INDReporter

Michele Bachmann on intelligent design

by Leslie Turk

U.S. Rep. Michele Bachman, always quick to note that she has her own list of "Nobel Prize-winning scientists" who believe in intelligent design, just will not name those scientists.

In the recent state legislative battle over the repeal of the Louisiana Science Education Act, Zack Kopplin, the high school student who was leading the charge, produced a list of dozens of Nobel Prize-winning science laureates who endorsed repeal of the LSEA - a law allowing "supplemental materials" to be introduced into public high school biology classes. People on both sides of the issue agreed the LSEA would allow theories of "intelligent design," or creationism, into Louisiana public schools. Read more on the issue here.

In May, Kopplin took his list and challenged Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minnesota, a presidential candidate and one of the leading advocates of "intelligent design" in American politics:

In 2006, Congresswoman Bachmann claimed "there is a controversy among scientists about whether evolution is a fact hundreds and hundreds of scientists, many of them holding Nobel prizes, believe in intelligent design." ... Congresswoman Bachmann, you claim that Nobel Laureates support creationism. Show me your hand. If you want to be taken seriously by voters while you run for President, back up your claims with facts. Can you match 43 Nobel Laureates, or do you fold?

At the 2011 Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans Friday, Gambit took Kopplin's question and asked the congresswoman to name some of the Nobel Prize-winning scientists who believe in intelligent design. Click here for her answer.

And read about the crowd's mixed response to presidential candidate Ron Paul here.

(Kevin Allman is editor of Gambit.)