The Missouri Mess

Sometimes you can see exactly what's going on, and sometimes you can't. You look at a situation and just are forced to scratch your head.

I'm talking about the Missouri Senate Race, and the Republican candidate, Todd Akin. I am very curious what everybody in this mess is smoking.

Background is this, basically. Representative Akin in Pro-Life, to the point that he opposes abortion for rape and incest. Apparently he was on a TV interview recently where he 'misspoke':

The uproar began Sunday, when St. Louis television station KTVI aired an interview in which Akin was asked if he would support abortions for women who have been raped.
"It seems to me, first of all, from what I understand from doctors, that's really rare. If it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down," Akin said.

First, in Todd's defense, I seem to recall being told exactly that same information in high school Biology class. I have no idea if the theory is still considered sound, or even if it was considered sound in the late seventies, but I seem to recall that if a woman was raped, her body would endure stresses that would create hormones that would cause a 'spontaneous abortion'. If I remember correctly, this was presented in Biology class as fact. So, he may have had some basis for misspeaking.

But my concern is the reaction from the RIGHT. I was listening to Hannity yesterday when he was brow-beating this guy to quit the Senate race. It raised my eyebrows, especially after all of the Tea Party support that Hannity has proclaimed.

In the Primary, Akin was the Tea Party favorite, handily beating the party's backed nominee. Allegedly some of commercials that supported him in the Primary were paid for by Clare McCaskill, his Democratic opponent in the General Election. Whether it is true, or just sour grapes that McCaskill was picking the candidate easiest to beat in the general election, Akin did win.

Yesterday Hannity was trying to guilt this guy into quitting the race, making it seem that the entire recapturing of the Senate for the Republicans rides on Akin beating McCaskill; a determination that is now in doubt. He was constantly brow beating Akin with how important his win was to the Republican party.

But Akin believes he can still win. and is refusing to quit. So, in response, the National Republican party is threatening to not contribute any funds to his campaign.

It is vitally important to win Missouri, but apparently not important enough to back Akin? What!?!?!?!

I'll tell you what I think. I think the Republican establishment is getting afraid of all of the Tea Party candidates, and has seen a way to get rid of one. That last thing they want is to have a 51 member Senate, with 10 of them being Tea Party. It might mean the end of big government.

The only thing that doesn't fit is Hannity's spiel yesterday. Unless the Tea Party support from him has been a shill, and he is actually an establishment plant?

Otherwise, I don't see how this one misstatement can become that big of an issue.

Something just doesn't pass the smell test with me.

UPDATE: Listening to Limbaugh right now. He started off talking big support for Akin, but them drifted into a call for him to make a "Good" decision, with "what's best for the country in mind". Apparently also, if Akin quits before 5:00pm today, the republican Party gets to pick the replacement.

Something didn't smell right before; now it is reaching the high odor of rotting flesh. I think I'm right; the Republican establishment is scared to death that they will need to take Tea Party concerns in to account while governing in 2013.

And their not liking it.