A Bachmann Retirement?

Not voluntarily. But there are signs she's crossed a line with her latest anti-Muslim witch hunt that has appalled even Republicans. TPM reports:

Bachmann’s baffling quest to root out Muslim infiltrators in the federal government could be the final piece in a puzzle Democrats have been trying to solve for years. This time, says hotel executive Jim Graves — the Democratic Party choice to take on Bachmann — momentum is on his side.

“It definitely has, I think, cemented people that may be in the middle that say, ‘Well you know, she’s really out there, but we need somebody to keep Congress in line,’” Graves told TPM Friday. “I think this has gone well over the edge for people.”

What a godsend it would be to be rid of her, eh? I remember that there were hopes she could be bounced last time. Her opponent was attractive and raised a lot of money, but ultimately she fell a few points short.

What is different this time is that a) Graves is really rich and says he's prepared to self-finance and b) Bachmann has maybe finally become a liability.

We'll see. The district is rated R +7 on the Cook PVI, meaning that it should be Republican under normal circmstances but is takeable (the scale goes up to 30, I think).

Personally, I'd rather see her lose in GOP primary to a moderate Republican, but I know that will never happen. That would have a much more seismic effect on our politics, because it would flip the whole posture of conservatives fearing bonkers tea-party challenges from the right on its head. But I realize that's just a dream.

Ironically, a Pawlenty veep nomination would help her as I expect it would increase the Republican vote in the state, obviously not to the extent that Romney would seriously challenge Obama, but enough to make it close and maybe change the outcome of some down-tickets races. I say "ironically" because Bachmann has lashed Pawlenty as a sellout in the past.