|
| Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock pauses during a news in Indianapolis, Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012, to explain the comment he made during last night Senate debate. Mourdock said that when a woman becomes pregnant during a rape, "that's something God intended." Mourdock has been locked in a close contest with Democratic Rep. Joe Donnelly. |
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Just as Mitt Romney and other Republicans had cut into the Democrats' advantage with female voters, a tea party-backed Senate candidate's awkward remark - that if rape leads to pregnancy it's "something God intended" - has propelled the emotional issue of abortion back to the political forefront. It's put GOP candidates in tight races, from the presidential candidate on down, on the defensive.
Divisive
social issues are hardly what most GOP candidates want to be discussing
in the few days remaining until elections largely hinging on jobs and
the economy. Almost immediately after Richard Mourdock's comment,
Republican candidates distanced themselves from the Indiana state
treasurer - though by varying degrees.
The
Romney campaign said Wednesday that the presidential nominee disagreed
with Mourdock but stood by his endorsement of the Senate candidate.
There were no plans to drop a Romney testimonial ad for Mourdock that
began airing in Indiana on Monday.
Mourdock's
comment in a Tuesday night debate came in answer to a question on when
abortion should or should not be allowed. Said Romney spokeswoman Andrea
Saul: "We disagree on the policy regarding exceptions for rape and
incest but still support him."
Reaction was quick from Republican senators and candidates rejecting Mourdock's statement.
Massachusetts
Sen. Scott Brown, struggling to hold onto his seat against a challenge
from Democrat Elizabeth Warren, said he was "a pro-choice Republican and
that's not what I believe and I disagree with what he said." Pressed on
his support for Mourdock's candidacy, Brown said that was up to Indiana
voters.
Connecticut Republican Linda McMahon,
bidding for the Senate seat there, called Mourdock's remarks "highly
inappropriate and offensive. They do not reflect my beliefs as a woman
or a pro-choice candidate."
New Hampshire Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte, who had planned to campaign with Mourdock in Indiana, canceled her appearance.
In
Wisconsin, former Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson, who faces Democratic
Rep. Tammy Baldwin, called Mourdock's comments "really sad."
"I've
got a wife and two daughters and six granddaughters," he said in an
interview. "Anything dealing with rape against women is uncalled for.
Period. No tolerance whatsoever."
Mourdock's
debate comment recalled GOP Senate candidate Todd Akin's remark in
August about rape and pregnancy. The Missouri congressman said women's
bodies have ways of preventing pregnancy in cases of "legitimate rape."
Republicans, led by Romney, called for Akin to abandon the race, but he
refused and is pressing ahead against Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill.
Romney
and several Republicans have been moderating their positions in the
campaign's closing days, making their final pitch to the independents,
undecideds and female voters whose votes could tip both the presidential
election and majority control of the Senate. Recent national polls have
shown Obama's edge with female voters shrinking to single digits.
Mourdock's
comment rattled the races, including his own surprisingly competitive
contest with Rep. Joe Donnelly. Mourdock had prevailed over six-term
Sen. Richard Lugar in a bitter GOP primary in May.
Democrats,
who have pushed the narrative of a Republican "war on women," eagerly
made Mourdock's comment an issue for Romney and Senate GOP candidates.
The Democrats are increasingly hopeful that they can hold their slim
Senate advantage despite defending 23 seats to the GOP's 10.
The
Obama campaign said the president found Mourdock's comments "outrageous
and demeaning to women," and it contended they were "a reminder that a
Republican Congress working with a Republican President Mitt Romney
would feel that women should not be able to make choices about their own
health care."
Said spokeswoman Jen Psaki of Romney: "It is perplexing that he wouldn't demand to have that ad taken down."
On
Tuesday night, Mourdock was asked during the closing minutes of a
debate with Donnelly whether abortion should be allowed in cases of rape
or incest.
"I struggled with it myself for a
long time, but I came to realize that life is that gift from God. And, I
think, even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that
it is something that God intended to happen," Mourdock said.
At a news conference Wednesday, the state treasurer stood by his statement but suggested he had been misunderstood.
"I
think that God can see beauty in every life," Mourdock said.
"Certainly, I did not intend to suggest that God wants rape, that God
pushes people to rape, that God wants to support or condone evil in any
way."
Another tea party-backed candidate, Rep.
Joe Walsh, R-Ill., said last week that medical advances mean women no
longer die in pregnancies and the exceptions for abortion are
unnecessary. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
called that comment inaccurate since "pregnancy is not a risk-free life
event." The organization said more than 600 women die each year from
pregnancy or childbirth-related reasons.
As
for Mourdock, the National Republican Senatorial Committee stood by its
candidate and argued that his words were being taken out of context.
"Richard
and I, along with millions of Americans - including even Joe Donnelly -
believe that life is a gift from God. To try and construe his words as
anything other than a restatement of that belief is irresponsible and
ridiculous," said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, chairman of the committee.
Senate
Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said it is "incredibly
irresponsible for anyone to take what Richard said about his views on
life to demean his opposition to the detestable act of rape."
Cornyn
had criticized Akin in August and called on him to abandon the Missouri
race at a time when the GOP had a chance to put a replacement candidate
on the ballot. Republicans have no opportunity now to make a change 13
days to the election in Indiana.
This month,
the Republican Senatorial Committee has spent more than $1.2 million on
ads criticizing Donnelly. The Republican-favoring group Crossroads GPS
invested nearly $1.1 million on Wednesday to run ads against the
Democrat.
In the most competitive Senate races, however, Republicans were quick to react negatively.
In
Arizona, Republican Rep. Jeff Flake's campaign said his "pro-life
position has always included exceptions for rape, incest and to protect
the life of the mother, so he does not agree with some of the comments
made by other candidates on this issue."
Still,
Flake's rival, former U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona, tried to
use the firestorm over Mourdock's remark in the Arizona race.
"Jeff
Flake's record is in lockstep with the ignorant and dangerous comments
and positions we've seen come from U.S. Senate candidates across the
country," said Elizabeth Kenigsberg, a Carmona campaign spokeswoman.
In
Nevada, Republican Sen. Dean Heller also disagreed with the comments
from Mourdock. Heller is in a close race with Democrat Shelley Berkley.
