financing in her 2012 presidential rupp. bachmann insisting, though, that neither of those was behind this decision. >> be assured my decision was not in any way influenced by any concerns about my being re-elected to congress. and rest assured, this decision was not impacted in any way by the recent inquiries into the activities of my former presidential campaign or my former presidential staff. >> bachmann is just the latest tea party favorite to leave the hallowed halls of capitol hill. for one reason or another she follows in the footsteps of jim demint and former congressman alan west. >> you can set your hair on fire so many times asomugha jish shann so many times until it hurts your hair. we have people who go too far left -- >> it doesn't serve in the long run. >> there's no long play. >> i want to bring into the

conversation shaun spicer. it's great to have you here. certainly it was a surprise for a lot of o paem to wake up to. i want to start out with the michele bachmann news. she said the decision was not made because of anything going on with the investigation, the ethics inquiries. one thing that caught her by surprise is he bought air time a couple of weeks ago and started running ads in minnesota. take a look. >> great news. the u.s. house just passed my bill to repeal obama care. obama care promisesed lower costs and a better health care system, but the truth is just the opposite. unaffordable skyrocketing insurance costs. >> so that was starting to air in the marketplace there. so from the rnc, is this a surprise to hear that she's not going to be up for re-election, and should the public buy this is an about-face that she feels eight years is more than long

enough to be a representative? >> first of all, it's a great ad. the house did pass -- or repeal obama care and she should be proud of effort that she put in to spearheading -- or being one of the leaders in that effort to appeal obama care. i think because people come to washington because they want to serve the public interest, that's a great. but with all due respect, with her saying i've been here eight years and go back and continue to run the business her and her husband started and spend time with the family, the fact of the matter is, it's a tough life. it's great she's returning home. i don't think they ever intended people to come to washington and make a life long career out of it. she won a tough year for her. she has always proven to be a tough political fighter that comes out on top. she raised more money than i think any of rank andphile member of congress shows the depth not only from minnesota but around the country and i think she wanted to leave on her

terms instead of waiting three, four, five, six terms she's decided she's got a lot of fight in her and not only serve those in minnesota but other causes that she believes in. >> certainly you can't judge someone on knowing the time demands that go into this. but as we look at her record as a lawmaker, bachmann has sponsored 58 bills. one was voted on. that's the health care appeal. two were resolutes. not a policy leader but we know her to be a leader certainly when she ran for president. what will her role be moving forward? do you expect her to go to the wi of sarah palin or to go into the private business that she has with her husband and not step into politics moving forward? >> obviously that's not for me the speculate on. as you pointed out, she's been very foye c very vocal and very tissue. i would expect her to stay in

the public arena and push forward on government accountability. she's been someone on this irs scandal that currently the government's embroiled in. a huge voice on that. i would assume stuff like that, she'll continue. how she does it exactly is obviously up to her and what time of time and commitment she wanted to put ford. and you saw that in the presidential campaign last cycle and issues like accountability, the obama care, the irs scandal, her voice has always been part of that and it continues to be. >> i want to switch gears. have the senate majority leader bob dole making headlines this week when he said he wouldn't feel comfortable within the republican party today. i want to remind everybody what he said on fox news sunday. >> i think they ought to put a sign on the national committee doors that says closed for repairs. >> could you make it in today's republican party? >> i doubt it. reagan couldn't have made it. certainly nixon couldn't have

made it because he had ideas. >> so what is the rnc's reaction to this and how do you home to see and convince bob dole that this is the party he originated with? >> i have a tre mendmendous res for him and what he's done. i think what we're seeing about the house and the senate is fantastic. our members are out there making issue -- putting issues on the front burner, whether it's the effort that speaker boehner and the house republicans led last week to keep student rate loans -- interest on those loans low. helping out small businesses. trying to put people back to work. that's fantastic. i think what we're seeing in the senate is a lot of our members fighting over ideas. how do we agree the budget deficit that the administration has piled on us or address the

out of control debt. so, yes, are we out there fighting it over issues and how to best solve them? absolutely. but i think senator dole would have a place in this paefrmt he clearly still does. we're going to keep broadening that. and as you broaden the party, yeah, we'll bring in people dwhoenlt necessarily think 100% the same way, but that's a very healthy thing for the party to undergo if we're going grow and win. i'm excited with where we're going and you're seeing a huge unification, frankly, from one scandal to another when it comes to the scan dard that's out there. >> you guys are in concert with that about the controversy. darrell issa showing more documents, most of them targeting hillary clinton's aide. is there more about undermining hillary clinton's possible run in 2016 and a hope for

presidential shop and actually getting real answers in benghazi. >> let me correct one thing. i don't think we want answers. i think the american people deserve an answer. there's a lot of unanswered things that say look the other way, you don't need to know. when you have a situation in which the secretary of state was very forceful about what went on that night and what they call the a. rmt b., the accountability review board doesn't interview her in the report, i think there are questions that weren't being answered. so i think they're legitimate questions that have to be asked. for each one of these instances, there seems to be this lack of leadership that says i wasn't involved or i recused myself. if there's not an answer, there's a responsibility of lawmakers, and it's coming from both sides.

this is not a republican thing. this is a american thing, bipartisan thing. everyone saying we'd like to know the extent of these things, how far they were known, who knew what, when did they know it, what did they do in response to it. there frankly are a lot of questions with respect to all of these issues. >> rnc communications director shaun spicer. thank you, sir. >> thank you. >> joining me now is a top dep carat on the budget committee. it's great to have you here. >> grade to be here. >> i know you heard shaun spicer here. what do you think when we say he's had that oversight. is there still more to be answered as shaun spicer would say that america wants? has more wants. answers have not been transparent enough? >> well, thomas, when it comes to the benghazi issue, the administration has provided thousands of documents, taken lots of testimony. right now this is a political exercise by darrell issa and the

republicans. with know that by looking at the fact that karl rove is already running television advertisements against hillary clinton. i mean if that's not an obvious sign that their real objective is to try to muddy up hillary clinton, i don't know what is. the other very telling fact is they've refused to call. both thomas pickering and former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff admiral mullins have sumly asked to testify before the american people in front of the american people, but apparently chairman issa wants to do it behind closed doors. my concern is they'll filter some of information like they have with the e-mails. no information has come out of these hearings since the accountability review board. >> sir, when benghazi was going

on, that kind of got blown off the map or at least complimented by the issue. now we have an nbc report finding that the higher-ups within irs did know. lois lerner pleaded the fifth. is there any chance this blows over or do democrats have a real problem on their hands come next year? >> well, thomas, the irs issue is an issue everybody wants to get to the bottom of. clearly there was wrongdoing there. clearly what happened was unacceptable. and so we need to get the facts and get to the bottom of it. it's also equally clear that the white house was not involved in any way. and see you have a situation to get to the bottom of. irv nould not be in an exempt

status is doing something to do with work or educational work because that puts them in a very difficult position. we should change that. we should require more disclosure when it comes to political campaigns. but just to get back to your earlier point, thomas, in terms of the republican party and your statement, i do think bob dole's statements were very telling and you see this de-vicks happening right now where you've about gone ted corruption and a vote blocking the effort to try to negotiate an agreement. we want speak irboehner to agree to go to conference on the budget to try to iron out these differences so we can move forward on the economy and deal with the long-term deficit. >> sir, thanks for taking time out for me. i appreciate it. >> thank you. >> we want to bring you up to speed, tell you more of this breaking news we're getting out of afghanistan. militants have launched a

coordinated attack on a guest house used by a red cross. suicide started at the gates. two more insurgents entered the building and are now in a fire fight with security forces. police say several working for the red cross have been rescued. in a tweet red cross confirms an incident has taken plats. former congressman anthony weaner asks for another shot, this time as a winner. can he when, the surprising reout of 12 16r. we're going to check in with an provider for the latest in the republican race for the white house. there's bounty select-a-size. it's the smaller powerful sheet. one select-a-size sheet of bounty

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one day after making his debut, anthony weiner is looking for interns and he's also walking with a little more pep in his step. a closer look at the poll it shows that men want weiner for mayor. joining me now is michael barbaro, a political reporter for "the new york times." michael, great to have you here. this is a race that has national interest, especially when it comes to resurgence and anthony weiner in political life. can he actually win or are new yorkers naturally gravitating anthony weiner as a new flavor of the month? >> polls are all over the map. one poll showing 50% want to

give him a chance, 50% do not want him to run at all. if you're christine quinn, the front-runner, someone who has been running for mayor for a very long time and didn't see anthony weiner coming, you are understandably alarmed by the fact that he's gained ground. about 19% of the voters in new york city suggest they could vote for him. it's very worrisome. >> christine quinn is not only running for mayor but she's been serving alongside mayor bloomberg. so to see someone like anthony weiner come in and so strongly, it's got to be shocking to quinn and her team. more than half this the marist poll say weiner should be given a second chance. congressman cuomo and others are saying another.

chuck schumer has been questioned about it. he's not going to get in this one, even though weiner's gaining ground on quinn. >> the reality is weiner's campaign is built around his status as an outsider, and a shunned outsider as well. his whole brand is about coming from the outer boroughs, not embraced by institutions in new york city. that was his shtick. that was what made him rise to the top of the pack when he first ran for mayor a few years ago. it is absolutely a requirement this time around because there are very few people this time around endorsing him, especially, chuck shumer. the jabs from the newspapers, the "new york post" and "the daily news." ultimately when it comes down to voting is he basically cutting

into the base of quinn and are we going to see it go the a runoff voice wherein wooeiner wl show a strong take and can he make it? >> it's too soon to say. remember, anthony weener is running for mayor with such a shoestring operation that he's out there begging for interns. the one thing that anthony weiner has going for him is he's got an electric presence. there are very few people in american politics who have this particular gene. they might argue that marco rubio or chris christie has it as well. they're in the room, they have it. that's what allows them to come into this race despied all the bangage. >> he certainly doesn't need to beg for press attention, that's for sure. our question for you today, does anthony weiner deserve a second chance? head over to my facebook page or head to my twitter page.

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points. all right. so as we look at what's going on across the middle section of the country, the same area of oklahoma that was devg stated by the monster twister last week is under the gun from last week. moore, oklahoma, is continuing to clean up. it killed 24 people and complete add 17-mile path of destruction. later on around dinnertime it will be under risk for tornado. bennington, kansas, look at that. storm chasers caught this tornado touching down and moving through the area. there were no reported injuries. weather channel's mike bettes is live. mike. >> we're expecting an outbreak through tornado valley. nebraska, kansas, down through oklahoma. all of the atmospheric conditions coming together. it's not just tornadoes but winds that could gust well over 70 miles an hour and baseball size to softball size hail that

could pummel this area. it could be a very violent day in what's been truly a very violent two weeks of weather culminating last week with the deadly tornadoes across the area. we believe citieses like oklahoma city once again and in wichita, even oklahoma, nebraska, are under the risk of violent tornados that could last through nighttime hours. nearly 3 1/2 million people are at risk. it doesn't end here. there's a severe risk across the northeast as well. that includes hartford, buffalo, and new york city. what that means is across the country, 60 million people are at risk. underground is always the best place you can be to shelter from tornadoes. in wish that, kiss. back to you. >> thanks so much. mike bettes reporting from

kansas. here's a look at some stories topping the news now. a train was struck by a truck and derailed. the train was carrying some chemicals. disney land is fully operational today, this after parts of that park were evacuated after a small explosion in a trash can. nobody was hurt and police believe it was caused by dry ice in a bottle. a woman family of a woman ad by mexican police are pleading for her life. they found drugs under her bus seat. they believe the drugs bloonged to someone else. dramatic rescue of a child. police say the woman who called police turned out to be the baby's mother. she said the baby slipped from her hands and fell down the toilet drain after she gave birth. she was a single mother who

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announcer: scottrade- proud to be ranked "best overall client experience." betting on back machblt what's next for the outspoken congresswoman. taking action. facebook says it's going to crack down on content depicting violence against women. and as scheduled, george zimmerman will go on trial for the killing of trayvon martin in left than two weeks. those are the topics pinched by writers. annie is the deputy manager for think progress. tramaine lee is a reporter for msnbc.com. i'm going to start off with the big new that caught everybody by surprise overnight, that michele bachmann is not going to run even though she started a little while ago.

let me start with you, annie rose. you start out with the eight most hlavic motives. one that she peddled dangerous anti-vaccine conspiracy. there's a lot more. is she going to be remembered for those things or some of her good policy? >> i think she'll be remembered for some of her extreme policies and positions. she doesn't really represent the mainstream republican policy. we saw alan west lose in his last election, jim demint stepped down. i think she'll be remembered for the kind of policies that were dangerous and bordered on frink policies. >> igor, she has 18 months left in congress. what can we expect especially now that we know she might have nothing to lose in what she wants to go for? >> i think without a democratic

challenger, she's open to pursuing most of her off-the-wall positions. she's got really no pressure on her for re-election, and i think that includes statements like calling for the impeachment of president obama as she did, you know, before the capitol steps earlier this month much with the pleasure of senate minority leader mitch mcconnell standing by her side. i think she's obsessed with how obsessed washington is with scandal mania and investigation investigations into the irs and doj and the supposed benghazi coverup which never really existed. it kpem employ fies how it overshadowed a lot of the economic reports we've seen. two reports out yesterday about greater house prices gaining in the rates of house prices and 31 months of great job growth, record stock prices. deficits continue to fall. >> let's talk more about that.

you make a good point, igor. while michele bachmann has made headlines about not running for a fifth term, you brought up a great point. yesterday with the dow closing at above 15,400, we receive some receding, today, if we can put up the current numbers because i believe we're still above 15,000, but the markets have given back a lot of the gains from yesterday. but igor, you say there really is this obsession we have in d.c. right now talking about the irs or benghazi or even the d.o.j. scandal, but we're not talking about where we are moving economically as a country, but it is in a positive direction. we're bouncing back. >> we are bouncing back. it's not complete yet. it's still a slow process of recovery. but really what it amounts to is a lack of focus on the real problems in washington right now. policy problems. congress and president obama allowed payroll tax cuts to expire earlier this year which

stripped about $700 of average income. for low income americans who don't have a voice really in washington to lobby for them. the same for sequestration in march. it's going to act. draconian budget cuts to even programs like head start and meals on wheels. and as well the nation's crumbling infrastructure doesn't get much attention until there's a disaster like washington state with the bridge collapse. >> another big topic that's not getting much talk is annie rose, facebook cracking down on domestic violence and rape. obviously for gen xers and y, facebook has had in place other things with regard to hate speech. how is it taking a step forward and why isn't it getting much attention? >> i think it is sort of an issue that's flown under the radar for a variety of reasons. i think scandal mania is one of them.

we're spending so much time talking about the irs. the fact of the matter is it's a really important issue. facebook has never had a policy in place to prevent pro-rape, prodomestic violence and that's sort of played out in a lot of incidents and groups that are dedicated to advocated for the rape or beating of women. and i think it's really thank to a group of women action in the media that started running for a campaign, asking for advertisers to put their ads from facebook until facebook agreed to change their policy that we've seen influence facebook's decision and finally last night they came out and said they would be willing to make a change and look at the policy and rethink it. >> it's a big deal when we think about the money involved here. tramaine, i want to talk with you because i know you're about to go down to florida to cover the trial of zimmerman. it was certainly a fluid morning yesterday for motions by the prosecutor and defense to get through before the judge, but

when it comes down to it, both sides are going to be back in court pretrial june 6. what's left for them to decide before they go back to court for the start of the trial, which is june 10th. >> so after a year of anticipation, we're a step closer to seeing the trial begin. and after the judge kind of set the ground rules yesterday, what can and cannot be used during the trial, we have this so-called frye hearing on june 6 where the judge will determine whether or not the voice analysis or experts can be used in the trial. weeks after the killing, the police department released 911 tapes and you heard the blood curdling screams of someone in the background, so the states experts said they believe the scattered screams were those of trayvon martin. the defense will try to cut down on the state's expert and say it's invalid or the science was flawed. that's going to be a major step because when the 911 tapes were released, it was a major moment.

for the first time we heard his voice and the screams. so the hearing of june 6 is a major step. >> major step. and then, again, the judge denying the motion for any type of delay. the trial will begin coming up on june 10th. i do want to let our view irs know george zimmer han has skewed nbcuniversal for defamati defamation. nbc strongly opposes that. if you didn't get enough on the agenda panel you can find more on our website. follow the link to my name. coming up, let the games begin. we'll have another visit from president obama hurt chris christie's chances for 2016? we're going to handicap the republican race for the white house. and coming up in our side bar, what's behind president obama's unusual statement last night. did you catch this? >> i want to thank everybody who's here, the incredible warmth of the reception. a sign of the warmth is the lipstick on my collar.

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so now a closer look at what's become a familiar scene. president obama and governor chris christie on the jersey shore tuesday. they declared the battered boardwalk open for business at where else, the arcade. president obama was showing him mark. he missed. governor chris christie rang it up on his first shot. >> mr. governor, do you want to give it a shot, sir? >> here he is. >> whoa. >> you only need one to be a winner. joining me now, phil. phil, it's great to have you. there was a lot of backlash when

governor chris tris -- christi welcomed president obama. here's what rush limbaugh has to say. take a listen here. >> obama has money, governor christie wants the money. he needs the money so the people will be helped. christie praises obama. it's a master/servant relationship. >> phil, explain what's really going on here? why is it hard to understand where these two can help each other, especially governor chris christie who's looking out for his people who's trying to get the jersey shore back into check? why is it so hard to think the president is a good prospect for him. >> i think he's really just focused on how his state can work with the federal government to deliver needed resources to

people who were hurt by a terrible storm. i can tell you he's not particularly concerned about the optics or politics of the situation other than to really do what he can to try and help people recover. and politics be damned and he'll be the first person to tell you that. i think this is an example that people can point of of government working and for those who have a problem with chris christie welcoming the president of the united states to new jersey, i think that's off the mark. >> skipping tonight's big fund-raiser because ted cruz voted against the hurricane sandy bill is going to be there. he said i don't think we should be acknowledgie those. once i decided it was him, i decide not to go. so what kind of, i guess, internal bickering or the state of the party is this demonstrating for the gop, especially when people are looking at not just to the midterms but beyond 2016? >> i don't think this has any

broader implications about the state of the party here at all. honestly thing this is peter king, who's a passionate advocate for his district and his outspoken voice with his aid to new york particularly saying he doesn't care to be with ted cruz. on the flip side this is the state party chairman looking to raise funds. ted cruz is a rising star and a person of a lot of interest. he's doing a fund-raiser in new york. this isn't endemic of any kind of problem other than to say there are a lot of really great voices in our party who are going to have the opportunity to express their views over the next couple of years. we've a deep bench of potential candidates running in 2016 who represent a lot of perspectives and obviously senator cruz will have a voice in that debate if he chososes to do so. >> our own joe scarborough had this to say in a political op- d

op-ed. joe said with his push to the far right, marco rubio risks being more popular with cauc caucus-goers in western iowa than his own home state. is rubio a real contender in 2016? >> look. if senator rubio chose to run for president, he's be a very, very serious contender and i can tell you with some degree of authority he's not focused his approval rating in western iowa at the moment. so the argument that he's essentially too conservative or overpolitic, here's a guy trying to form consensus. i think he's trying to do it absent an eye toward politics and toward what's good policy for the kun terrorism as to polls, you know, three and a half years away from a presidential campaign, you and i know they're both pretty meaningless. they were pretty good in the

numb weres against hillary clinton who remains the proverbial elephant in the room. >> phil, so great to have you on. thanks for your time. >> it's time for the poly side bar. the new jersey governor staying away from the kroers over the incoming athletic director. the governor is saying he's confident he can handle the investigation on his own. >> it has led to this i tense media attention. i don't argue with it. i also am not going to become, you know, the super president or super chairman at rutgers. not my job. >> and did you see this about last night? president obama setting the record straight on where he got lipstick on his collar at an asian pacific islander heritage festival at the white house. michelle obama probably liked

hear this. take a listen. >> a sign of the warmth is the lipstick on my collar. i have to say i think i know the culprit. where's jessica sanchez. jessica -- no, it wasn't jessica. it was her aunt. where is she? au auntie, right there, look at this. look at this. i just want everybody to witness. so i do not want to be in trouble with michelle. >> i'm sure the aunty doesn't mind getting lipstick on the president's collar there. speaking of michelle obama, the first lady is in boston. she's going to revisit some of the victims that she met with last month. illinois may become the first state to approve marriage equality. they i've been pushing for a vote in the state assembly before they adjourn this summer. ten members of congress are urging the congress to change the name. the name is considered offensive to many americans.

schneider said that he will never change the name. a historic new policy from the peace corps becomes another step forward for equal rights. why now? we're going to talk to the deputy director on that one. weigh in. we want to hear from you. does anthony weiner deserve a second chance in politics? log in on facebook or twitter. get involved. i think farmers care more about the land

than probably anyone else. we've had this farm for 30 years. we raise black and red angus cattle. we also produce natural gas. that's how we make our living and that's how we can pass the land and water back to future generations. people should make up their own mind what's best for them. all i can say is it has worked well for us.

so we asked and you answered, does anthony weiner deserve a second chance? ryan davis writing -- i don't think so. we have plenty of qualified candidates who would rather disgrace themselves. carlos edwards has a different viewpoint. yes, he deserved a second chance. terry hunter writing -- everyone does, and so should he. keep the comments coming in. keep the conversation alive on twitter and facebook. as the white house gets

ready to kick off lbgt month, the administration is getting kudos for another step. it's been nearly a week since the peace corps will allow same-sex couples the right to serve together during volunteer missions overseas. it's part of the goal to make agencies more exclusive of the lgbt community. carrie, great to have you here. as we know, couples, same-sex, can start applying on monday. explain how this policy will be complemented how quickly. >> thank you, we're very excited to open peace corps toward same-sex couples, something we've been looking toward for a long time. starting on monday, june 3rd, volunteers, prospective applicants can go to our website and fit out an online application. >> has the peace corps made

special admission requests available? what were the rules if a couple came in and said they wanted to serve together? how were you able to handle that? >> previously we were not able to accept same-sex couples who wanted to serve now. know we will treat them like everybody else. we have about 10% of our volunteers serve as couples. they will be treated exactly the same. so carrie, meanwhile, there are certainly estimates, say about 80 countries, very harsh penalties against gale and lesbian individuals, seven of them including iran even impose the death penalty. i was reading that the peace corps will only place volunteers in cunning where being gale is not criminalized. how much have you thought about this or worried about the fact this could diminish the reach of the peace corps? >> we, you know, we took this very seriously. safety and security is our number one priority. one of the reasons it's taken us a while is because we've done a thorough legal analysis of every

single country in which we serve to ensure that volunteers will not serve in places where homosexual acts are criminalized. we've identified a number of countries where we believe volunteers can serve safely, and we are very excited about it. >> does it mean that americans hearing this should be optimistic, and such a policy could impose harsher penalties, take a more aggressive stance with countries that would punish people in the lgbt community? >> or focus is meeting the needs of our host countries, and we believe same-sex couples have the expertise and knowledge to give to these countries. we're very excited. we believe it's important for the peace corps, our country and had bring the skills and expertise our host countries desperately need. >> and couples can start to apply on monday. thank you for joining mess,

carrie. thanks for your time. i'll see you back here tomorrow. don't go anywhere, though, "now with alex wagner" comes your way next. hey, thomas. the party is over. michele bachmann blinks. we will read the tea leaves on her sudden exit and what it means for the gop identity crisis. josh barrow, joy reid, andrew ross sorkin and richard wolffe will be here to discuss. and president obama treads the thin red line. the president on the council on foreign relations richard haas weighs in. three years later, has wall street figured out how to unravel the laws? barney frank will discuss the legacy of dodd/frank coming up next on "now." hey, look!k! a a shooting s st! mamake a wish!h! i wish w we could lie e here forevever. i wish thihis test dririve was , so we e could headad back to thehe dealershihip.

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ahead of my daughter. ♪ so today, i'm finally talking to my doctor about overactive bladder symptoms. [ female announcer ] know that gotta go feeling? ask your doctor about prescription toviaz. one toviaz pill a day significantly reduces sudden urges and accidents, for 24 hours. if you have certain stomach problems or glaucoma, or can not empty your bladder, you should not take toviaz. get emergency medical help right away if your face, lips, throat or tongue swells. toviaz can cause blurred vision, dizziness, drowsiness and decreased sweating. do not drive, operate machinery or do unsafe tasks until you know how toviaz affects you. the most common side effects are dry mouth and constipation. talk to your doctor about toviaz. rest assured. michele bachmann's decision to retire from congress has nothing

to do with controversies regarding her presidential staff. rest assured -- michele bachmann never had any presidential staff. it's wednesday, may 29th. and this is "now. " michele bachmann is out. on her campaign website, the four-term republican congresswoman announced she will not run for reelection next year. despite the fact she remains a member of the lower chamber, bachman believes she should follow. >> the law limits anyone from serving for the president for more than eight year, and in my opinion, well, eight years is also long enough for an individual to serve as a representative for a specific congressional district. >> last year she won reelection be a margin of 1%. lately she's been the subject of a congressional ethics investigation amid accusations

that she illegally funneled presidential campaign donations to an inwhat state senator. bu bachmann is adamant. >> be assured my decision was not in any way influenced by any concerns about my being reelected to congress. i've always in the past defeated candidates who are capable, qualified and well funded. i have ever confidence that if i ran, i would again defeat the individual who i defeated last year, who recently announced that he is once again running. rest assured, this decision was not impacted in any way by the recent inquiries into the recent activities of my former presidential campaign or my former presidential staff. >> as with all things bachmann, hers is filled with questionable logic. if bachmann was not concerned about reelection, perhaps she would have not spent