Former Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) is defending Donald Trump amid a growing fight between the GOP presidential nominee and Republican Party leaders, including House Speaker Paul Ryan (Wis.).
{mosads}“I think that this isn’t a civil war, as you wrote it,” the Tea Party firebrand told CNN on Tuesday. “It’s really the members of Congress who are saying, ‘We’re not going to fall in line and abandon Donald Trump.’ ”
Bachmann questioned why Ryan held a conference call Monday morning in which he informed Republican lawmakers he would no longer defend Trump or campaign with him. Ryan’s decision came after a leaked tape revealed Trump made sexually aggressive comments about women in 2005.
Trump lashed out at the Republican leader Tuesday on Twitter.
“Our very weak and ineffective leader, Paul Ryan, had a bad conference call where his members went wild at his disloyalty,” Trump wrote in a series of tweets.
“I spoke with members yesterday that were on this conference call,” Bachmann said. “And the members said, to a person, people were in support of Donald Trump and they really were perplexed why Paul even had the conference call in the first place because Donald Trump delivered a masterful performance in the second debate.”
Bachmann, who is advising Trump, also defended the billionaire’s decision to invite several women who have accused former President Bill Clinton of sexual assault to Sunday’s presidential debate.
“Well, there’s a reason why he did, and it’s because the case was brought up about him,” Bachmann said. “In this circumstance, I think it was very much fair game, because this was a planned surprise attack on Donald Trump going at his character.”