Michele Bachmann (Getty Images)
By Brandon Gee for The Tennessean
Nashville, TN -- Former Republican presidential candidate and Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann has been named as a witness in a messy, multimillion-dollar federal lawsuit in Nashville.
Led by prominent Republican fundraiser and millionaire Bill Hemrick of Brentwood, a group of Middle Tennessee conservatives sued California businessman Anthony Loiacono for $19 million in November over a failed venture to create a television network devoted to the tea party movement. The plaintiffs claim Loiacono used their investments as his "personal bank account."
Loiacono first responded by challenging Hemrick to a "lie detector challenge." He has since formally responded to the lawsuit and claims Hemrick and co-plaintiff Mel Martin are primarily responsible for Tea Party HD's demise. He has countersued the plaintiffs for $1 million alleging defamation and abuse of process.
He also filed a lengthy list of 50 anticipated witnesses in the case, including Bachmann and other prominent conservatives such as commentators Ann Coulter and Phil Valentine and Tea Party Nation founder Judson Phillips.
Hemrick served as Bachmann's chief fundraiser in Tennessee, and Tea Party HD produced her response to President Barack Obama's 2011 State of the Union address, which was widely panned because Bachmann did not appear to be looking into the correct camera.