Rep. Michele Bachmann, a tea party favorite and former presidential candidate, has some advice for her colleagues as she prepares to retire at the end of this Congress.

“I only have one lever in my life: Either go bold or don’t go at all,” said Bachmann, who promises to remain accessible after she leaves Washington. “You don’t do that with small ball ideas, you do it with big ball ideas.” (See 35:26-37:44 here.)

>>> Watch The Tea Party: Continuing the Revolution in American Thought

The Minnesota Republican, speaking yesterday at The Heritage Foundation, reflected on the rise of conservative tea party activism, suggested a course for the movement’s future and sounded off on some hot topics. Here are seven of them.

On President Obama’s legacy:

“Obama’s lasting legacy is that the American people saw what a lawless presidency looks like. The American people will take a rain check [on that happening again].

On immigration reform:

“The most cynical move was when the president announced he would universally grant amnesty. … Presumably some of them can be terrorists. Let me say this about immigration: Today, open borders combined with a welfare state has changed our equation.”

>>> Bachmann: Border Bills Don’t Solve Problem

On the Islamic State, the terrorist group also called ISIS:

“I just returned from the Middle East, and it’s very concerning what’s going on. I come from a state with a tragic nexus to terrorism. I saw the up-tempo rise of ISIS. The question is, will Baghdad fall? …This is why on every level we need to secure our border. Because we need to stop terrorism in the U.S.”

On Ebola:

“We can’t take this lightly. We have to restrict travel from those [West African] nations [Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone]. We have to quarantine the problem where we ban and not export it. The American people now have a more serious view of the issue, so now is the time to take stricter actions.”

On campaign spending:

“It is ridiculous the amount of money we are spending on these elections. It has gotten bizarre and absurd. [It should be] whose idea will win rather than somebody’s crummy 20-second soundbite.”

On retirement:

“People ask, ‘What will you do when you retire?’ I tell them: No. 1, I will take a long, extended vacation. You get tired here.”

She joked that she will vacation at the site of “MSNBC Primetime.”

On advice for Congress should Republicans take control of the Senate as well as increase their margin in the House:

“Either go bold or don’t go at all. When I came to Congress, I decided to take the dice and roll them, and give everything I have. I say now and always. When we are the economic powerhouse of the world, then we can also be the military powerhouse of the world. …

“Shazam, you have the greatest country in the world that’s also the powerhouse. You don’t do that with small ball ideas, you do it with big ball ideas.”

I’ll lead the debate. Lead the debate and do it. Because guess what? This isn’t working. We don’t have time to play around. You do it with bold moves. Do you compromise to get there? Yes, you do. But you get there.