Michele Bachmann's bid showed the headwinds a tea party candidate could face in Washington. Bachmann drops leadership bid

Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann dropped out of the race for House Republican Conference chairwoman Wednesday night, ending a quixotic bid for leadership that many saw as the first real test of the tea party against the GOP establishment.

In a statement Wednesday evening, Bachmann said that Texas Rep. Jeb Hensarling has her “enthusiastic support for his candidacy” for the top messaging post in the GOP. Bachmann's decision means there will be no contested positions for Republican leadership jobs as the party prepares to take control of the House.


“Jeb has demonstrated his commitment to limited government, reduced spending and lower taxes, and he will be a strong voice for the tea party’s call for these values,” according to Bachmann’s statement, sent by spokesman Sergio Gor.

Even though Bachmann's bid only lasted about a week, it serves to illustrate the headwinds a tea party candidate could face in official Washington. Hensarling worked hard to show he was the true conservative in the race and that he was a tea party sympathizer. But Hensarling also played the insider game effectively, rounding up and announcing key endorsements day after day to send the message that the had the race locked up.

Bachmann said she had support from the tea party movement, not to mention conservative talk show host Glenn Beck, but it never appeared to gain traction with House Republicans.

Hensarling announced support from presumptive majority leader Eric Cantor of Virginia, along with Reps. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, Ron Paul of Texas, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Paul Broun of Georgia and Mike Pence of Indiana all in the past few days, sending a strong signal that Bachmann had little chance at winning.

Bachmann only had announced support from Minnesota Reps. John Kline and Erik Paulsen, incoming Rep. Chip Cravaack, and Reps. Steve King of Iowa and Louie Gohmert of Texas.

Hensarling sent out a gracious statement praising Bachmann's role as a grass-roots leader in the tea party movement.

"Michele Bachmann is a committed movement conservative whose effective voice played an important role in America's decision to trust House Republicans once again," Hensarling said. "She is a dear friend, and I am humbled to earn her support. I look forward to her energetic leadership in a united House Republican Conference during the 112th Congress."

Also the founder of the Tea Party Caucus, Bachmann said she will “advance the Tea Party ideals” through the group – and said she hopes to add new freshman members.

“The new Congress will have great opportunities to lead our country into the direction our founders intended,” Bachmann said in her statement. “I spoke with Mr. Boehner and other members of leadership and I am convinced they will wholeheartedly work towards the issues the American people are calling for such as fiscal responsibility, ending the bailouts and repealing Obamacare.”

Bachmann had tried to run a campaign against Hensarling claiming that the tea party needed a place at the leadership table, even though Hensarling had support from a large swath of the conference including some of its most conservative members.

POLITICO reported Wednesday afternoon that aides close to Hensarling believed he had the support of more than 100 Republicans.

Even though she won't have a seat at the Republican leadership table, Bachmann may actually retain significant power to influence the GOP agenda as an outsider. She has always been a movement conservative, drawing huge crowds at tea party events. She has the ability to round up rogue lawmakers and make trouble for leaders as a backbencher -- something she may still do as Republicans take the majority in the House.

In policy debates, Bachmann will still be able to use the new Tea Party Caucus -- which she founded -- to keep an eye on Republican policies. If she were a member of leadership, she would be close to top Republicans like Boehner and Cantor but would have a tougher time opposing their agenda. She's now free to use the Tea Party Caucus -- which may grow in the new majority -- to oppose GOP legislation she finds unfavorable.

On a larger scale, this means that Republican leadership for the 112th Congress is all but set. John Boehner of Ohio will become speaker, followed by Virginia Republican Eric Cantor as majority leader, Kevin McCarthy of California as whip, Hensarling as conference chairman and Texas Rep. Pete Sessions will take a second run at the National Republican Congressional Committee.

Some leadership aides indicated they were surprised that Bachmann was dropping out, expecting her to stay in the battle despite the long-shot nature of her bid.

Bachmann sent letters to lawmakers, asserting that someone needed to be at the table to represent what happened on Election Day.

“I am running for chair of the Republican Conference to ensure that all voices within the Republican Party are heard,” Bachmann wrote in the Nov. 8 letter. “The American people must know that the message they sent Washington on Nov. 2 — indeed, the message they have been sending since February 2009 — will be given a full and fair hearing.”

And as late as Wednesday, Bachmann's aides were touting the support the third-term lawmaker had. They said it was significant, and coming from all corners of the conference -- incumbents, Minnesotans and even freshmen. But later in the day, Bachmann clearly was ready to call it quits, endorsing Hensarling shortly before 8 p.m.