When I read about Todd Akin's ignorant comments about how "legitimate rape" doesn't lead to pregnancy, I went ballistic. First, I wrote about it on my local blog, but that didn't feel like enough. So I did something that I only rarely do in life: I created a new Facebook page. I invite you, if you indulge in Facebook, to like it.
The thrust of the Facebook page is this: Rep. Akin's comments are so ignorant, so far out of line, so completely unacceptable, that even his fellow Republican nominees for U.S. Senate have to condemn them. I included all of his fellow nominees on the page; they are included in the list below.
I expect one or two nominees -- maybe Linda Lingle and Scott Brown -- to condemn Akin's remarks. The rest -- I don't know if they have the decency and the fortitude. I put this request onto California Senate nominee Elizabath Akin's Facebook page just after I wrote my story -- and I was gone.
We need to make this horrific, telling blunder memorable. We need to put the GOP Senate candidates on the spot, so they can in turn put Rep. Akin on the spot, so that no one ever does this particular foolish thing again. Like my page and start contacting people listed below -- especially the one in your state.
Let's turn this into a rout. Until Rep. Akin ends up feeling like Wile E. Coyote, I won't feel satisfied.
Here's the full list of GOP nominees for U.S. Senate:
* Jeff Flake of Arizona
* Elizabeth Emken of California
* Linda McMahon of Connecticut
* Kevin Wade of Delaware
* Cornelius McGillicuddy of Florida
* Linda Lingle of Hawaii
* Richard Mourdock of Indiana
* Charlie Summers of Maine
* Dan Bongino of Maryland
* Scott Brown of Massachusetts
* Peter Hoekstra of Michigan
* Kurt Bills of Minnesota
* Roger Wicker of Mississippi
* Denny Rehberg of Montana
* Deb Fischer of Nebraska
* Dean Heller of Nevada
* Joseph Kyrillos of New Jersey
* Heather Wilson of New Mexico
* Wendy Long of New York
* Rick Berg of North Dakota
* Josh Mandel of Ohio
* Tom Smith of Pennsylvania
* Barry Hinckley of Rhode Island
* Bob Corker of Tennessee
* Ted Cruz of Texas
* Orrin Hatch of Utah
* John MacGovern of Vermont
* George Allen of Virginia
* Michael Baumgartner of Washington
* John Raese of West Virginia
* Tommy Thompson of Wisconsin
* John Barrasso of Wyoming
Please contact these Republican nominees for U.S. Senate and ask them to stand up for honesty and decency and condemn Rep. Todd Akin's ignorant, damaging, and embarrassing remarks.
7:56 PM PT: Page now has over 50 likes. Not bad for a few hours on a Sunday.