Bachmann was the recipient of the 2010 Conservative Leadership Award from the Clare Boothe Luce Policy Institute on Monday. Named after the pioneering conservative politician, the Institute promotes “women leaders who are committed to constitutional principles such as individual freedom, economic liberty, limited government, personal responsibility, and traditional values.” Bachmann spoke at the event about “defunding Obamacare.”

“We cannot negotiate with Obamacare because it cannot be negotiated with,” Bachmann said. “It needs to be 100% repealed and until we can get the point of having a new President we have to be committed to defunding Obamacare, to make sure that it doesn’t get instituted in this country.”

“Socialized medicine or the government takeover of healthcare really is the lynchpin of socialism in any nation, that’s what the threat of Obamacare is for America, because it completely retools the way that we do business in this country,” said Bachmann.

“Consider that the federal government could have direct ownership or effectual control of almost three fourths of the private economy and you will see the most stunning concentration of power in the federal government’s hands at any time in the last 234 years of our history,” Bachmann said. “That’s something that we cannot continue and lay claim in any way with a straight face that we remain free.”

Bachmann’s entire speech can be viewed at C-Span.