Michelle Bachmann attacked Governor Rick Perry on his decision to sign an executive order requiring all girls to be vaccinated against the HPV virus during the GOP debates. That stance caused thunderous applause and may have taken some of the wind out of the current forerunner’s sails, but its turning around on Bachmann now.

On Friday, Jay Leno, just one of many comedians that have been poking fun at Bachmann, welcomed her onto his stage and while he may have been getting the laughs at her expense, his show with her was far more serious than his fans would have expected.

After greeting Bachmann, Leno went to town, hitting a few of the major hot topics and not letting her off the hook when she tried to deflect or evade. Leno hit the topic of the Christian clinic run by her and her husband asking why it mattered so much to the couple who gay people married. Bachmann tried to answer the question with her standard response but Leno did not seem to be buying any of it. He also grilled her about her stance on the debt ceiling and then asked a direct question about the troops in Afghanistan. Bachmann stood firm on her debt ceiling opinion but then ignored the question about the troops, choosing to say a generic thank you to the troops “everywhere” instead.

But, Leno may have hit the heart of the beast when he brought up the HPV vaccine. Although she attacked Perry on the vaccine during the debate, Bachmann’s own stance has been seriously called into question because of it. As part of damage control, Bachmann’s staff put out a quickly put together and poorly edited video where Bachmann tries to explain what she meant in reference to the vaccine and what her problem really was. After insisting that the real issue was the “crony capitalism” and the abuse of government power, Bachmann also restated a claim that she had been approached by a woman during a speech. This woman, according to Bachmann claimed that her daughter had become mentally retarded after receiving the HPV vaccine.

Two bioethics professors are calling Bachmann’s bluff on that claim though, telling her to put the medical records where her mouth is. Both have offered cash donations to Bachmann’s charity of choice if she can produce this mysterious woman’s medical records to back the claim that mental retardation happened after or because of the HPV vaccine. Over twenty million doses of the vaccine have been given since 2006, with only a few adverse events reported in that time period. Thirty two deaths have occurred, most attributed to other health causes. Of the other, reported side effects, 94% have been mild and temporary.

The CDC as well as others in the medical community are outraged that Bachmann continues to make these claims without providing any backing documentation. If she cannot or refuses, she may be forced to stop using this in her campaign efforts.