Missouri Senate candidate Congressman Todd Akin’s idiotic comment on “legitimate rape” does not actually stand out in today’s Republican Party. In case you missed it, the Tea Party favorite said that a woman’s body would reject a pregnancy in cases of “legitimate rape,” whatever that is. While the Romney-Ryan campaign issued a statement that neither candidate opposes abortion in cases of rape, similarly asinine remarks by other GOP figures are hardly unique.
As Irin Carmon points out in today’s Salon.com, we have the Republican Governor of Pennsylvania suggesting that a woman deal with the affront of a government-required ultrasound by closing her eyes, an Idaho legislator saying women would use rape as an excuse for an abortion, and Rush Limbaugh’s calling a woman a slut for expressing her views. Then there was the Rick Santorum fundraiser who said that an aspirin between a woman’s knees was the only necessary birth control.
As for the statement from the Romney-Ryan campaign that neither man opposes abortion in the case of rape, that would be at least the third reversal of position by Congressman Ryan since becoming the running mate. He has backed away from the $716 billion cut to Medicare that is in the Ryan Budget passed by the Republican-controlled House, his opposition to sanctions against China for currency manipulation, and now his opposition to abortion even in cases of rape. And we thought it was Romney whose views would be altered by placing the conservative darling on the ticket.
Tom Noonan 
While I agree with you the comment is way out of line no one ever seems to slam the Democrats for what they do. Clinton was accused of rape by Anita Broderick. Kennedy(Ted) left a woman to die in a car. He and Chris Dodd were famous for “The Waitress Sandwich.” JFK routinely abused his young staff. I would just once like to see those who are so outraged by what Republicans say react the same way to what Democrats do.