Rick Perry Responds to Bachmann Attacks; Points Out Her Claim HPV Vaccine can Cause “Mental Retardation” has “No Truth and No Basis in Fact”

Texas Gov. Rick Perry is going after GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann, who has tried to destroy him with attacks over his attempt to get the HPV vaccine to young girls in Texas using an Executive Order. Perry has said he regrets using an Executive Order, and should have gone to the state legislature instead. But he stands by his desire to protect young women from the danger of cervical cancer later in life. Bachmann went over-the-top in her attacks this week by actually suggesting the HPV Vaccine can cause “mental retardation” – something doctors and scientists say is absolutely untrue. Perry pointed out Bachmann’s statement has “no basis in fact”:

POLITICAL TICKER: . . . Then on Tuesday, Bachmann told NBC News she had heard from a woman who said her daughter “took that vaccine, that injection, and she suffered from mental retardation thereafter.”

Health experts immediately rejected the claim the vaccine causes mental health problems.

After a speech in Richmond, Virginia Wednesday, Perry told reporters Bachmann’s comments had “no basis in fact.” “I think that was a statement that has no truth and no basis in fact and I hate cancer and that is what this has always been about for me,” Perry said.

The Texas Governor went on to talk about how his parents both survived bouts with cancer. He said his meeting with a young woman who died from cervical cancer had an influenced his decision.

“I sat by the bed of a young lady as she was dying from cervical cancer. It had an impact on me. I care about life,” Perry said. . . . Read More