'Marriage Vow' Slavery Quote Gets Bachmann in Hot Water

More hot water, that is
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 10, 2011 3:48 PM CDT
Michele Bachmann in Hot Water Over 'Marriage Vow' Slavery Quote
Republican presidential candidate, Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn. speaks in Charleston, SC, Wednesday, June 29, 2011.   (AP Photo/Alice Keeney)

Michele Bachmann was already in hot water after signing a pledge that appears to maybe, sorta-kinda, call for a ban on porn. Now it turns out that same pledge included a controversial slavery-related clause in its preamble, forcing Bachmann to backpedal and the group behind the pledge to ultimately remove the reference. The section in question read, “Slavery had a disastrous impact on African-American families, yet sadly a child born into slavery in 1860 was more likely to be raised by his mother and father in a two-parent household than was an African-American baby born after the election of the USA’s first African-American President,” Politico reports.

Bachmann’s spokesperson yesterday stated that the presidential hopeful only endorsed the “candidate vow,” not the preamble that included the slavery passage. While Bachmann “stands behind the candidate vow—which makes absolutely no reference to slavery,” the rep said, the Congresswoman “believes that slavery was horrible and economic enslavement is also horrible.” But the Washington Post notes that the document was a mere four pages long (and that includes two pages of footnotes), and that the slavery section was the preamble’s very first bullet point, implying Bachmann likely saw it. After the controversy erupted, the Family Leader ultimately decided to remove the language. A spokesperson for the group apologized “for any negative feelings this has caused.” (More slavery stories.)

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