Maureen Reed for Congress

WASHINGTON - Fallout over a health care reform protest rally continues to rain on Rep. Michele Bachmann, as a government watchdog group on Tuesday called for an ethics probe of the congresswoman.

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington asked the Office of Congressional Ethics to investigate whether Bachmann, R-Minn., violated House rules when she used her Web site to urge people to come to Washington on Nov. 5 "and tell their representatives to vote no" on the House health care reform bill.

The watchdog group also wants the OCE to rule on whether Bachmann and other Republican House members skirted rules by failing to get a permit to hold a rally and "falsely" calling the event a press conference. The group points out no questions were taken at the event, which drew thousands of conservatives, many of them tea party activists.

"Whoever heard of a press conference without questions?" asked Melanie Sloan, CREW's director. "Calling a rally a press conference to circumvent congressional rules is like calling a Hummer a Prius to meet fuel efficiency standards."

Sloan said House rules prohibit members from using their taxpayer-funded Web sites to lobby or seek support for their position on any legislation.

The Office of Congressional Ethics does not comment on requests for probes, director Leo Wise said.

Bachmann's office said the complaint was orchestrated by political opponents.

"Unfortunately, members of the media have taken allegations from the (Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee) and spread these rumors without even checking with the House Administration Committee," spokeswoman Debbee Keller said.

Kyle Anderson, a spokesman for the Administration Committee, said the event appears to have met the guidelines to qualify as a press conference.

"Initial review of the information provided indicates that the event held by Rep. Bachmann meets the necessary criteria to qualify as a press event," Anderson said.

The rally has provided fodder for Bachmann's challengers, who contend it shows she has motives beyond representing Minnesota's 6th Congressional District.

"In her effort to court the spotlight, Michele Bachmann may have failed to follow the letter of the law," said Jason Isaacson, a spokesman for Maureen Reed, who is seeking Bachmann's seat in the 2010 election. "This is what happens when ideology and zealotry replaces good, thoughtful debate."

Sloan said her group wants the ethics panel to approve sanctions that should include a public reprimand if Bachmann broke the rules.

"If nothing is done, it's a tacit approval," Sloan said. If that's the case, she added, "then why have rules?"

The Nov. 5 rally, dubbed a "House Call," also drew an angry demand from Rep. Steve Israel, a Jewish Democrat from New York, that Bachmann apologize for messages that compared the health care reform bill to the Holocaust.