Mitt Romney's Apology Tour
The appalling comments of Republican Senate candidates Todd Akin in Missouri and Richard Murdock in Indiana about "legitimate rape" and God intending women to be raped could cost Republicans control of the Senate. Almost overnight, the victory of Democrats in these races became a near certainty. Democrats will likely control 51 seats outright, which was considered a near-impossibility not so long ago.
In addition, these candidates have been a major headache for Mitt Romney over the past two months as he's had to go on his own "apology tour" on behalf of Republican candidates who showed an astounding inability to think before the spoke. Here's the part that's not being talked about much though: Todd Akin and Richard Murdock do not represent a fringe view within the Republican Party.
Slate magazine did an interesting breakdown of the Republican nominees in this year's Senate races. Out of 33 Republican candidates, 12 are on record as saying that they are anti-abortion even in cases of rape and incest (enough for a plurality). Another 3 have not clarified their stance on exceptions. Some of these candidates do not even support an exception for the life of the mother.
Then there is Paul Ryan's stance that rape is just another "method of conception" which does not warrant any exception to laws against abortion. Add it all up and what you realize is that such extreme positions and derogatory views of women are not some fringe viewpoint. On the contrary, such views are common among Republicans and becoming more so.
These positions, of course, are very extreme compared to the views of most Americans. While it's understandable that the economy is getting most of the press, Republican misogyny should be getting a lot more attention than it is. Particularly when women will be the likely deciding factor in most (if not all) of these elections.
In addition, these candidates have been a major headache for Mitt Romney over the past two months as he's had to go on his own "apology tour" on behalf of Republican candidates who showed an astounding inability to think before the spoke. Here's the part that's not being talked about much though: Todd Akin and Richard Murdock do not represent a fringe view within the Republican Party.
Slate magazine did an interesting breakdown of the Republican nominees in this year's Senate races. Out of 33 Republican candidates, 12 are on record as saying that they are anti-abortion even in cases of rape and incest (enough for a plurality). Another 3 have not clarified their stance on exceptions. Some of these candidates do not even support an exception for the life of the mother.
Then there is Paul Ryan's stance that rape is just another "method of conception" which does not warrant any exception to laws against abortion. Add it all up and what you realize is that such extreme positions and derogatory views of women are not some fringe viewpoint. On the contrary, such views are common among Republicans and becoming more so.
These positions, of course, are very extreme compared to the views of most Americans. While it's understandable that the economy is getting most of the press, Republican misogyny should be getting a lot more attention than it is. Particularly when women will be the likely deciding factor in most (if not all) of these elections.