During the eleven o’clock broadcast, local news station WHDH reported that Todd Akin told Dana Loesch what he really meant by “legitimate rape” was that “women will claim they’ve been raped, lie about the circumstances, just so they can get an abortion”. Such a statement would lift up yet another rock under which the ugly Talibangical beliefs of Rethugs like Akin hide, but at the moment the video of that clip “is unavailable“…
… “I misspoke one word in one sentence on one day, and all of a sudden, overnight, everybody decides, `Well, Akin can’t possibly win,”‘ he said on a national radio show hosted by former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. “Well, I don’t agree with that.”
Akin predicted he would bounce back from the political crisis threatening his campaign and capture a seat that is pivotal to Republican hopes of regaining control of the Senate.
“I’m in this race for the long haul, and we’re going to win it,” he told radio host Dana Loesch in St. Louis…
“The stakes in this election are far bigger than any one individual,” said Brian Walsh, a spokesman for the National Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee. By staying in the race, Akin “is putting at great risk many of the issues that he and others in the Republican Party are fighting for.”…
Akin’s campaign released an open letter Tuesday from Jack Willke, former president of the U.S. National Right to Life Committee, stating he was “outraged at how quickly Republican leaders have deserted” Akin.
Akin “remains a strong and courageous pro-life leader — and awkward wording in one sound bite doesn’t negate that,” Willke’s statement said…
As the circular firing squad assembled, bold Red State Strike Farce Force leader Erick Erickson made his position abundantly clear:
… Congressman Akin said something dumb and inarticulate. But God bless him for trying to explain why so many Christians do not believe in an exception for rape and believe that to have one could see an increase in the number of claims of rape that are not actual rapes (“legitimate” rapes in his words), but are claims of rape used to justify an abortion when abortion is otherwise prohibited…
Todd Akin should not have to withdraw from the Senate race in Missouri. But given how quickly party leaders sought to distance themselves from Todd Akin and pull money from Missouri, there is not much left for him to do. By 5 o’clock today, Todd Akin must withdraw…
Given the way party leaders from Mitt Romney to John Cornyn have run from Todd Akin in the past 24 hours, Todd Akin must be willing to overcome his pride and realize that to advance his world view, he must end his campaign. The fight to take back the Senate runs through Missouri. It is a terrible burden to be now in Todd Akin’s position, knowing by staying in he could cost the Republicans the Senate and even be a drag on Mitt Romney’s chances to win Missouri.
Should he stay in the race, he will be the boogeyman in the Democrats’ false claims about a war on women and the man every Republican blames should they not take the Senate.
Every politician thinks he can win. Some times he just can’t. By 5 o’clock this evening, Congressman Aiken needs to withdraw so his party can unite behind a new nominee.
Erick “Voice of the GOP Gated Community” Erickson, Pragmatist, no doubt thanks his Heartland Jesus(tm) that he and his fellows are not (shudder) moral relativists like us pagan Democrats.
And speaking of Dana Loesch, the Pride of CNN, tweetmaster TBogg also unearths this amazing fuster of cluck:
That’s about one Joe Scarborough or Glenn Kessler away from the smoking lump of evil at the end of Time Bandits…
Turgidson
Oh I see, “false” has become a synonym for “completely, undeniably, true”
Is that dipshit still on CNN? Maybe he needs a rusty nail shoved up his ass, and then for a doctor not to believe it was “legitimately” shoved up his ass. Maybe then he’ll get a fucking clue. Right after Akin and Ryan get the same treatment, of course.
PeakVT
Please, Republicans, take whatever helpful advice your ex-crush has to offer.
Shalimar
Definitely the way to win against a sitting senator is to run two candidates with almost exactly the same extremist views. Sarah Palin is always right.
TheMightyTrowel
This past 2 days I’ve won a series of bets I made over the last 3 years with furriners about the american right wing. I’d like to say I’m laughing all the way to the bank, but really i’m just slamming my head into my desk over and over and over
owlbear1
False claims of a war on women?
Erick, stop passing laws that treat women like brood mares and/or punching bags and they’ll go away.
andy
Maybe this is the modern Right’s Army–McCarthy hearings moment. Who gets to finally say, “You’ve done enough. Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?”
On the other hand, chances are they will double down and not a fuck will be given. Is this big enough to stick in people’s minds come november, and are there enough people out there, who vote, who don’t think exactly the way shitbag Aikin thinks?
karen marie
Half my brain cells have died trying to keep track of this shit.
TS
I will always believe that the hatred and bile directed at the President and his party over the past 4 years was generated by Sarah … Palin. She has spent her time since losing the VP role in 2008 attempting to bring down the US Government and cause some style of revolution which will write her in history as the revolutionary leader. Rather like John of Gaunt she will breed Kings though she will never be one.
Her goal is now to bring down the GOP because they rejected her and didn’t go down on bended knee demanding that she save the country. 3rd party candidates selected by Palin give the election to the democrats. She cannot bear to think that the GOP could win without her.
Am I paranoid – probably – is she as I think – definitely
piratedan
so hows that “laser like focus on jobs, jobs, jobs” working out for you R’s?
David
Republicans are afraid that if they don’t agree with Akin they’ll be labelled “babykillers” by the Wingnuts.
Jeffrey Kramer
God bless him for trying to explain why so many Christians do not believe in an exception for rape
“Because there are no pregnancies from rape, which means the abortion-seeking sluts are liars.”
You just keep on explaining that, Todd, and God bless you!
Geoduck
@TS: You’re giving her far too much credit. I doubt Sarah thinks much beyond the next bag o’ cash she can extract from the rubes. She never actually wanted to be president. And caring about or planning the word-melanges she spews when a camera is pointed in her direction? Hah.
danielx
If you’ve lost Erick Son of Erick…the only obvious conclusion to be drawn is that Erick Son of Erick isn’t conservative enough. At this point I’m not sure who is conservative enough for the wingnut base, aside from Genghis Khan and Reinhard Heydrich.
danielx
Sarah Palin word salad…mmmm, good. Yes, please do take Snowbilly Snooki’s advice. It can’t be any worse than Bill Kristol’s.
TS
@Geoduck: wish I could agree – but it’s as I see it – she generates pages from the media every time she opens her mouth – she has no care if it’s good or bad media. She brings nothing to any discussion yet the media treats her as if she has a valid point of view.
I will refrain from getting hysterical and saying more.
ant
This one is quite the argument.
So fucking what.
If a women is raped, she shouldn’t even have to claim that she was raped to get an abortion.
these people are crazy.
Chris T.
I realize that applying logic rules here is pointless, but what the heck…
So Akin splits “rape-claiming women” (a terrible label but let’s use it since Akin would; presumably they also want to terminate a pregnancy in this case) into two groups: those who are telling the truth, and those who are lying to obtain this abortion.
There are some number of women in group T (“truthful”) who apparently “deserve to be allowed an abortion” (in Akin’s philosophy, if I’m not demeaning that word here), and some other number of women in group F who “don’t deserve it”. Akin would deny it to everyone in group T just because the size of group F might be nonzero.
Of course, were Akin actually honest, I believe he would admit that he doesn’t think anyone in group T “deserve” to be “allowed” anything in the first place. Which means his division of women into “truthful” and “liars” is merely a distraction in the first place: a rhetorical trick by which he can exclaim that, oh no, he doesn’t think you are a liar, but still, no, you can’t control your body, because someone, somewhere out there might be a liar! No abortions for anyone, ever, even if both mother and fetus are certain to die. That’s just God’s Punishment for, well, whatever.
MikeJ
@Chris T.: I’ve heard this same argument extended to the health of the mother. If those sluts would lie about getting raped, surely they would lie about their medical conditions. And of course they could always find a doctor to go along with it.
Patricia Kayden
So women are so slutty/evil/flaky that they’ll lie about being raped just so that they can be treated to a wonderful abortion.
Good to know.
Schlemizel
@andy: There have been so many instances where the wingnuts should have gotten their “At long last Senator, have you no sense of decency” moment but haven’t I have come to assume it is not going to happen.
Part of it is the media that allows them to pretend they have not pushed this sludge all along. PArt of it is a large enough percentage of the population that can refuse to see the truth when it is displayed and instead believe in comforting fairytales. I just don’t see it happening
BruinKid
FWIW, I went back and crunched the numbers based on the 2008 and 2010 exit polls in Missouri for the flash PPP poll, which had a whopping 9-point advantage for the GOP in turnout.
If you assume a 2010 turnout, where Republicans only had a 3-point advantage, McCaskill beats Akin, 45.1%-41.59%.
And if you assume a 2008 turnout, where Democrats had a 6-point advantage, McCaksill beats Akin, 49.26%-39.04%.
And since it seems reasonable to think that turnout won’t be as GOP-friendly as it was in 2010, but probably not as good for Obama as it was in 2008 either, the turnout will probably be somewhere in between. In that case, based on the PPP numbers, McCaskill should have somewhere between a 3-10 point lead over Akin. Assuming PPP got the vote by party breakdown correct.
Schlemizel
@BruinKid: from your lips to His noodley appendage!
Pseudonym
@MikeJ: Oh, you mean like that lovely moment in the 2008 presidential debates when McCain discussed abortion:
Enhanced Voting Techniques
Shorter Erik the Red; Akin is right, that’s why it’s his fault if he loses. And no one on the right calls him on his contradictory BS like that?
and this
” But God bless him for trying to explain why so many Christians do not believe in an exception for rape”
He basically said “God damn him for telling everyone what we think”
Honesty, if were Akin I would personally be calling Erik out for a reason for staying in.
hep kitty
Abortion should be legal within the first trimester.
After that, legal if
1. Mother’s life is threatened
2. Rape/incest
At some point, I believe it’s very risky for the mother to perform one.
I don’t know what is so unreasonable about this. I don’t know why we are parsing the definition of rape and having doctors have to come out and explain that evidence of pregnancy is not necessarily an indication of consent. That it doesn’t matter if those “juices flow” (good god, I cannot believe we are talking about this)
But ok, I can co-exist with the pro-lifer position when it comes to your “typical everyday” abortion (I guess). But now we are defining/redefining rape?
WTF???
Again, I gotta be hallucinating. Oh well, I’m glad Akin is staying in tho, that’s awesome.
lou
@Chris T.:
Well, when you think about it, they’re applying the same standard to voters. Just because group N might be nonzero, group V won’t get to exercise their constitutional rights.
Kirbster
Hey, Todd Akin won his primary, and like Sharon Angle, Christine O’Donnell, and Joe Miller before him should stay the course. Apathetic “moderate” Republicans (is that an oxymoron?) need to learn that voting in primaries and midterm elections is important. All the publicity might also prompt these creatures of electoral habit to actually find out just how radical the GOP platform really is and perhaps break with their voting traditions.
Carl Nyberg
Well as long as we’re giving individuals two cents on abortion.
Roe vs. Wade was decided incorrectly.
How to handle abortion consistent with the U.S. Constitution is pretty clear.
The Fourteenth Amendment clearly states citizenship is conferred at birth. Life may begin at conception, but a human being with rights doesn’t exist until birth.
And the Thirteenth Amendment is absolutely clear, no one, including the government, can compel an individual to do labor, including bringing a pregnancy to term, unless the individual has been convicted of a crime.
The “right to privacy” theory is fine, but has been misapplied.
Roe vs. Wade created a political fight that never ends where the federal courts are repeatedly getting involved in something that subjective. It’s arbitrary and capricious for the women affected. It’s time to ditch Roe v. Wade and move to something that more clear in the Constitution.
JPL
Akin is a mainstream republican who introduced a bill with Paul Ryan that would not only outlaw abortions, but would outlaw several forms of birth control.
Alphonse de la Guerre Victorieuse Pour La Liberte et La France
I’m hearing that some people say Akin is a long-standing Democratic political plot, going back to unsupported allegations about his when/where of birth.
The plot’s now coming to fruition, as Akin is going to lose MO for the Senate seat, and for the White House aspirations of the GOP.
If only we had his birth certificate.
texpope
Akin “is putting at great risk many of the issues that he and others in the Republican Party are fighting for.”…
Yeah. It’s easier to take the country back to the 15th century when people aren’t aware you’re trying to do so.
Omnes Omnibus
@Carl Nyberg: I don’t really disagree with your analysis, but I sincerely doubt that we could get a better decision through the current court system and I am damn sure we can’t get something better through the current political process. Roe’s logic was mushy and it set the stage for creeping restrictions due improved medical procedures and their effect on viability, but we are stuck with it for now.
Elizabelle
That Mark Halperin. Such a cutting-edge journalist.
Watching a TV show on the Fox News Channel, twittering about it after.
Always on duty, always working hard. Bringing us those facts.
Omnes Omnibus
@Elizabelle: Hey, he is using modern technology; he must be cutting edge.
Elizabelle
@Omnes Omnibus:
Got an avatar too.
Art like one of those healthcare pamphlets for peeple who dont read to gud.
(Is that the Archie crowd in the background?)
kay
If Claire was w/in one point of this person, why were people calling the race lost in the 1st place?
One point is horrible, but it’s not “lost”.
I wasn’t following it because Claire gets on my nerves just generally, but I see no reason to call a tied race “lost”.
shortstop
@JPL: And we can’t seem to get anybody outside the left to notice that.
Beth in VA
@Elizabelle: This! So well said.
shortstop
@kay: She wasn’t within one point of him after the primary was finally held a couple of weeks ago. He led by nine after that. Waiting to see how the polls shake out in coming days…I know there was a quick one on Monday, but I’m hesitant to put too much faith in it given the time it usually takes for these things to really register.
GregB
Comb-over king Todd Akin is the new George Wallace standing in front of a uterus saying
Insemination now, insemination tomorrow, insemination forevah!
Geoduck
@TS: Of course Palin is dangerous and destructive. I’m saying she doesn’t have some Overarching Plan to cause revolution and/or crash the GOP.
comrade scott's agenda of rage
The race is not lost…none of the three Repup primary morans were first string and all had loads of issues (albeit different ones) that would come back to hurt them in a statewide campaign.
But, it still would have been an uphill slog for our dear Claire/Blanche because the voting floor for Repups here in Misery is right around 50%. Sorry but we’re red and aspire to be Mississippi Red.
And it still won’t be easy for Claire but now she has a legitimate shot, assuming she friggin knows how to use this as an issue and pound it statewide from now until election day. It’s anybody’s guess if she will. She’s a staunch supporter of women’s reproductive rights, at least there she’s an actual Democrat, but she’s also scared to death of alienating some mythical large block of independent voters here.
What she needs is for every Dem in the state to get out and hold their nose and vote for her and hope the fundies stay at home because they’re not voting for a cultist for President and enough independent woman who are probably fond of birth control in one form or another are scared enough to make sure Akin doesn’t get close to a Senate seat.
If she wins, it’ll be by a lesser margin than when she beat (no)Talent.
Linda Featheringill
I personally think Mr. Akin should just keep talking. He should say whatever is on his mind. Also, I’m sure there are other issues he could enlighten us about.
MSM take notice. Akin looks like a good source of quotes and following him around might be a good way to get your byline noticed by the Big Boys.
Carl Nyberg
@Omnes Omnibus:
Why should the government, a physician or any other third party have the power to compel a woman to carry a pregnancy to term?
The concept devalues a woman’s labor. It reduces women to vessels for carrying the next generation, not autonomous actors who have a right to decide their own lives.
If government wants to offer incentives for women to carry pregnancies to term, that’s one thing. But to force women to do this by denying them the tools to terminate pregnancy? That’s wrong.
redshirt
Can’t wait for the Obama team to hang this Akin insanity around dreamy Ryan and the Mittbott.
Hey Ladies? You’ve got a choice. Choose.
Elizabelle
@Carl Nyberg:
You vaguely remind me of The Economist (magazine)’s opining that outlawing surrogate motherhood would deny some women productive use of their wombs. Fecundity for profit.
SenyorDave
In a sane world, Erickson and Loesch would be considered repulsive little sociopaths, and would live (hopefully) quiet lives alone, keeping their disgusting opinions to themselves and a few equally demented friends.
But this is the US in 2012, so naturally they work for CNN. Not surprising since this is the news network that made Wolf Blitzer a star.
Elizabelle
I’m serious, people.
Looks like Archie, Betty and Veronica are in the background of the Halperin avatar.
They would be the only people hanging on his every tweet.
comrade scott's agenda of rage
I will say that Akin is the gift that keeps on giving. He’s learning that it’s one thing to be a Bachmann-esque backbencher where you can say shit like this and nobody pays attention. But when you’re running for statewide, federal office with massive national implications, you gotta throttle back your crazy.
Raven
@comrade scott’s agenda of rage: Yea, calling Akin a nice guy is a great start.
batgirl
@Chris T.:
Nope, according to Akin, it is biologically impossible to get pregnant from rape, so by definition if a pregnant woman is claiming she was raped, she is lying.
All this focus on “legitimate” has sidelined the other crazy, factually wrong part of his views that he has not corrected or apologized for.
Kay
@comrade scott’s agenda of rage:
She drives me nuts because she’s so conciliatory. It’s really not necessary to agree with the media personality setting a narrative, on every point, in her first response. I feel as if she thinks this projects “honesty” but really it just makes her look easily led. Also. They’re not her friends. She doesn’t seem to get that an interview is in some respects an adversarial encounter. It’s supposed to be. People assume she’s going to vigorously defend the work that she does. She’s not going to get any extra “honesty” points for agreeing that everything they do in Congress sucks. That’s not even true. Why agree with it?
aimai
@Carl Nyberg:
That’s so dumb it makes regular dumb sick with jealousy. Citizens are not the only people with right to life in this country so when a person becomes a citizen is irrelevant to the argument. Illegal immigrants, undocumented workers, and people with visas also have a right to life and they have other rights under the 14th amendment. Your “at birth” standard is not relevant.
And, btw, I am pro-choice right up to the moment of birth. But your argument about citizenship is irrelevant.
aimai
Boudica
@Elizabelle: His avatar looks like it’s from the Archie issue they did with Obama and Palin as characters (yes, can you believe it?). That’s who’s in the front of the avatar.
El Cid
The big problem we have today is all our lax definitions of rape which let all these women hollerin’ about ‘rape’ get away with all the things they get away with.
Maybe we ought to change all the definitions of rape depend on what the man in question says as to whether or not he feels it was rape, ’cause women get too emotional about these things and usually just want to call it rape if the man ain’t dressed right or somethin’.
Elizabelle
@Boudica:
Was suspecting that might be the case. Yegawds.
RE Akin: there has got to be a whole troop of likeminded weasels running for office. People who believe insane science and theology because it comports with their religious, social and economic beliefs.
Journalists: go find them.
And good luck convincing Republican voters that, yes, this is their party too.
I know too many people who became Republicans when (they thought) the party stood for Main Street small businessmen, small government and frugal spending.
The crazy and greedy are mainstream, and the “moderate” Republicans refuse to see it.
Carl Nyberg
BTW, if Akin is a deft politician, he’ll pivot to running against McCaskill, Obama and Romney.
“I’m going to the U.S. Senate to serve the people of Missouri, not be another flunky for the bosses and banks. Mitt Romney and Barack Obama don’t want a guy who will stand up and tell the truth.”
Akin has the social conservative vote nailed down. Now, he should play the populist card.
If he does it right, he will bury McCaskill.
If, however, Akin stays stuck on abortion and rape, he’s gonna have a tough time. After a point, talking about abortion, rape and vaginas just sounds kinda creepy, like dude has issues.
grape_crush
…he and his fellows are not (shudder) moral relativists…
Well, if that is true, it leads us into some interesting places. Zasloff over at the WaMo gets the big picture right:
hep kitty
@Elizabelle: I can’t believe anyone still reads Archie, but I heard that the gang has a gay male character now.
hueyplong
At blessed last we’re seeing the downside of an extremist party adopting the following propositions:
1. Lunatic “purists” are preferable to seasoned pols who understand how to prevaricate during a campaign season;
2. Giving Mangled Talking Points Palin a platform from which to offer strategic advice is a good thing;
3. No harm can come from getting your candidates dependent upon an environment (FoxNews) in which you don’t have to be in any way careful about what you say.
Let’s hope they also eventually pay a price for taking on a worldview that is totally antagonistic to facts or empirical evidence of any kind. So far, it’s only the rest of us paying a price for that one.
hep kitty
@Linda Featheringill: It doesn’t get much better for our side, but like you, I hope it will.
El Cid
@grape_crush: The problem is that there’s still too much sympathy for women who have been raped and so many people get squeamish about forcing raped women to have their rapists’ babies.
If you can start to convince not just the core of those who oppose abortion under any circumstance but also a broader periphery by suggesting maybe that a lot of “rape” really isn’t, you know, rape rape, then some of this legislation barring exceptions for rape can be more easily passed. Many of those efforts have failed.
danimal
Saw a bit of Palin’s interview while channel-surfing. She came close, but wouldn’t commit, to advocating a third-party run by Sarah Steelman (who she backed in the primary). Greta,
good soldier that she is,independent journalist, then changed the subject. Palin also forced in a “unshackle the chains” type comment, apparently trying to take a shot at Biden. She sure seems to be past her “sell by” date.Kane
If Romney had chosen Chris Christie or Tim Pawlenty as his VP candidate, I doubt that the republican chorus for Akin to step down would have been so vocal.
I tend to think that the response has less to do with a senate seat, and more to do with the fact that Akin is so closely tied to Paul Ryan.
hep kitty
@Linda Featheringill: Oh well, crappage!
Svensker
@Pseudonym:
Yeah, I still remember that and it still pisses me off real bad.
Omnes Omnibus
@Carl Nyberg: I never said that a physician should make that decision. All I said was that, in our current environment, revisiting Roe is unlikely to produce a better result.
Michele
Yet another opening for GOP quackademic medicine. I’m sure Akin apologists will insist there’s some device that can measure the intensity of tube spasticity (via external magnetic energy flows or something) to determine legitimate rape babies vs. slutty skank babies (Clinically proven! The pro-life nutjob naturopath who wrote the paper about it was wearing a white lab coat, after all!) and will insist the only ‘fair and balanced’ way to prevent abortion for illegitimate rape is to subject recently traumatized women to some sort of GOP, middle-aged white guy-approved legitimacy screening. See. They are willing to compromise…
Southern Beale
I think Todd Akin’s new website should be forced to carry that fetus picture for at least another 9 months, what do you think?
kerFuFFler
Perhaps we should get rid of handicap parking spaces since some people may try to obtain those parking passes without being “legitimately” handicapped.
Carl Nyberg
@Omnes Omnibus:
One has to build the intellectual infrastructure for changing how to deal with women’s rights on the matter of abortion before the courts or politicians act.
Expanding women’s rights based on the 13th Amendment does not require going through the courts. The amendment is clear that Congress is empowered to set the rules.
If Congress defines laws proscribing abortion as “involuntary servitude” the federal courts would have a hard time overturning the Congress’ determination and staying true to the Constitution.
Carl Nyberg
@Kane: Methinks you are on to something.
Akin is awkward because his extremism invites scrutiny of Paul Ryan. And that makes people wonder about Romney’s judgment.
Nutella
@Elizabelle:
Why haven’t they noticed that the actual party stands for Wall Street, big government with big deficits, and spending borrowed money like a drunken sailor on a spree? That’s what actual Republican politicians are doing now and it’s long past time the old-style Republicans noticed.
We should be shouting that out whenever another big-government, big-deficit R position is trotted out.
FlipYrWhig
@kerFuFFler: Sounds like a legislative proposition Rand Paul would eagerly back.
Roger Moore
@hep kitty:
FTFY.
The Moar You Know
He was on the radio-machine this morning screeching about how the “unelected party bosses” were trying to take away the “will of the voters”.
I love this guy. He is going to do a shitload of damage to the national GOP on the way down.
karen
This is really a way to remove the vote for women more than it is a concern for a fetus.
After all, if a woman can lie that she was raped just to get an abortion then she’s obviously too much of a dishonest slut to be trusted with such a responsibility like voting.
If they get to redefine what rape is, the next thing will be redefining what the health of the mother and miscarriage is. Because a woman can just say she’s sick because she wants to take drugs that will cause the baby to die (chemotherapy, for an example).
After that, they’ll be looking at miscarriage as murder if the mother did anything that could cause the baby not to be carried to term – including being selfish enough to take antibiotics if they’re sick.
Mark my words. If Todd Akin and RoRyan win the elections then there will be no stopping the narrative of how women will say anything and do anything to get what they want and therefore are not trustworthy.
They’ll never come out and say that women are evil because that would imply that women have enough of a brain for that. What they’ll say is that women mean well but obviously can not be taken seriously. From that it’s a short hop to what a GOOD woman is. What a decent woman is. And once they can define that, it’s game over for women’s rights, especially working and voting.
This is a several, gradual pronged approach but you can already see which way the wind is blowing. Getting rid of women’s voting rights is not as easy as suppressing minorities, young and old people’s voting access so they have to be more targeted. But they have the steps mapped out. It’s a checklist like that one guy said that would “allow Romney to win Pennsylvania” only this would allow women to be put back in their place.
catclub
@lou: Is group V Vengeance or The lizards from the movie?
Roger Moore
@kerFuFFler:
I think we should get rid of the tax deduction for contributions to religious organizations, because some businesses will disguise themselves as religions to get a tax break. Whee! We can apply the “take things away because some people will abuse them” rule so many ways.
BruinKid
To disappoint TBogg, someone else I read said Missouri has a “sore loser” law that prevents a primary loser from running 3rd party. As a write-in candidate, I’m not sure.
The Moar You Know
@Carl Nyberg: The reason that Roe went to the courts in the first place is because Congress refused, time and time and time again, to touch the issue. That hasn’t changed. This country would never have had legal abortions if the issue had been left to Congress. That’s not speculation. That’s cold hard fact.
@danimal: Four years and counting.
McCain will go to hell when he dies for no other reason than the crime of unleashing this bnashee into our national discourse.
karen
The thing that has really been pissing me off in the past few days is the narrative from the Dems and sane GOPpers about how GOP will have to distance themselves from Akin and how bad it is for Romney and the GOP – and let me tell you, it’s sad when Scarborough and the other GOPpers on Morning Joe are sane and reasonable compared to today’s GOP. But every show on MSNBC has the sentiment that Akin is a problem for the Republican party and how it will be a drag on the ticket.
If that was true then Akin would have never gotten as far as he has. He’s not a problem for the GOP at all and in fact, the GOP is raising even more money because of this.
If it was a problem for the GOP then they wouldn’t have made their platform so strident with no exceptions for rape, incest or the health of the mother.
It may be driving people out of the GOP but the people who are there have the money and the media on their side so it really doesn’t matter how pure they make themselves.
Scarborough says that the Republican party must not want to win and this extremism is hurting the Republican brand. But the party is happy with their purity purge and until the sane people with money want to put their skin in the game then it really, really doesn’t matter.
kerFuFFler
Oh, so now he thinks he just got one word “misspoken”. How about the entire sentence where he says women’s bodies just “shut down” the process of getting pregnant when they are being raped? That dangerous misconception (so to speak…) suggests that rape victims who got pregnant are lying—–or maybe they enjoyed it!
Although many people recoiled from the abject ignorance in that statement, there are many people who still believe that shit. If he is sincerely sorry about propagating fake science he at least needs to come clean about that! “I misspoke one word…” indeed.
shortstop
@The Moar You Know: It will be his legacy. And, despite his protestations that he has no regrets, it keeps him up at night, tossing to and fro on his pillow in one of his patented rages. And that makes me happy.
1badbaba3
Republican women, like La Palin, DLouse, and Queen Ann, are the embodiment of womanhood. They are so inspirational that they make their menfolk act the way they do. Just imagine the women who inspired Todd Akin to become such a knowledgeable and compassionate advocate. Wow, it’s really a little overwhelming to contemplate. I’m getting a little misty here. Sorry. Carry on. *sniffle*
lamh35
Ryan should be forced to answer this question at every stop!
“KDKA Political Editor Jon Delano asked: “Should ab*ortions to be available to women who are raped?”Ryan opposes ab*ortions in all cases except for when the life of the mother is at stake, which is different from Mitt Romney’s position — Romney would also carve out exceptions for r*ape and in*cest.
“I’m proud of my pro-life record,” Ryan said. “And I stand by my pro-life record in Congress. It’s something I’m proud of. But Mitt Romney is the top of the ticket and Mitt Romney will be president and he will set the policy of the Romney administration.”
“You sponsored legislation that has the language ‘forcible r*ape,’” Delano noted. “What is forcible r*ape as opposed…”
“R*ape is r*ape,” Ryan interrupted. “R*ape is r*ape, period. End of story.”
“So that forcible r*ape language meant nothing to you at the time?” Delano asked.
“R*ape is r*ape and there’s no splitting hairs over r*ape,” Ryan said.
abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/08/ryan-refuses-to-explain-forcible-rape-as-dems-attempt-more-aki…
karen
@lamh35:
You were smart about your words. I stupidly typed out the word r@p3 and inc3$t and got put in moderation.
LanceThruster
Dear Sarah,
A quitter never wins, and a winner never quits.
Just sayin’.
Quit bothering everybody with your/you’re/yore inane blather.
hep kitty
@LanceThruster: I can’t listen. One sentence into it I have no clue what she is saying. The word salad appeals to the stupid b/c she’s their idea of a smart person. To people who have a basic understanding of the english language, however, not so much.
And the voice, the voice. Even worse, Dana Loesch, Malkin, Fox women commentators, etc., like nails on a chalkboard. They all sound as if they’re going to stab someone and the Fox & Friends guys sound like hysterical fishwives.
Mnemosyne
As I said in another thread, increasing the number of false rape accusations if abortion is outlawed for everyone but rape victims is a feature, not a bug, as far as conservatives are concerned.
piratedan
If you “women” would simply adjust your language, instead of procuring an “abortion” you said that were instead buying a “gun”, why you’d have an endless amount of choices available to you… the forms would be less tedious and in many states you don’t have to do much more than ask to have the right to “conceal that weapon”. There would be shows talking about the latest improvements and it brings a strange new twist to the term “hunting license”.
shortstop
@1badbaba3: Word on the Misery street is that Mrs. Akin is crazier than he is.
jumpinjezebel
This is being treated as if he “misspoke”. Well someone needs to dig up the number of times he’s repeated this garbage previously. This RWNJ idea is being used as an excuse to deny women access to an Abortion after even rape or incest. Same ideas and actions as lyin’ Ryan.
“Rapin’ Akin, Lyin’ Ryan and Flipper Willard – Warriors in the War on Women.”
LanceThruster
@hep kitty:
I so agree with the voice thing. She has the grating qualities of Gladys Kravitz of “Bewitched” TV fame with none of the comedic effect (at least not intentionally).
Not that I would mind as much if the content was rational, but her inanities make me want to suck on a shotgun barrel.
Speak out, even if your voice shakes.
LanceThruster
@piratedan:
Aaaarrrrgh!
Good point indeed, matey!
LanceThruster
@piratedan:
Also too, saw Doug Stanhope’s “Before Turning the Gun on Himself” show in SLC (Sowtimne OnDemand) and he went on a tear about “owning your own meat” in regards to what you want to do with your body. Re: abortion, he said it was a “property rights” issue and as far as a fetus goes, “pay or quit!”
John M. Burt
Please, Repubs, whatever you do, don’t touch that smoking lump . . . .
dance around in your bones
Ok, I have only read 31 comments, but I will say that unless men suddenly have the ability to carry a fetus in their body THEY HAVE NO FUCKING IDEA WHAT THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT!.
It’s so different when it happens to YOU.
Whoa! Suddenly it gets REAL!
dance around in your bones
Also, am I the only one who transmogrifies Sarah Steelman into Sarah Silverman and thinks that would be ultra-cool?
Oh well.
xian
@kerFuFFler: his spin is that he’s apologizing for making it sound like any rape is “legitimate” — an intentional misreading of the uproar.