Important because she’s now attacking Newt Gingrich as the most liberal candidate in the field over his support for partial amnesty for longtime residents. Here she was in September at the MSNBC debate:

HARRIS: A quick 30-second rebuttal on the specific question. The fence is built, the border is under control. What do you do with 11.5 million people who are here without documents and with U.S.- born children?

BACHMANN: Well, that’s right. And again, it is sequential, and it depends upon where they live, how long they have been here, if they have a criminal record. All of those things have to be taken into place.

So whether she would allow them to stay or not would depend on the context of their presence, how long they’ve been here, and if they have a criminal record. Which, um, is also Gingrich’s position — the position she and Mitt Romney, who previously supported full-on amnesty, are now attacking.

Its pretty clear that their attacks on Gingrich are driven by politics rather than policy. Bachmann, when given the opportunity, refused to rule-out allowing some illegal aliens to stay. Romney previously favored all-out amnesty, until he read the latest polling that is. Their positions were no different than Gingrich’s. They’re acting in a dishonest and cynical manner.