Michele Bachmann: Force an option against Iran after alleged US-based assassination plot

By Shira Schoenberg, Globe Correspondent

Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann would not rule out the use of force in responding to an alleged Iranian attempt to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the United States.

“I would consider the use of everything that we need to do to maintain the safety and security of the American people,” the Minnesota congresswoman told host Christiane Amanpour during an appearance on ABC’s “This Week.”

The Department of Justice charged two people who allegedly used a Mexican drug cartel in a plot directed by elements of the Iranian government to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador on US soil.

The plotters allegedly discussed bombing a Washington, D.C.-area restaurant.

Bachmann called the alleged plot a “tremendous act of aggression,” noting that it could potentially have killed or injured hundreds of innocent Americans.

She used the plot to bolster a common Republican critique of the Obama administration – that the president has weakened America’s standing in the world.

Bachmann said the plot shows that Iran sees America as less of a threat and “they fail to respect the US and our presence.”

She said that perception was heightened by President Obama’s commitment to pulling all American troops out of Iraq by the end of the year.

Bachmann said she would not take her eye off what she called “the fundamental problem in the Middle East” - ensuring that Iran does not develop a nuclear weapon.