I have come to the conclusion that our government should not limit the right to marry based on who you love…Good people disagree with me. On the other hand, my children have a hard time understanding why this is even controversial. I think history will agree with my children.Sen. Claire McCaskill, becoming the 42nd senator to support marriage equality. Extra points for making the announcement on her Tumblr
Listen, I don’t think our platform is the issue. I think a lot of times it’s some of these biologically stupid things that people say, you know, that I believe caused a lot of the problems.RNC chairman Reince Priebus • Diagnosing the problems faced by the Republican Party, which ostensibly played a role in their sound defeat at the voting booth last November, in an interview with Radio Iowa a couple days ago. Piebus’ words (a clear reference to damaging remarks by Senate candidates Todd Akin and Richard Mourdock on rape, among others) could be suggestive of the RNC’s strategic thinking on improving their chances going forward — less emphasis on new policies, perhaps, than on using more tactful rhetoric. source
Bring it on, Karl baby. Bring it on, doughboy. Bring on your little whiteboard.Leading conservative Mark Levin on fellow leading conservative Karl Rove. The remark is emblematic of the civil war brewing in the GOP: On the one side are pragmatists like Rove, who believe the Republican Party needs to nominate more moderate candidates in order to win elections; on the other side are idealists like Levin, who would rather see radical right-wingers lose elections than moderate Republicans win ‘em. The Tea Party contingent of the GOP is outraged at Rove’s newly-unveiled Conservative Victory Project, which seeks to intervene in Republican primaries to make sure that would-be Todd Akins don’t wind up with the nomination. source
And if another Republican man says anything about rape other than it is a horrific, violent crime, I want to personally cut out his tongue. The college-age daughters of many of my friends voted for Obama because they were completely turned off by Neanderthal comments like the suggestion of “legitimate rape.Karen Hughes, former George W. Bush adviser • Voicing her frustrations with the rhetoric on rape and women’s rights from some members of her party leading up to last Tuesday. As both a woman and Republican, Hughes comes by the intensity of her disdain naturally — no less than two GOP Senate candidates in eminently winnable races, Todd Akin and Richard Mourdock, had their chances derailed by high-profile, tone-deaf and offensive comments on rape and pregnancy. The Obama campaign maximized its advantage with female voters to staggering effect this cycle, beating Mitt Romney among single women by 38%. source
If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.The infamous remarks, by GOP Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin, which may indeed have been the irreparable deathblow to his candidacy. Despite calls from prominent Republicans for his withdrawal, Akin stuck it out, and tonight, has been defeated by Missouri incumbent Senator Claire McCaskill, as projected by NBC News.
“I can’t even finish this sentence without getting dumber”: Tina Fey didn’t mince words when discussing recent comments by relatively prominent Republicans on the topic of rape while speaking at the Center for Reproductive Rights Inaugural Gala in New York City. Check out the 75 second clip for a brief clip of Fey’s thoughts on redefining rape, Richard Mourdock, and Todd Akin. source
Akin, who has until Oct. 15 to report his quarterly fundraising figures, was in Washington on Wednesday for a series of fundraisers. But his campaign was again beset by remarks he made about abortion — this time, as video of a 2008 speech Akin delivered on the House floor was recirculated online.
In that address, Akin equated abortion providers to terrorists and suggested that it was “common practice” for them to be “giving abortions to women who are not actually pregnant.” On Wednesday, Akin’s critics sought to link the remarks to his “legitimate rape” comment, which he made while explaining his opposition to abortion.
Someone get this man to a human anatomy class, stat.
I believe in free enterprise. I don’t think the government should be telling people what you pay and what you don’t pay. I think it’s about freedom.Missouri Rep. Todd Akin • Explaining his decision to vote against the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009, intended to close the gap between men and women’s average salary, during a town hall meeting last week. Akin first found himself in the national spotlight after saying that the female body could prevent pregnancy, in cases of “legitimate rape”, during a televised interview back in August. Something tells us that he won’t be winning back many supporters with this line either. source
With Todd Akin’s final withdrawal deadline past, Claire McCaskill has finally pulled out a nice can of you-know-what on the controversial Missouri Senate candidate. Whaddya think?
I’m moving back to New York in a few days. Unlike past...
OMG. I got so...
In this week’s Newsweek, a little...
Tumblr this morning. [h/t anne]
#@#$%!.tumblr.com
Here’s a hidden feature that shipped in...
Watch: PCB gets a visual shout out on GMA’s Yahoo/Tumblr...
Newton to the rescue: Embattled Missouri Senate Candidate Todd “Legitimate Rape” Akin may have been abandoned by the Republican establishment, but he’s not entirely without friends: Akin is getting an assist from failed presidential candidate and “Definer of Civilization“ Newt Gingrich, who will be attending a $500-a-plate fundraiser for Akin’s candidacy this Monday (Photo credit: AP). source
I interviewed Meghan McCain at the RNC in Tampa August 28. Topics included the War on Women, Todd Akin, and the perception of women in the political sphere. McCain also discussed the pressures of being a commentator who’s always in the public eye, and women’s sometimes distorted body image. We also touched on why it’s dangerous for the GOP to seek ideological purity over Ronald Reagan’s big tent.
— Meg
Great interview by Meg, who is one of the Tumblr users that had a chance to visit the RNC this year.
Here’s the final entry in our weekly summer post series, “The Pitch.” (We’ll bring this back at some point, we promise!) This post, written and research by Matthew Keys, examines what we’re calling the ten most-prominent political gaffes of the last decade or so. Follow Matthew on Twitter here.
From zero to infamy in 30 seconds: Before last week, Missouri Senate candidate and current Rep. Todd Akin didn’t have a national profile. He looked like he might take down Claire McCaskill thanks in part to changing demographics in the state. But thanks to a half-minute comment on the nature of abortion, Akin is down as much as ten points in a recent poll. He felt the wrath of the gaffe. And he’s not alone. Gaffes have taken on a life of their own in modern political coverage. So with that in mind, SFB contributor Matthew Keys (who you might know from his epic Twitter account) has thrown together a list of the worst gaffes of the past ten years. Which is the worst? Find out after the jump.
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