Todd Akin’s “legitimate rape” comment is getting
flack not only from many women and from abortion-rights supporters but even
from Republicans – some of whom are calling on Akin to pull out of his Senate
race against Claire McCaskill.
Akin’s also getting a lot of press. Here’s Michelle Goldberg’s good piece on The Daily Beast,
providing more details about the far-right roots of his comments.
Goldberg notes, importantly, that however crazily Akin put things, we
shouldn’t lose sight of the context of his remarks: his opposition to abortion
even in the case of rape.
And, Goldberg notes, Akin isn’t alone. Numerous Republicans want to deny
women the right to an abortion even if they’ve been raped. Among them: the
Republicans’ vice presidential hopeful, Paul Ryan.
Mitt Romney has distanced himself from Akin’s
statement, insisting that his administration would exclude rape victims from an
anti-abortion measure. That’s small comfort. If he’s elected, Ryan will be
second in line for the presidency.
And just as serious, I have no idea where Mitt Romney stands on much of anything,
and what he’ll do if he becomes president. Given his response to conservative
pressure so far, I can’t imagine he would push back at them from the White
House.
This article appears in Aug 15-21, 2012.
