With Senate at stake, GOP waits on Akin’s next move, McCaskill goes on offense

The Washington Post ^ | September 9, 2012 | Rosalind S. Helderman and Jason Horowitz

[ScottinVA]

Mr. Akin voted against No Child Left Behind, Medicare Drugs and TARP among other RINO pet projects. The GOPe saw an opening and jumped in haste.

So... your contention is, the "legitimate rape" comment and the ensuring uproar didn't actually present an issue until the GOPe urged Akin to drop out? It would've just died on its own?

[Da Bilge Troll]

If you're referring to George Allen's "macaca," yes it does. He paid the price for it in 2006 but is competitive now.

Who was Allen's replacement in 2006?

[Piranha]

That’s what I think. I think that he was slammed for the statement because it is inconsistent with science and politically incorrect. Once he retracted it it would have died down.

[Da Bilge Troll]

So... your contention is, the "legitimate rape" comment and the ensuring uproar didn't actually present an issue until the GOPe urged Akin to drop out? It would've just died on its own?

My contention is that Todd Akin isn't going anywhere.

[ScottinVA]

If you devolve into a “serial explainer” (which hard not to do thanks to the media!) you are done! I hope Akin wins, but it might have been better to cut our losses immediately and get out there with somebody else. He certainly made winning harder.

That was my point too, at the outset with Akin, but it's too late now... dredging it up further at this point just gives the enemies in the DNC more to spew on their fundraising letters.

[Piranha]

Funny...the RINO party told us to suck it up and take Romney as the candidate because the most important thing is to restore America. Now they are willing to starve the campaign of a genuinely conservative candidate who has voted correctly on every issue because of a misstatement of scientific fact that he made and retracted within a day.

[Reily]

No he didn't and that's the point!
It was an excellent playing out of why withdrawing might have been a good idea. Though I think his “gaffe” doomed him and any that might have followed. Also Webb superficially was an attractive candidate, 'war hero', claimed to be a blue collar independent democrat. Of course those that actually knew him knew better!

McCaskill's natural loathsomeness may still save the day for Atkin. I hope it does.

[Just mythoughts]

CONpost doing a lot of wishful thinking along with McCaskill.

I live in Missouri, and only the die-hard liberals are voting for Claire at the present moment. The Gop-e- are little different than the DNC in their MO's in winning elections. This state is about evenly split in liberals, republicans/conservatives and those Frank Luntz 'independents'. Claire got the majority of those Frank Luntz 'independents' in 2006.... remember when the liberals broke open the 'real' GOP-e- with exposing Foley? That and there was on the ballot initiatives that drew out the Unions and the promise that stem cell research would help the welfare class.

I do not know yet what ballot initiatives will be loaded onto the Missouri ballot, but one of them is about 'healthcare'. This election will depend upon who can stimulate their base and which way the wind blows to garner those Frank Luntz 'independents'.

At this present moment, Missouri has endured a blasting heat and drought. Nothing survives without 'water', and add to that we have a liberal governor. I call it a toss UP on this date.

[GeronL]

Just look back, the Maine twins, Crist, Specter, Scozzafava all were loved and adored by the RNC, its the conservatives they have a problem with

[ScottinVA]

Who was Allen's replacement in 2006?

You're making my point here. He didn't step down and was defeated. As the incumbent, no primary runner-up was available because no primary was held.

In 2012 (and for the record here, I voted for Jamie Radtke in the primary), Allen and the "macaca" issue from 2006 are known entities .. he's running against a popular former governor and is neck-and-neck.

[Just mythoughts]

He meant violent non consensual rape. Non legitimate rape is claimed after the fact to receive an abortion, statutory rape where there was consent and no violence- just an age difference where the law determins that consent is not valid, and date rape where the participants were consenting at the time, but not when sobered up.

Have you ever watched those Frank Luntz 'independents'.... how long do you think it would take to explain Akin's language to them? That is who Akin or Claire needs to WIN!!!!

[ScottinVA]

My contention is that Todd Akin isn't going anywhere.

I'm not disputing that. The time for a change, were it to happen, came and went early on.

[Mr. K]

I hope the GOP learns a lesson here and stops immediately giving in to the liberals when their minions in the media score a point by talking one of our guys into a corner

And I hope our guys start to pay attention and STAY OFF THE LIBERAL MEDIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Reince Prebus should very publicly - preferably IN HIS DISTRICT - say he jumped the gun on Akin and should never have allowed the liberals to dictate to our side. After all- SAID just said something stupid about abortion whereas McCaskill SUPPORTS baby murder- even when a child survives an abortion she wants to kill it.

[Uncle Chip]

Have you ever watched those Frank Luntz 'independents'.... how long do you think it would take to explain Akin's language to them?

What does it take to reach them???

[Randy Larsen]

Rape as in Forced sex.

[Just mythoughts]

What does it take to reach them???

J O B S and less government ruling over them. They will NOT find Akin's language relevant to their daily lives.

[ScottinVA]

McCaskill's natural loathsomeness may still save the day for Atkin. I hope it does.

I wonder if Akin could get hold of the video footage of the townhall McCaskill conducted in the runup to the Obamacare vote, when she blurted out, "Don't you TRUST me???" The crowd shouted back with a resounding "NO!!!"

[Uncle Chip]

What does it take to reach them??? J O B S and less government ruling over them. They will NOT find Akin's language relevant to their daily lives.

Now please explain to the people in Missouri, ScottinVa, why, when "J O B S and less government ruling over them" is the issue that will win the independent undecideds in Missouri, that the GOPe is asking someone to resign not over that issue but over a marginal comment that none of them care diddly squat about????

[Just mythoughts]

Now please explain to the people in Missouri, ScottinVa, why, when "J O B S and less government ruling over them" is the issue that will win the independent undecideds in Missouri, that the GOPe is asking someone to resign not over that issue but over a marginal comment that none of them care diddly squat about????

Uncle Chip, the GOP-e is NOT against abortion. AND when Akin forgot who he was talking to, (the known enemy) with language none of them were the least bit familiar with, let along explaining they wanted as far away as they could possibly run. Not one in the GOP-e want to discuss 'abortion'!!!

Abortion is a fact of life to the GOP-e... I mean really now if their daughters get pregnant, and it is inconvenient, NOT even forcible rape, but whatever the circumstances they want/demand an option. Face it that is who the GOP-e literally is. Now Akin opened up a 'closed' subject to their ways of thinking, and they treated him like he carried a plague. Why did not Akin realize this that he could do MORE as elected than as candidate.

[ScottinVA]

Now please explain to the people in Missouri, ScottinVa, why, when "J O B S and less government ruling over them" is the issue that will win the independent undecideds in Missouri, that the GOPe is asking someone to resign not over that issue but over a marginal comment that none of them care diddly squat about????

That "J O B S" comment wasn't mine, but I'll address it anyway. If the "legitimate rape" comment is a marginal one that "none of them care diddly squat about," perhaps you can explain as to why a Senatorial race has gone from a slam-dunk GOP pickup to a likely hold by the incumbent dem.

Akin, by his horrendous choice of words, however innocently intended, gave the enemy a huge a wedge issue to exploit as Exhibit A in their false line of "evidence" that the GOP is engaged in a "war against women." We all know that's BS, but the MO voters have responded just as the dems wanted. As a result, the GOP's chances of taking the Senate, along with America's chances of repealing Obamacare, are in severe jeopardy.

If by divine intervention, Akin somehow survives this on election day, great! But, like it or not (and I don't!), perception very often becomes reality in an election year. Much as the double standard sucks, every GOPer going into an election should be fully cognizant of the fact they don't enjoy the favor the dems enjoy when it comes to the spoken word. The "media" will NOT give GOPers a pass when they utter a fatefully bad phrase... ever.