Todd Akin is still pretending that he merely “misspoke” when he claimed that women don’t get pregnant from rape because their bodies shut down. He and his supporters are still acting as if the problem was merely with his use of the word “legitimate.”
After 12 years representing Missouri’s 2nd Congressional District, this infamous quote, “If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down,” derailed his campaign and his reputation.
Would he take those six seconds back?
Akin said, “Oh, of course I would! I’ve relived them too many times. But that is not reality.”
In the past, Akin said he regrets those remarks but does he believe they are true? Does he believe in his heart that the female body can stop a pregnancy in the case of a rape?
Akin said, “No, no and I apologized for that. All of us are fallible, we make mistakes, and we say things the wrong way. I really lived that moment many, many times.”
But this was not just a case of saying something the wrong way. He actually believed, and probably still believes, that rape does not lead to pregnancy. Lots and lots of anti-choice types believe that nonsense. He didn’t misspeak. He wasn’t taken out of context. He actually believes that.
