Dude should just drop out, become a lobbyist, make millions. Yes Todd, there is life after the Senate.
The sad fact is that it’s an election year and he made a poorly worded comment about rape and abortion. That equals political disaster. And this election is kind of important right now. The fate of the country really does hang in the balance right now. The truth is that pro-lifers can win Missouri. Todd Akin can’t. Not now. I feel bad about it but you can’t say what he said during this election and survive politically.
The ad does seem sincere though:
August 21, 2012 at 3:05 pm
He really needs to withdraw for the race, for the good of his party and for the good of the nation. I just pray he will have the humility to recognize this.
August 21, 2012 at 4:47 pm
He made a poorly worded comment????
What is a well worded way to say that a woman has natural defense mechanisms against getting pregnant by rape, that if it really is rape, then a woman can't get pregnant?
It is NOT the words he used that is the problem, it is the very ideas behind the words that prove that Akin does not belong anywhere near the Senate. We have enough buffoons there now as it is.
And rather than continuing his Gollum act, clinging to his precious as if the nomination and public office were his private property, he needs to go now.
August 21, 2012 at 6:53 pm
Bender, it was a poorly worded statement. And you bend the meaning of his words. He did NOT say that a woman can't get pregnant from rape. He said it was rare, and that in cases of (poor wording time) "legitimate rape" (by which I assume he meant "physical assault rape" as opposed to "date rape" or "statutory rape") a woman's body can react to prevent pregnancy. Which it, in some cases, can. If the woman is pre-ovulation, the trauma of rape can inhibit ovulation. Sometimes. Maybe. Not that that's any consolation to the victim.
The ideas you have a problem with are your own interpretation of what the media has reported that he said. But look at what he said in context.
"It seems to me, from what I understand from doctors, that’s really rare. If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down. But let’s assume that maybe that didn’t work or something: I think there should be some punishment, but the punishment ought to be of the rapist, and not attacking the child."
Note the key word "try". Note that he comments about what should happen if the woman does become pregnant as a result of rape. It's nowhere near what you claim he said.
I agree with Matthew that Akin should step aside. No matter how you look at it, he's toast. The media has spun this into several different attacks, and too much effort would be required to defend against them all. The first few arguments I see them making:
1. Akin believes that there are cases where rape is "legitimate", that is, "acceptable".
2. Akin thinks many/most accusations of rape are false. That it wasn't really rape. The victim must be lying.
3. Only rape by physical assault is "real rape".
4. Akin blames rape victims for getting pregnant, since their bodies should have prevented it.
While I don't think he believes any of those things, that's the image he'll have to fight against.
August 21, 2012 at 8:42 pm
The Democrats worked very hard, and spent a lot of money, to make sure he was her opponent in November. They banked on him screwing up spectacularly, and now he has — so spectacularly and so soon, in fact, that this might blow up right in their faces by landing a steadier, sturdier Republican candidate on the ballot in his place.
http://hotair.com/archives/2012/08/20/claire-mccaskill-these-national-republicans-certainly-are-meddlesome-in-trying-to-push-akin-out-of-the-race/
August 22, 2012 at 1:33 am
Bender, you're a jerk. The liberals have worked hard to secure the right to ACCUSE anyone who argues against the exception for abortion in cases of rape. They have worked very hard to ensure that no one can answer that question, even without a gaffe or poor understanding of science. They have pinned us all in the corner with their rhetoric and we're supposed to apologize. In my opinion conservatives have become cowards about this and are letting the liberal left define the dialogue. Sure, politics is about winning but we'll never win by backing down to this garbage.
August 22, 2012 at 11:34 am
After completed your apologies letter Say you're sorry again before closing the letter.
Apology Letter for Bad Service
August 22, 2012 at 8:32 pm
Everybody urinates in the pool. Todd just got up on the Olympic sized diving board and did it in full view. He may be a nice guy but this was just stupid.
August 22, 2012 at 9:17 pm
Does anyone care about what he was saying, that not arguing against the liberals and gop for throwing him under the bus panders to the grossly distorting rhetoric of the left?
August 23, 2012 at 3:53 pm
This was a ridiculous idea, and should never have seen the light of day. I understand that his end point was that we shouldn't punish the baby because of the rapist's actions, I really do. I'll grant that the horrific injuries sustained by some rape victims might cause their bodies to be unable to sustain a pregnancy — but even the idea that some rapes are "legitimate" and others aren't? The sheer insensitivity of this one facet of what he said is one of the reasons women don't report rapes in the first place: we know people are likely to blame *us* for the brutal act that was forced upon us.