Bachmann declares America has become 'banana republic'

By PHILIP ELLIOTT, Associated Press

AMES, Iowa (AP) -- Republican presidential hopeful Michele Bachmann says the Wall Street protesters need to stop blaming capitalism and instead should focus their frustration against Washington.

The congresswoman from Minnesota on Thursday told students at Iowa State University that the Occupy Wall Street activists are wrongly blaming job creators. She says the economy is struggling because politicians are protecting their friends.

Bachmann says the United States has become "a banana republic" because lawmakers guarantee their allies will never go out of business. She says the nation needs to return to a true free market.