'The results don't mean everything, but they weren't meaningless either."

Bachmann Crushes Pawlenty, Wins Ames Straw Poll By Tim Murphy

So it begins. Two months after kicking off her presidential campaign in her reclaimed Iowa hometown, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) scored a resounding victory in the Ames Straw Poll, a non-binding event that doubles as a fundraiser for the Iowa Republican Party. Texas Congressman Ron Paul finished just 150 votes back in second place (out of nearly 17,000 cast), but it was Bachmann's drubbing of her fellow Minnesotan Tim Pawlenty that immediately stands out—and raises questions about whether there's still room in the race for the formerly mulleted, former governor of Minnesota. http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/08/bachmann-crushes-pawlenty-wins-ames-straw-poll