Romney met with rape theorist Dr Jack Willke, "We agree on almost everything."

[retromike22]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/us-election/9493653/US-election-Mitt-Romney-met-Todd-Akin-doctor-Jack-Willke-during-2012-campaign.html

"Dr Willke, a prominent anti-abortion campaigner, claims to be an authority on the theory espoused by Mr Akin that victims of what the Republican congressman called “legitimate rape” do not become pregnant because their bodies “shut down” due to the trauma.

Mr Romney and Paul Ryan, his running mate, have denounced Mr Akin's remarks. Dr Willke has been given no role in Mr Romney’s 2012 campaign and aides stress that the candidate disagrees with his theory on rape.

However, Dr Willke told The Daily Telegraph that he did meet Mr Romney during a presidential primary campaign stop in the doctor's home city of Cincinnati, Ohio, in October last year. Local news reports at the time noted that the candidate held “private meetings” during the visit.

“He told me ‘thank you for your support – we agree on almost everything, and if I am elected President I will make some major pro-life pronouncements’,” Dr Willke said in a telephone interview on Tuesday.

“I thanked him, and said I knew where he was – that he was 99 per cent of what we wanted,” he said of the roughly ten-minute meeting. “I told him I would help in any way I could”. A spokesman for Mr Romney declined to comment."

Why is Romney calling on Akin to exit the race for his comments about "legitimate rape theory", when Romney stated that he agrees with the doctor who advocates the same theory?

Edit: Paul Ryan has also met with him, agrees with the doctor:

"The doctor said that he had also met Mr Ryan, who sits in Congress for the Wisconsin district in which one of his sons lives, several times. He said that after listening to Dr Willke’s views on abortion during their last encounter, Mr Ryan replied: “That’s where I’m at”. "

[Vosem]

"almost"...

[TJ in Wisco]

yeah presumably that comment falls under the category of things they don't agree on.

[GM Griffin]

yeah presumably that comment falls under the category of things they don't agree on.

Not for long.

[For Oklahoma]

okay

[Likely Voter]

There is this guy, Ryan cosponsoring bills with Akin, the GOP platform agreeing with Akin...put that all togehter and that's plenty for a TV ad that makes it look like Mitt Romney wants to tie rape victims to a table and force them to have babies (because they of course deserve it since they werent 'really' raped).

Certainly if the shoe was on the other foot that is the kind of ad Karl Rove would be making about this.

I'm not saying its right or fair, just predicting what is coming

[TJ in Wisco]

There is this guy, Ryan cosponsoring bills with Akin, the GOP platform agreeing with Akin...put that all togehter and that's plenty for a TV ad that makes it look like Mitt Romney wants to tie rape victims to a table and force them to have babies (because they of course deserve it since they werent 'really' raped).

Certainly if the shoe was on the other foot that is the kind of ad Karl Rove would be making about this

No. The GOP platform does not agree with Akin that "legitimate rape does not cause pregnancy." It may not include a rape exception, but there is a huge difference between the two. You can still make the ad, but it's not the same.

[InsaneTrollLogic]

There is this guy, Ryan cosponsoring bills with Akin, the GOP platform agreeing with Akin...put that all togehter and that's plenty for a TV ad that makes it look like Mitt Romney wants to tie rape victims to a table and force them to have babies (because they of course deserve it since they werent 'really' raped).

Certainly if the shoe was on the other foot that is the kind of ad Karl Rove would be making about this

No. The GOP platform does not agree with Akin that "legitimate rape does not cause pregnancy." It may not include a rape exception, but there is a huge difference between the two. You can still make the ad, but it's not the same.

It does...but it doesn't? Okkkkkayyyy...

I wonder how this will work in suburban Denver or Arlington or Tampa..

[Clinton 2016]

lol

[Likely Voter]

There is this guy, Ryan cosponsoring bills with Akin, the GOP platform agreeing with Akin...put that all togehter and that's plenty for a TV ad that makes it look like Mitt Romney wants to tie rape victims to a table and force them to have babies (because they of course deserve it since they werent 'really' raped).

Certainly if the shoe was on the other foot that is the kind of ad Karl Rove would be making about this

No. The GOP platform does not agree with Akin that "legitimate rape does not cause pregnancy." It may not include a rape exception, but there is a huge difference between the two. You can still make the ad, but it's not the same.

Its a logical stream.  The whole thing that gets lost in this debate was that what Todd Akin was saying is laying out the rationale for why rape victims should be forced to give birth to the babies of their rapists attackers. He was justifying that position with his hokus pokus mumbo jumbo. He has since admitted it was BS, but hasnt changed the policy position he was defending. The SAME EXACT policy position held by Paul Ryan (who co-sponsored two bills with Akin introducing 'Forcible Rape' definition). And now that same policy of forcing women to have the babies of their rapists is again in the official GOP platform  for the convention which will nominate Romney. And the father of all that BS giving rationale to that policy is this doctor, who Mitt Romney once touted as an important endorser.

So there are plenty of dots to connect in todays world of TV commercials.

If the Romney team can turn Obama letting some governors experiment with Welfare into "he wants to hand out welfare checks with no work requirement", then yes this whole mess can be linked to Romney pretty easily.

[Mr. Morden]

Willke is the leading modern proponent of the "rape victims don't get pregnant" myth:

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/08/a-canard-that-will-not-die-legitimate-rape-doesnt-cause-pregnancy/261303/

He endorsed Romney in the 2008 presidential primaries.  I presume the Romney campaign didn't know about his rape comments when they touted the endorsement on their website:

http://web.archive.org/web/20071227112415/http:/www.mittromney.com/News/Press-Releases/Endorsement_Willke

"Dr. Willke is a leading voice within the pro-life community and will be an important surrogate for Governor Romney's pro-life and pro-family agenda."

[InsaneTrollLogic]

There is this guy, Ryan cosponsoring bills with Akin, the GOP platform agreeing with Akin...put that all togehter and that's plenty for a TV ad that makes it look like Mitt Romney wants to tie rape victims to a table and force them to have babies (because they of course deserve it since they werent 'really' raped).

Certainly if the shoe was on the other foot that is the kind of ad Karl Rove would be making about this

No. The GOP platform does not agree with Akin that "legitimate rape does not cause pregnancy." It may not include a rape exception, but there is a huge difference between the two. You can still make the ad, but it's not the same.

Its a logical stream.  The whole thing that gets lost in this debate was that what Todd Akin was saying is laying out the rationale for why rape victims should be forced to give birth to the babies of their rapists attackers. He was justifying that position with his hokus pokus mumbo jumbo. He has since admitted it was BS, but hasnt changed the policy position he was defending. The SAME EXACT policy position held by Paul Ryan (who co-sponsored two bills with Akin introducing 'Forcible Rape' definition). And now that same policy of forcing women to have the babies of their rapists is again in the official GOP platform  for the convention which will nominate Romney. And the father of all that BS giving rationale to that policy is this doctor, who Mitt Romney once touted as an important endorser.

So there are plenty of dots to connect in todays world of TV commercials.

If the Romney team can turn Obama letting some governors experiment with Welfare into "he wants to hand out welfare checks with no work requirement", then yes this whole mess can be linked to Romney pretty easily.

[Yank2133]

Mitt has to have the worst luck ever.....something always seems to trip him up.

[Harry]

There is this guy, Ryan cosponsoring bills with Akin, the GOP platform agreeing with Akin...put that all togehter and that's plenty for a TV ad that makes it look like Mitt Romney wants to tie rape victims to a table and force them to have babies (because they of course deserve it since they werent 'really' raped).

Certainly if the shoe was on the other foot that is the kind of ad Karl Rove would be making about this

No. The GOP platform does not agree with Akin that "legitimate rape does not cause pregnancy." It may not include a rape exception, but there is a huge difference between the two. You can still make the ad, but it's not the same.

It's a lot harder to justify forcing rape victims to carry their attacker's baby if you don't soften it with Akinesque pseudoscience, so an ad pointing it out would resonate with most Americans.

[President Marokai]

There is this guy, Ryan cosponsoring bills with Akin, the GOP platform agreeing with Akin...put that all togehter and that's plenty for a TV ad that makes it look like Mitt Romney wants to tie rape victims to a table and force them to have babies (because they of course deserve it since they werent 'really' raped).

Certainly if the shoe was on the other foot that is the kind of ad Karl Rove would be making about this

No. The GOP platform does not agree with Akin that "legitimate rape does not cause pregnancy." It may not include a rape exception, but there is a huge difference between the two. You can still make the ad, but it's not the same.

You really are a useful idiot. Tonal differences aside they result in the exact same policy.

[MorningInAmerica]

I'm not saying its right or fair, just predicting what is coming

And that, my friends (said in best John McCain voice), is what's wrong with our politics.

[shua]

There is this guy, Ryan cosponsoring bills with Akin, the GOP platform agreeing with Akin...put that all togehter and that's plenty for a TV ad that makes it look like Mitt Romney wants to tie rape victims to a table and force them to have babies (because they of course deserve it since they werent 'really' raped).

Certainly if the shoe was on the other foot that is the kind of ad Karl Rove would be making about this

No. The GOP platform does not agree with Akin that "legitimate rape does not cause pregnancy." It may not include a rape exception, but there is a huge difference between the two. You can still make the ad, but it's not the same.

You really are a useful idiot. Tonal differences aside they result in the exact same policy.

So making a medically inaccurate statement is just a "tonal difference"?  You should work for the Akin campaign.

[LINCOLN REPUBLICAN]

This has about as much credibility as the dirty liar Reid has with Romney's taxes.

[Prez Duke]

Why does the GOP have to do what it does? Why? I want to vote for Mittens but I swear they are testing me like no other.

[retromike22]

Why does the GOP have to do what it does? Why? I want to vote for Mittens but I swear they are testing me like no other.

Switch parties and join the Democrats! All are welcome! We accept you! One of us! One of us! Gooble-gobble, gooble-gobble!

[Senator Sbane]

I'm not saying its right or fair, just predicting what is coming

And that, my friends (said in best John McCain voice), is what's wrong with our politics.

The extreme amounts of money in our political system is what is wrong with our politics. Being able to make ridiculous ads is just a side affect of it.

[Senator North Carolina Yankee]

Why does the GOP have to do what it does? Why? I want to vote for Mittens but I swear they are testing me like no other.

Go to the other side of your state, and you might find out.

[Harry]

Why does the GOP have to do what it does? Why? I want to vote for Mittens but I swear they are testing me like no other.

With your PM score, you would belong in the Democrats even if you weren't a Southerner...

[opebo]

Why does the GOP have to do what it does? Why? I want to vote for Mittens but I swear they are testing me like no other.

With your PM score, you would belong in the Democrats even if you weren't a Southerner...

Yeah, really his PM score is probably about the same as Obama's would be.

[Cobbler]

Why does the GOP have to do what it does? Why? I want to vote for Mittens but I swear they are testing me like no other.

Same here.