Bachmann’s HPV Attack Misses Mark

In last night’s debate, Michelle Bachmann criticized Gov. Rick Perry for his very flawed decision to order all 6th grade girls in Texas to receive a vaccine for a sexually transmitted disease. Good.

But she accused him of doing it as a favor to a political friend and the drug company. Bad.

Michele Bachmann accused Rick Perry of using sixth-grade girls as profit engines for a drug company at the CNN/Tea Party Express debate, lacing into the Texas governor for having attempted to mandate the HPV vaccine for young teenagers.

“To have innocent little 12-year-old girls be forced to have a government injection through an executive order is just wrong,” Bachmann said. “Little girls who have a negative reaction to this potentially dangerous drug don’t get a mulligan.”

The Minnesota congresswoman went even further, accusing Perry of handing out favors to a company, Merck, represented by his former top aide, Mike Toomey.

“There was a big drug company that made millions of dollars because of this mandate,” Bachmann said. “The governor’s former chief of staff was the chief lobbyist for this drug company.”

Perry rightfully should be criticized for this horrible decision. But accusing him of doing it as a political favor is almost certainly untrue and misses the mark. The real issue is the morality of what he did and Perry’s view on the role and rights of government and executive power. The fact that Perry thinks that it is proper for government to to such a thing, even over the objections of parents is the real issue. Somebody ought to call him on it.