Exclusive: Akin ad asks for 'forgiveness'

[JonLP24]

Source: Politico

Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin has recorded a television ad asking for "forgiveness" from the voters of his state and acknowledging that he used "the wrong words in the wrong way" when he suggested last weekend that rape rarely leads to pregnancy.

The Republican congressman has come under heavy fire from national Republicans for his comments and has been urged by some to drop his candidacy before the no-penalty withdrawal deadline at 5 p.m. today. Akin has said he will move ahead with his bid against Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill and the spot is an indication that he plans to follow through.

The commercial, which was shared with POLITICO, shows Akin speaking directly to the camera and explaining that he has compassion for the victims of rape.

"Rape is an evil act. I used the wrong words in the wrong way and for that I apologize. As the father of two daughters, I want tough justice for predators. I have a compassionate heart for the victims of sexual assault. I pray for them," Akin says. "The fact is, rape can lead to pregnancy. The truth is, rape has many victims."

Read more: http://www.politico.com/blogs/burns-haberman/2012/08/exclusive-akin-ad-asks-for-forgiveness-132648.html

[dkf]

1. Just when you think you can't be more flummoxed by the stupidity of the crazed right wing...

Amazing. He really does think spending money on ads fixes all.

[no_hypocrisy]

2. Let's get this straight:

Akin said it, knew what he was saying, meant what he was saying, and so do a lot of other republicans.

Here's the problem: The statement isn't marketable. It won't sell an election for his desired senate seat and maybe the White House for Mitt.

Akin told the truth and can't win with it.

[dkf]

3. Akin told the truth? What truth? The guy sounds crazy to me.

[SemperEadem]

8. he told *his* truth

which is the truth as he sees it.

I can't see why he's now apologizing for telling his truth--why should he do that? He believed what he said and meant what he said when he said it. He should stand in said truth and take his asswhippin' for it. That's the problem here: he doesn't want to take his asswhippin' for it, hence the apology.

If there was nary a peep out of anyone over what he said, he would not be apologizing.

[dkf]

11. That pseudo science he was citing is crazy.

If that is his truth maybe he lives in an alternate fantasy universe.

[JonLP24]

14. I think truth

in this context is that he said what he really believed.

Say someone believed in the Easter Bunny and admitted here on DU that he believe the Easter Bunny is real. Easter Bunny being real isn't the truth but rather the poster saying that it is.

That is what I understood the word "truth" being used in this context.

[dkf]

17. I guess I can't get my mind around that "secretion" thing.

How that could be anyone's "truth" is so far out there I can't grasp it.

[freshwest]

64. You'd have to be a Republican to do so. Jesus riding a dinosaur ring a bell? This is their reality:

[wordpix]

69. it's just like the Earth and all that dwell therein were created in 6 days

Despite the physical evidence otherwise.

Get it?

[reflection]

24. I read an article just now in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch

that said this meatslapper home-schooled his children. Holy. Shit. Can you imagine the false baggage those kids are carrying around?

[Roy Rolling]

51. "false baggage"

That's not false baggage, that's real "baggage" those kids will be carrying.

[reflection]

52. Well said, and you're right. n/t

[coalition_unwilling]

31. To quote a long-lost songwriter friend of mine: Akin is

"just sorry he got caught". (Burpo, "That Apology Thing." Burpo, hope you're reading this wherever you may happen to be.)

[SemperEadem]

78. exactly

he's not sorry he believes this tripe nor is he sorry he said it. If he was truly sorry, he wouldn't be pimping it like Cat-Daddy Moneybone.

[no_hypocrisy]

13. Truth as to his true sentiments, not the substance of his claim.

[grantcart]

44. Akin was truthful in expressing his own opinion, now comes the backtracking.

[dkf]

49. He has an opinion that women secrete something when getting raped that prevents pregnancy.

How is that an opinion? It either is true or untrue.

[freshwest]

61. He simply put out the GOP platform in colorful terms. THAT truth.

[wordpix]

68. "The truth is, rape has many victims" ---translation: resulting fetus is a victim if it's aborted

THAT's what asshat means

[bulloney]

6. Akin is only sorry because he's been called out on his ignorant remark.

Had the statement not caused such a firestorm, he would have continued to spew his beliefs in the media and general public, and act like the misogynistic jerk that he appears to be.

[Mr.Bill]

37. Apparently he didn't get the memo...

...that republicans aren't supposed to be saying this stuff until after the election.

[no_hypocrisy]

43. Welcome to DU, Mr. Bill!

[Mr.Bill]

45. Thank you

Glad to be here.

[October]

55. I'll 'second' that welcome!

[Mr.Bill]

59. Thanks!

I'm finding everyone here to be very friendly.

[freshwest]

65. Third that.

[secondwind]

60. God, I hope you are right~!

[Botany]

4. Great Spot

You stay and fight Todd.

[Art_from_Ark]

5. Taking a page out of the Jimmy Swaggert playbook

[marble falls]

23. Sorry, wrong example. Swaggart only whacked off in front of a hooker and he asked for ....

forgiveness. Akins only apologized for using the wrong words while not changing his position on abortion for rape victims and his notion a lot of women claim rape to get an abortion.

[Art_from_Ark]

38. Swaggert and Akin

Two Republicans who wore their religion on their sleeve
Got caught in a situation of their own making with or about women that could potentially end their respective careers
Had an "epiphany" and begged their followers for forgiveness

[marble falls]

72. Still think you're going way too hard on Jimmie. Don't know that he is a Republican, either, ....

do you?

[MarianJack]

7. I can think of 3 possible responses.

Hell No!

Fuck No!

Damn Hell and FUCK NO!

PEACE!

[Bernardo de La Paz]

9. He prays for rape victims. That's the limit of his "compassionate heart". nt

[yardwork]

26. That part was especially offensive. How dare he?

He claims to "pray" for the victims of rape while his entire political career has focused on removing their rights and ensuring that the system will abuse them. He claims to "pray" for victims of rape after stating publicly that he thinks that they are lying sluts.

That makes me furious. How dare he.

[VWolf]

30. Really. Don't fuckin' PRAY for them!

How about actually DOING something to prevent rape in the first place, and when it does happen, give women an option to abort!

Prayer - the last refuge of a scoundrel.

This just makes my blood boil.

[dixiegrrrrl]

50. I'd like to ask him to name the victims he "prays" for.

How fucking condescending can he get?

[freshwest]

66. Have you ever run into people who use that phrase like a curse? I have.

If you don't believe they they think you should, they spit that one out as they bid you Goodbye.

But the vibe coming off of them when they say it is more like, Go to Hell!

[dixiegrrrrl]

67. Yeah, it can come across as very patronizing, can't it?

[SemperEadem]

10. he is sorry for losing all that money from both rove's and the national gop coffers

and by issuing a lame ass apology he thinks that will cure things.

yes, rape has many victims, the primary one being the woman who didn't want the rapist forcing himself onto her in the first place... and if she gets pregnant as a result of it, she should have the option to terminate that pregnancy and akin or no one else has anything to say in that matter.

But just as I expected, he's trying to turn this into a money bomb by asking for donations to help him beat McCaskill; therefore, his apology is disingenuous.

[Berlin Expat]

12. Sounds to me like he's in

until the bitter end.

Good! Let's hang this clown around the neck of the Republican Party like an oversized mutant albatross!

[magical thyme]

15. the wrong words in the wrong way?

How about the wrong beliefs behind those words? Have you changed your thinking about that?

Somehow I doubt it. But you know what? I forgive you (with fingers crossed behind back). Yup. I forgive you so you just keep on running. Because you may or may not pull off your bullshit apology in Missouri, but in the process you will be a lead weight wrapped around Mitten's and Ryan's and the entire rest of the GOP's neck that will sink them like a stone.

[TheCowsCameHome]

16. OK. You're forgiven. All set.

Now forgive the rest of the the world for advocating the trouncing your sorry ass in November.

[jerseyjack]

18. Stay in Todd. We're behind you 110%.

His bigger problem is that his voting record and record of legislation he introduced do not correlate with his apology.

[Codeine]

19. Not really the words that were the problem, dude.

More like the nightmarish pig-ignorance that spawned them in the first fucking place.

[naaman fletcher]

20. I have a tea-bagger friend who knows this guy....

I have a very good friend who is a mormon tea-bagger and lives in Missouri (friend and I worked together for many years), anyway, my friend yesterday was saying how he has had run-ins with this guy before (my friend is a tea-bagger activist). Anyway, my friend says that this guy is the biggest dick on the planet and has told him he is going to hell for being a mormon, etc.

[Berlin Expat]

42. I've heard

rumors that Akins' wife is so wingnutty, she makes her hubby look like Mr. Reasonable in comparison.

Any truth to that rumor?

[naaman fletcher]

47. I'll send him an email right now and get back to you. nt.

[naaman fletcher]

48. friend says he has no knowledge about that but has heard that. nt.

[Berlin Expat]

57. Thanks for

letting me know. Interesting to hear; sounds like she may be a major driving force behind his decision-making process.

[marble falls]

21. He didn't change his words, he only appologized for using them .....

like a Dentist who apologizes for that this is going to hurt, then yanks out the wrong tooth. Akins still believes that pregnant rape victims should carry to term and that a lot of women cry rape to gain abortion.

[reflection]

22. MORON, It's not that you "used the wrong words"

it's that you showed everyone what was behind the curtain. Ass. You need to go, but I sure hope you'll stay.

[JoePhilly]

25. He'll have to live with his mistake for the rest of his life.

At least that's what he'd say to a woman who made the "mistake" of getting raped and becoming pregnant.

[beac]

34. Excellent point! "Wrong words" have rights. He can't just cry "mistake" and abort them.

Wish there was some way to force him to get a trans-something ultrasound as part of his groveling.... :evil:

[sinkingfeeling]

27. OMG, that thing was allowed to recreate and has two daughters! It will take

more than prayer to save those two girls from the evil, hatred of their father.

[jsr]

28. Ok, everything is all good. Keep talking.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

29. Ok, Todd, all is forgiven ...

... pleeeeeze stay on the ballot. Pleeeeeeeze.

[wryter2000]

63. Looks like he is

Unless I'm misunderstanding, it's 5:00 in Missouri right about now, and he hasn't backed down.

[yellowcanine]

32. Useless without the "right words" said in the "right way."

So is he going to allow abortion or emergency contraception (morning after pill) for rape or not? Do tell, Mr. Akin.

[dipsydoodle]

33. Todd Akin endorses rape as a legitimate contraceptive

In an attempt to justify his no-exceptions view on abortions, US congressman Todd Akin has insisted that pregnancy resulting from rape is ‘really rare’ because sexual violence is actually a form of contraception.

During an interview with KTVI-TV on Sunday, Mr Akin said, “If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.”

Mr Akin went on to highlight the money that could be saved from using a more aggressive form of contraception.

“Instead of putting a condom on, why not try a balaclava and some loose fitting trousers,” he said.

Read more: http://newsthump.com/2012/08/21/todd-akin-endorses-rape-as-a-legitimate-contraceptive/#ixzz24BnfzHeJ

[6000eliot]

35. The only way to respond to this heartfelt plea? Fuck off, evil shitbag!

[TruthAnalyzed]

36. "Wrong Words, Wrong Way"

That stupid wording implies that what he was saying is still true, he just didn't say it properly.

Honestly, how stupid can you get. If you are going to ask for forgiveness, you should say "I was wrong", not some stupid political scapegoat crap.

Let's make his campaign slogan:

Todd Akin: Wrong Words, Wrong Idea, Wrong Choice

[CanonRay]

39. There it is; dogwhistle/shoutout to the Christian Right

You can do whatever shit you like, be as big a dumb ass as you can be, but Jesus will forgive you.

[warrprayer]

40. deja vu

?w=500

[qb]

41. Akin's "sin" was speaking his mind to the wrong audience.

He forgot that much of the real Republican agenda must only be spoken of behind closed doors where no microphones are on.

[JBoy]

46. Yup. To be a "real" conservative

you have to nod along with the crazy shit, vote for it when necessary, but you're never supposed to say it out loud.

[secondvariety]

53. And this shit stain

is still ahead in the polls. Why am I not surprised?

[REP]

54. "And one of the victims is my campaign"

[Blue_Tires]

56. his PR team is definitely earning its $$$$

[sandersmab]

71. In replyto the sexual assualt scandal post you made.

I was one of the females stationed at Fort Eustis, VA in H Co, 71st Trans. BN in 1986, that was being abused by the acting 1st Sgt. You don't happen to recall his name do you?

[Blue_Tires]

76. No, sadly...I live sort of close to Fort Eustis

but I've never served, and was 10 years old in '86

[sandersmab]

77. Thank you anyway.

[lark]

58. I will never forgive you

You want to make our daughters suffer twice - once when they get raped and again when they lose total control of their lives by not being allowed to make a decision about their own health, when you make them subordinate to the rapist and his seed. Your apology is lame and obviously a lie. You do not care for rape victims except to exploit them for your personal political or religious views. You, sir, are heinous and your daughters should be so ashamed of you.

[Hubert Flottz]

62. Why?

Did he shit his diaper at the whorehouse too?

[Zoeisright]

70. No.

Not now, not ever, no way in hell. Pray for yourself, asshole.

[awoke_in_2003]

73. Fuck you, Akin...

you said it- live with it.

[truthisfreedom]

74. I don't get how he can believe anyone will accept this. He said one thing,

then he said the opposite. Which one is the truth? I think everyone agrees that the first claim is the one that sticks. His misogyny is so completely evident in his claims about "legitimate rape" that it will never be erased with any apology.

[tclambert]

75. I forgive him. I think what he's done is great for the country--

exposing how hideous mainstream GOP policies are, shining a light on his and VP candidate's Ryan's offensive views on rape and abortion, and demonstrating the sheer stupidity of many Republicans. When was the last time any Republican did anything to help the country see the truth so clearly?