President Obama on Monday called Rep. Todd Akin’s (R-Mo.) recent remarks about rape “offensive” and sought to tie the Senate candidate to the GOP presidential ticket.
“Rape is rape,” Obama said at a White House press briefing. He called Akin's comments “way out there.”
Defining rape, he said, “doesn't make sense to the American people and doesn't make sense to me.”
“What I think these comments do underscore is why we shouldn’t have a bunch of politicians, the majority of which are men, making decisions that affect health of women,” Obama said.
Democrats have pounced on Akin’s comments, which could make Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) a favorite in the Missouri Senate race overnight.
Akin said in an interview with a local Fox affiliate released on Sunday that, in cases of “legitimate rape,” pregnancy is rare because “the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.”
His apology has not calmed the storm. Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) was among Republicans to distance themselves from Akin, calling on him to leave the Senate race.
The Obama campaign sought to tie Akin to presumptive GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney and vice presidential candidate Rep. Paul Ryan (Wis.), who both have rebuked Akin and said his remarks were "insulting, inexcusable, and frankly, wrong."
For more on the president's remarks, click here.
