Apparently, for some Republicans...

...invoking the name of St. Ronald isn't enough. First Sarah Palin compared herself to Margaret Thatcher; now it's Michele Bachmann's turn.

But Bruce Bartlett, who worked in the Reagan administration, thinks they should check the record first (my emphasis):

While Mrs. Thatcher is a towering figure in British political history, well deserving of admiration, the conservative legend about her time in power is at odds with the facts. In this legend, she was even more aggressive than Reagan in cutting taxes and the welfare state. But that is not true.

As this table shows, taxes as a share of the gross domestic product in Britain actually increased sharply during Mrs. Thatcher’s first seven years in office before falling in the later years. Even at the end, they were significantly higher than they were when she took office. Spending also rose during her first seven years before falling in Mrs. Thatcher’s later years.