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A Georgia Republican congressman said that former Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin, R, was "partly right" in asserting that victims of "legitimate rape" rarely become pregnant.
Rep. Phil Gingrey, R-Ga., a former obstetrician-gynecologist, said at a town hall meeting that Akin was “partly right” in his controversial suggestion, which was widely cited as a factor in his loss to Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill, D, this past November.
Gingrey said, according to the Marietta Daily Journal:
“And in Missouri, Todd Akin … was asked by a local news source about rape and he said, ‘Look, in a legitimate rape situation’ — and what he meant by legitimate rape was just look, someone can say I was raped: a scared-to-death 15-year-old that becomes impregnated by her boyfriend and then has to tell her parents, that’s pretty tough and might on some occasion say, ‘Hey, I was raped.’ That’s what he meant when he said legitimate rape versus non-legitimate rape. I don’t find anything so horrible about that. But then he went on and said that in a situation of rape, of a legitimate rape, a woman’s body has a way of shutting down so the pregnancy would not occur. He’s partly right on that.”
[...]
“And I’ve delivered lots of babies, and I know about these things. It is true. We tell infertile couples all the time that are having trouble conceiving because of the woman not ovulating, ‘Just relax. Drink a glass of wine. And don’t be so tense and uptight because all that adrenaline can cause you not to ovulate.’ So he was partially right wasn’t he? But the fact that a woman may have already ovulated 12 hours before she is raped, you’re not going to prevent a pregnancy there by a woman’s body shutting anything down because the horse has already left the barn, so to speak. And yet the media took that and tore it apart.”
Akin originally told KTVI-TV in August: “First of all, from what I understand from doctors, [pregnancy from rape] is really rare. If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.”
Republicans quickly distanced themselves from Akin, urging him to end his bid for Senate to allow another GOP candidate to step forward. Mitt Romney, then the party’s presidential nominee, publicly said that Akin should end his campaign.
However, Akin, a congressman, resisted the calls for him to drop out, giving Democrats fodder to paint Republicans as out-of-touch with women voters. Another GOP Senate candidate, Indiana’s Richard Mourdock, also gave fodder to Democrats when he suggested that pregnancies by rape were “something God intended.” (Mourdock, like Akin, lost a Senate race on which Republicans had been counting to win.)
Gingrey addressed the cost of those controversies before making his own assessment of the science behind Akin’s remarks:
“Part of the reason the Dems still control the Senate is because of comments made in Missouri by Todd Akin and Indiana by Mourdock were considered a little bit over the top ... Mourdock basically said ‘Look, if there is conception in the aftermath of a rape, that’s still a child, and it’s a child of God, essentially.’ Now, in Indiana, that cost him the election.”
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Jesus H. Christ! OK from this time forward no Republican can issue any statement unless they summit it to ME, before hand. Republican gaffes are the gift that keeps on giving. Boys! better to remain silent and thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubt. You making things tough for 2014. Two words- shut up!
Celtic 1 - two words - too late
Two Words: Your Correct
Republicans / Tea Party / Conservatives are pro-birth they are not pro life - if they were pro life they would not be against health care, food stamps, schools meals, aid to dependent children or in favor of the death penalty
I'm not opposed to those things- as long as they are not abused. Death Penalty- whole another can of worms. Let me ask you one question- you would prefer to keep alive at 50k per year the Sandy Hook shooter (Had he not killed himself) or The Colorado theater shooter? Should Tim McVeigh still be alive? just asking
fair question and debate - one I have with my own grown children. while what those murderers did was abhorrent - if you are a pro life person, I do not understand how you can exclude the death penalty. if you qualify your position based on who is worthy to live or die, are you not putting yourself in the place of a Higher Power. Personally I am pro choice and also believe we should not have a death penalty. I know it gets confusing sometime even to myself. just my opinion. I really cannot understand how a group of people can call themselves pro life and stop caring about a life after it is born
I appreciate your thoughts. I can only say for me, I regard innocent life as precious,that includes the unborn child. I think some crimes are so horrible, so cruel they go beyond the pale of what a civilized society can tolerant. You are right its a fine line, who among us can make that call who should die?
I would rather pay 50k per year and have them disappear never to be seen again, rather than spending millions fighting appeals and giving them a public forum.
The other factor to consider is that our legal system is not perfect, they make mistakes. We can not undo executing someone. So, until our legal processes are perfect 100% of the time, the death penalty should be off the table in terms of options.
It doesn't stop or end, but the really frightening thing is that these people really believe what they say and those that listen believe it too. What's with Ryan and another Personhood Bill, co-sponsored with another loon--this one I understand is even more restrictive than the Akin one, can't they keep their heads out from under my skirt?
First rule of holes: When you find yourself in one, stop digging.
Well, let's cut to the chase here. The root problem here is not really that this idiot said what he did. Idiots are everywhere. The REAL problem are that the voters of Georgia voted for this idiot (and all the other wingnuts across our country... Akin, Bachmann, etc)
No free passes for voters. YOU voted for this idiocy, so by simple mathematical equation, the people of GEORGIA are the REAL idiots.
but have a bit of mercy on the sane people who live in Southern states - try not to lump them all in one fruit basket - it feels really bad to those of us who live in the South and are not prejudiced, ignorant or Tea Party - just saying
Hey Occupy, don't forget my fellow Texans that voted for Cruz - they fall smack dab in the middle of STUPID.
Oh dear, they let GOPukes as be doctors despite their mental retardation?
Great, say something sooooooooo dumb that others have to help you find a way & explain it for you. interjecting so much logic/BS that we should all think, now he said something totaly different. Out of the 9 that made such statements 0 got elected. Thats what happens when your so out of touch.
#49736431
#49736431
Attempting to glean anything accurate from what that lunatic said is just a political move to lessen the impact of his irrational thinking. I wish partisan politics would stop, it's harming this nation more than any enemy our country has ever faced, and Rep. Phil Gingrey is just another example of one politician coming to the aid of another idiot in office. I wish they'd spend the time working on helping this country instead of digging us deeper into a hole.
My God, what lengths will the GOP go to next to try and make themselves look legitimate. This used to be doctor, say Todd Akin was "partly right" because the women ovulated before the Rape??? Yes that's may be true, but that nothing to do with Akin's ignorant rant. They are both knuckle draggin apes, that need to be put back in the zoo.
Absolutely insane. This moron is still in the congress?
I am just assuming that Gingrey is testing the waters. Or just loves to stir S**T, which is so typical of the Right wing, I am close to placing the dude on the same level with McCain. Then he hoes on to say "“Part of the reason the Dems still control the Senate is because of comments made in Missouri by Todd Akin and Indiana by Mourdock were considered a little bit over the top". That sounds similar to Romneys son saying his dad really never wanted to be president. Again, a right wing "Scape Goat."
To think, at one time intelligence and education were prized in this country, and our leaders were supposed to be a little smarter then most of us.
Where and when (and how) did that go so wrong?
Oh yeah. Triple down on stupid.
It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt.
Mark Twain
Just Sayin'...The Amazing Extent to Which the GOP Will Bulldoze Truths to create pathways platoons of professional liars and mercenary politicians to invade and make war on intelligences.
Is The GOP so corrupted by ignorance and scam that it never longer has a code?
GOP = corrupt through and through.
THINGS, of course the GOP has a code: THE PARTY ABOVE ALL.
Just another republican fool defecating through his mouth. legitimate rape indeed. More like illegitimate brain cells on the loose.
Women are less likely to become pregnant during a rape based on simple statistics - when women ovulate and are fertile, they are usually more receptive to sexual activity. Therefore they are more likely to become pregnant when they consent. A woman chosen at random by a rapist and not offering consent is less likely to be fertile because it has nothing to do with HER desires. She's at whatever random point in her fertility cycle. That's likely the primary reason for any statistical disparity between rape and consensual sex resulting in pregnancy.
Akin had no idea what he was talking about, and this guy Gingrey trying to whitewash it with his idea of context ("partially right"???) is just ridiculous.
It always fascinates me when people who call themselves conservatives in favor of small government object to a woman deciding how to manage her own health.
Typical GOPer - they're so stupid they don't know they're stupid!
This would be comical if it weren't so awful. Why do these old white male GOP politicians think it's okay to talk like this? RAPE IS RAPE. There's no such thing as "non-legitimate rape". If you want to say false accusation of rape, fine, but stop conflating the two. It's disgusting, this asshat should have his medical license pulled.
As usual, the Repubs are just simply out of touch. Fox News has taught them that if someone says something loud and repeatedly, people will start to believe it - even to the point of dinosaurs sharing planet time with Jesus. What they don't get is that there are an awful lot of people who find their psuedo-scientific remarks to be what they are - lies. People can't afford to believe lies anymore, so they don't. That's what makes statements like Gingrey's and Akin's so embarrasingly ignorant; the percentage of people who won't be disgusted by their ridiculous remarks is getting smaller and smaller. Yeah, I think it's good to keep the thread alive - every bit as much as the gun control thread.
At one level your really have to admire the GOP's gumption. How do you defend the un-defendable? What's next? Hitler wasn't completely wrong with his final solution? Where does the GOP's nonsense end?
So, being partly right is actually not right at all.
Like a moth drawn to the flame... Gingrey is trying to commit political suicide. Well, obviously, he failed biology, but that seems to be the norm.
This guy is a nut too. Talking about ovulation and rape. Not ovulating because of stress I can see but has nothing to do with rape. Ovulation has to occur first.
I don't think so, actually. I hate to offer even a partial defense of the guy, but sperm can remain viable for an extended period in the female body. So if a woman starts ovulating AFTER insemination, she could possibly become pregnant. Not sure how common this is though.
But here's the thing - adrenaline can subside from the body pretty quickly. Wouldn't the ovulation cycle "resume" after that?
The GOP is hell bent on becoming part of our history and not part of our future. They say the economy is the most important thing to focus on, and then spend all their time working on anything but the economy. This hypocrisy drove any rational fiscal conservative out of the party. The social conservatives believe in big government; that the government should tell us how to live and sit in our bedrooms telling us how to love. They talk fiscal conservative, while walking social conservative. They talk small govt, while walking big govt.