Should a presidential candidate refuse to take questions on a controversial topic? If Mitt Romney is the touchstone, the answer is yes. It seems that the Romney campaign set interview parameters for a reporter, Shaun Boyd of CBS 4 in Denver. She was peremptorily told not to ask about abortion or— the currently toxic Republican— Todd Akin, whose misspoken “legitimate rape” comments have earned him a well-deserved niche in the political hall of infamy.
I can’t say I’m surprised the Mittster has taken the low road of expedient evasiveness. He is after all the master shape-shifter. Why it even took him 48 hours to insist that Akin bow out of his senate race in Missouri. It’s almost part of the Romney DNA not to do or say anything without first checking the anemometer of public opinion.
Well, Mitt can run, but he can’t hide. When I looked last, Hurricane Isaac was still on course to hit Tampa on Monday. Though Romney may be having more agita about another looming storm —Todd Akin. Akin plans on attending the convention. Can the Etch-A-Sketch candidate keep dodging those verboten topics under such circumstances?
Adding to the volatile mix, James Bopp— who drafted the Republican platform— has denied that its ban on abortion has no exceptions. Bopp does admit the platform supports a constitutional amendment which would define ‘personhood’ at the moment of conception. The amendment perforce would extend the due process and equal protection provisions of the 14th Amendment to the unborn. This would effectively repeal Roe v. Wade and decimate the Right to Choose movement. Mitt’s running mate, Paul Ryan, co-sponsored such a bill in the House. Indeed, Ryan worked hand in glove with his diligent and committed co-sponsor.
The co-sponsor? The same conservative troglodyte who thinks women don’t get pregnant when they’re raped. The other hurricane headed for Tampa. The beleaguered Todd Akin.
Filed under: politics