Four things you didn’t know about Michele Bachmann

You may have heard about Michele Bachmann's migraines, her 23 foster children, and some of her most notable gaffes. But two profiles of the Minnesota congresswoman released this weekend--one from Ryan Lizza for the New Yorker and one from Lois Romano for Newsweek--offer some new perspectives on the potential 2012 candidate.

"The Transformation of Michele Bachmann" by Lizza delivers an in-depth look at some of the religious thinkers Bachmann counts as her major influencers including evangelist and theologian Francis Schaeffer, professor and homeschool advocate John Eidsmoe and writer David Noebel.

In "Bachmann: Tea Party Queen" Romano spells out the antigovernment outlook of Bachmann and the tea party, while also explaining how Bachmann's legislative record can also draw accusations of hypocrisy from antigovernment purists and liberal foes alike.

Each profiles also offers up some new information about Bachmann. Below, we round up some of the tidbits you may not have known:

No casual clothing on the "Barbie Jet" Lizza writes that Bachmann dubbed her campaign plane her "Barbie jet" after "Barbie's pink Glam Vacation Jet" sold by Mattel. Though Bachmann may choose to dress down for travel--donning cargo pants for example--reporters were told before takeoff in June not to broadcast images of her in casual clothing.

Her campaign believes there's a Drudge conspiracy While complaining about less-than-flattering links that have appeared about Bachmann on Matt Drudge's "The Drudge Report," Brett O'Donnell, Bachmann's speech and debate coach, offered a theory for what he views as skewed coverage: "Matt Rhoades and Drudge are best friends," O'Donnell said of Mitt Romney's campaign manager Rhoades, Lizza reports. "You never see anything about [Mitt] Romney on Drudge--ever," Bachmann said.

Bachmann wasn't on the job much at the IRS Bachmann gets flak for having worked for the IRS as a tax litigation attorney. But Lizza notes she was rarely there due to maternity leave. "In her four years, she probably didn't get more than two, two and a half years of experience," an unnamed colleague told Lizza. The government's "generous" leave policy apparently caused resentment at work.

She would not take orders from her husband in the White House Bachmann has explained that she studied tax law because husband Marcus Bachmann directed her to do so. "The Lord says: be submissive, wives; you are to be submissive to your husband," Bachmann has said. And some have raised the question of whether Bachmann's scriptual obedience to her husband makes her unfit to be president. She explained to Romano that her interpretation of the above scripture "means that I respect my husband, and he respects me." But in a Bachmann White House, she added, "I would be the decision maker."