Political Animal
Blog
In her Missouri primary recap this morning, Blue Girl reported great glee in the camp of Sen. Claire McCaskill over the decision by GOP voters to make Rep. Todd Akin her opponent. As national political folk begin to take a closer look at Akin, Democratic satisfaction at his nomination becomes very understandable.
Steve Benen has a quick greatest-hits compilation of some of Akin’s more inflammatory remarks over the years:
The congressman believes the very existence of the federal student-loan program is a “stage-three cancer of socialism.” He’s also eager to eliminate the minimum wage, believes liberalism is based on “a hatred of God,” believes the Bible should be a “blueprint” for American government; and wants to impeach President Obama because, in his mind, the president is “a complete menace to our civilization.”
All righty then. But it gets even better: Akin’s not one of those rich “patriots” who has emerged from his job-creatin’ private-sector career to play Mr. Smith Goes to Washington: he’s a career politician who has been in public office since 1989, and in Congress since 2001. So he has a long voting record through which he has expressed his extremist views, and as Greg Sargent illustrated today, you don’t have to dig too far to find some bright gems. My personal favorite is his vote (along with 11 Republicans and against 159 Republicans) against a sense-of-the-House resolution suggesting that the National School Breakfast Program has “had a positive impact on classroom performance.” I’m sure there’s a lot more nuggets buried in the Congressional Record.
One little item in Akin’s biography caught my attention: he holds a divinity degree from Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis. Covenant is affiliated with the Presbyerian Church in America, a fundamentalist denomination formed in revolt against the “liberalism” of the mainline Presbyterian Church (USA). More interestingly, the school is home to the Francis Schaeffer Institute, named for and continuing the mission of the famous conservative evangelical controversialist who, among other things, is usually credited with convincing many of his coreligionists to join the fight against legalized abortion as a top priority.
Schaeffer also loved to joist with people who didn’t agree with him, and thus it’s not surprising the Institute named after him claims it “exists to train God’s servants to demonstrate compassionately and defend reasonably the claims of Christ upon the whole of life.” From everything I’ve heard and read about Todd Akin, he could have used a little extra training in compassion and reasonableness.
All in all, Akin could be this cycle’s Sharron Angle or Christine O’Donnell. That’s not to say he’ll be easy to beat: after all, Rand Paul and Jim DeMint are in the Senate today, and Ted Cruz looks sure to join them.
Facebook
Twitter
Hedda Peraz on August 08, 2012 5:02 PM:
"I’m sure there’s a lot more nuggets buried in the Congressional Record."
Unless it is on videotape and can be used in McCaskill TeeVee spots, it DID NOT HAPPEN!
Equal Opportunity Cynic on August 08, 2012 5:03 PM:
Off-topic, Ed, I'm surprised you haven't picked up the topic that's all over TPM at the moment about Romney offering his health care plan in MA as a reason why his presidency won't kill us from lack of health insurance. What a bizarre development.
c u n d gulag on August 08, 2012 5:14 PM:
These greedy, angry, hate-filled, stupid, ignorant, racist, misogynistic, xenophobic, and/or homophobic, borderline insane people, are the new faces of the Republican Party.
And there are only a few things that can save this country from a Dominionist Christian Fascist future as the worlds best-armed Banana Republic:
-The changing demographics kill them as a viable party.
-Or, they commit political suicide by being too crazy for the majority of voters.
Their base, will be with them - forever.
But that's about 27%. We need another 24% of the people to see the light in the darkness of their souls.
The only other possiblity is that the remaining non-crzy members of the party decide to take it back, somehow or other.
But I haven's seen an atom of that kind of resolve (yet?).
Right now, the Dr. Frankensteins of their party are running scared, afraid not only that the monster of their own creation will kill them, but so will the villagers that their monster seems to have co-oped.
Sadly, the fate of this country may very well rest in the balance.
T2 on August 08, 2012 5:17 PM:
Unfortunately, there is a very good chance Akin will become a US Senator, joining the aforementioned cretins. Obama will begin his second term looking at a House that likely will reject anything he tries to do and a Senate that will obstruct anything he tries to do. Maybe I'm being pessimistic.
Joanne from PA on August 08, 2012 5:22 PM:
Continued praise for BlueGirl in Kansas for her insightful reporting.
Ron Byers on August 08, 2012 5:34 PM:
Joanne,
BlueGirl lives in Kansas City, Missouri. I know her. We are friends. Missouri is not Kansas. I do applaud her reporting and the reporting of the entire Show Me Progress blog. It is about the only news source in Missouri with a progressive slant.
When Hedda Peraz says the oppo research has to be something that will fit into a McCaskill tv ad she isn't kidding. The media in this state is totally in the tank for Republicans.
By the way, Claire needs cash. Rove is pouring millions in to this state.
Ron Byers on August 08, 2012 5:37 PM:
Ed, you might want to blog a little about the funding of down ballot races. Democrats seem to be totally focused on Obama's race, but Rove and the Koch Brothers are pouring millions into down ballot races. Why aren't we even thinking about them?
Whippet Good on August 08, 2012 7:21 PM:
Unfortunately, we're talking Missouri here. I predict there are just enough slack jawed yokels there to get this douche bag elected. St. Louis and Kansas City will go for Claire, but there's a lot of space in between that won't. I hope I'm wrong.
IP Guy on August 08, 2012 7:36 PM:
Folks need to stop including Ted Cruz with the Jim DeMints and Rand Pauls of the world. Cruz is far, far more dangerous -- he's genuinely brilliant, and a real intellectual force. He isn't merely some reflexive ideologue, but someone who ran the appellate practice for one of the top law firms in the country and who has argued multiple cases before the Supreme Court. He has the potential to be a real game changer for the GOP, and should not be underestimated. The Dems don't currently have someone in Congress with both his heavyweight intellect and political skills who resonates with their base. They need to find that person, stat.
David Martin on August 08, 2012 9:49 PM:
IP Guy, Cruz may be smarter than Obama (very few law students got to clerk for Chief Justice Rehnquist), but DeMint seems to have a superlative command of how to disburse money. He seems to have done a great job of making the Senate a welcoming place for his soon-to-be colleague.
Big River Bandido on August 09, 2012 1:35 AM:
Senator Delinquent Taxes On Her Private Plane is an embarrassment to the Democratic Party and the state of Missouri. Pretty hard to celebrate that one of the worst so-called Democrats drew an even dumber general election opponent.
Joanne from PA on August 09, 2012 12:49 PM:
Ron Byers--
I meant to type Kansas City in my post but closed out my comment too quickly and in a rush--and thus made an error.
Indeed Missouri is not Kansas. :)
Siegfried Moser on August 21, 2012 5:54 PM:
"IP Guy, Cruz may be smarter than Obama (very few law students got to clerk for Chief Justice Rehnquist)."
How many law students were in line?