Politix

Prev Next
Featured Quizzes
Politix Daily Headlines
Featured Debates
Issues

See all 17 issues

People
White House

See all people

SPEAKING TERMS

GOP Hoping to Shut Down the Rape Comments

A new training program, advice from strategists aims to help keep Republican lawmakers from stirring up controversy

Next>

by Lisa Fine

Staff Writer t

By Cafe Express

Republicans want members of their party to stop making controversial comments about rape.

The recent backlash after Georgia Rep. Phil Gingrey attempted to explain defeated Senate candidate Todd Akin's rape remarks gave many a bad case of deja vu. Gingrey said Akin was "partially right" when he said last year that a woman has the power to shut down a pregnancy from a "legitimate rape," Politico reported.

This new round of controversy over Gingrey's comments has made some Republican operatives determined to prevent future incidents. Kevin Madden, who was a senior adviser in Mitt Romney's campaign offered some clear cut advice.

"This is actually pretty simple. If you're about to talk about rape as anything other than a brutal and horrible crime, stop," he told Politico. "Our pro-life values as a party should be framed in terms of the culture of life. It's easy enough to do that. It shouldn't be conflated with other issues."

The Susan B. Anthony list, an anti-abortion group, has been developing a training program to keep candidates and lawmakers from making such controversial statements. The group's president Marjorie Dannenfelser told Poltico that lawmakers who make the comments are falling for a trap set by supporters of abortion rights who want to focus the debate on extreme situations like rape instead of other abortions. The program will "make sure that in future elections, a candidate can never with a straight face say, 'I never thought about that' or 'I got caught flat-footed,'" she said.

Via Politico

Like this article? B Vote Up
?

Will a training program help prevent politicians from making controversial rape comments?

View results

Comments (view in Forum)

  • bsking
    !
    What they need training for is to talk in a manner that the low information voter will understand. because we're going to have to convert some of those low information voters into responsible citizens if the country is to survive this communist president
  • FollowTheMoney
    !
    It is sad. It's sad that these politicians take classes on how to deceive and manipulate us, we know what their doing, yet we still allow this treachery to continue. Some of us even support their efforts.
  • martydotcom
    !
    @bsking Please explain how you right wingers are locked into a cycle of repeating the same stupid thing over and over again, and some how you're expecting a different result????
    For 2012 we had Aiken and Mourdock working against their party and now for the midterms thankfully with a congress not even a few weeks old, Bachmann and Rep. Gingrey, who says Todd Akin is ‘Partly Right, stepped right up to fill the void.. I'd do my training with a baseball bat with these numbnuts
  • View all 9 replies >
  • texas_cutie75
    !
    So this will be teaching politicians the "right" thing to say? Before y'all start in in me, please allow me a couple of comments. One, no one (man or woman) should ever be raped. EVER!! What decisions made by the victim should be their own. ALWAYS.
  • o
    woodtick57
    !
    yes, saying things that are not medically true should be taught. sadly, it shouldn't even need to be taught, especially to senators and representatives.
  • Denizen_Kate
    !
    You cannot cure ignorance or stubborn stupidity. A program like this will only shut these guys up, and they will no longer show themselves to be the total asshats they are. I'd rather know. Let them say what they think (if you can call it thinking).
  • Thunderchicken
    !
    I don't think it'll help. I have to think that most of these guys have gone through some sort of media training already. I've been through media training and it hasn't helped me. ;-)
  • View all 8 replies >
  • DARSB
    !
    If " training" is the cure Rep Gingrey, an OBGYN, shouldn't need much, huh?

    Actually, my favorite part of this story is Marjorie's claim that somehow devil liberals cause Republicans to say silly things. And here I thought it was just natural talent.:-)
  • PNWest
    !
    The people of the United States disagree with the GOP on pretty much all major issues. The only way that they win elections is by NOT talking about the issues. They demonize minority groups like blacks, gays and women by using code words like "Welfare Queens", "urban lifestyle", "illegal immigrants" to appeal to the prejudices of lower class whites. The GOP really only represents the wealthiest 5-10% of the country. They fire up their base by saying they will "crack down on illegal immigration", "stand up for the 2nd amendment", "outlaw abortion" and be "tough on crime". The fools that vote for them never realize that when the GOP is in power that the GOP governs for the wealthy and barely throws them any scraps. Lately the GOP has needed to become more extreme in ginning up the base. This has caused several of their loose cannons like Todd Akin and Richard Mourdock to make stupid anti-abortion statements that have gone too far and have even alienated many female GOP supporters. This program is an attempt to try to find the sweet spot in their rhetoric that will fire up the base without looking completely batsh!t crazy. This is getting harder and harder to do as the GOP base has become more and more extreme since we elected a black President (twice-HAHAHAHA).
  • mimi57
    !
    Yes, clean up all those thoughtless comments, including the racist ones from the Left, like "They're gonna put ya'll back in chains". Etc., I say they all need to shut up... including very well thought out comments like, "You didn't build that". And then we can go onto the rest of the stupid Libs comments, but, I don't have that much space or time...Things to do.
  • PoliticalSpice
    !
    Well there are stupid comments from both repubs and dems, no questions. The people judge who make the stupidist comments. The one with the stupidist comments are the ones who lose the election.
  • mimi57
    !
    @PoliticalSpice I don't know about that one...it seems this election was one by 1%...not much. The Mexicans, the Mama's w/ no 'baby daddies' who want 'gimmes', and the radical left who want anything decent and moral removed,
    including our Civil Liberty's... time will tell. my bet is Obama will be the downfall
    of this great country, that was once a Super Power , but will be reduced as second rate...it's coming, too many blind people, but they'll be forced to open their eyes sooner or later, too bad it will be later!
  • PoliticalSpice
    !
    @mimi57 Don't want to bust your bubble, but this country lost its superpower status the day we became indebted to the chinese, and that happened before obama took office.

    As to winning by one percent, my exact point. Stupid statements cost you guys the elections. Blame it on blacks, mexicans all you want, by themselves they didn't do it, it was that small group of undecided voters, in the end your candidates scared enough people with stupid comments. Why do you think hispanics came out in such large numbers, larger then ever before. Could be anti-immigrant rhetoric had something to do with it? Cuban americans in florida usually vote 85% republican. This election they split 50/50.

    I love the tea party, i love your rape loving senators, because without these nuts romney would be sitting in the whitehouse...
  • o
    OhWiseOne
    !
    @mimi57 Spot on. The Democratic Party today is made up of this coalition: white Ivy League liberals, racist blacks and Mexicans, freaks and perverts, union thugs, and a LOT of freeloaders.
  • View all 11 replies >
  • Dan_Tien
    !
    "Our pro-life values as a party should be framed in terms of the culture of life. It's easy enough to do that. It shouldn't be conflated with other issues."

    I wish everyone would just drop the "pro" spin from every political action organization name that gets created. Nobody is really fooled by the semantic claim to the moral high ground. Just say "anti-abortion". That way your "pro-life values" won't get conflated with other issues that are antithetical to "pro-life", like capital punishment, war profiteering, industry over the environment, and the resistance to supporting health and welfare programs.
  • Denizen_Kate
    !
    The one and only reason for using the term "pro-life" is make it seem to the ignorant that if you aren't with them, you must be anti-life. It's become a very effective label.
  • o
    OhWiseOne
    !
    @Denizen_Kate Fair enough. Since Politix describes those who are pro-life as anti-abortion, then shouldn't those who are pro-choice be described as pro-abortion? Makes sense to me.
  • Denizen_Kate
    !
    @OhWiseOne - Didn't I answer this one yesterday? No, it isn't the same thing at all. I'm pro-choice, even though I wouldn't choose abortion myself. I simply don't feel I have any right to make that CHOICE for anyone else. Those who are anti-abortion are against the notion of women being able to make that choice, are in favor of forcing women legally to carry every pregnancy to full term, and they call themselves pro-life in order to seem more kind, more benign than they really are.
  • View all 23 replies >
  • Thunderchicken
    !
    Joe Biden

    Seriously though, the Akin thing died twice only to be revived. Once by Akin and now this stupidity. When some people are determined to make a fool out of themselves, it's best just to get out of the way and hope it doesn't get too bad.(Or just laugh at them.)
  • harold_lloyd
    !
    I think it would help, and that's why I don't like it.

    It's basically lessons in how to pretend to be one thing (sane) while secretly being something else (a loon).

    Let them speak out honestly, and let the voters decide what they want in a government.
  • Vance1
    !
    Maybe the professional left should attend training class's on how Tax payer $$$ is being used @ Planned Parenthood to preform abortions.
    maybe that would help, Liberals have killed over 1 million children through abortions in this country, They yell about gun control and killing children.
    But they have killed absolutely more children than any gun man ever could.
    They are the largest hypocrites on this planet.
    Use Al Gore as your best example of a hypocrite liberal.
  • u
    DrMoonshine
    !
    So I'm guessing you've adopted 100 orphans in your household and raised them all to become contributing citizens working as engineer. Since you mentioned Al Gore, I would assume that you're referring to his channel being sold to Qatar. Well, guess who owns a major stake in News Corp, the parent company of Fox News? A Saudi Prince!
  • Vance1
    !
    @DrMoonshine
    NO Gore expects you to drive a prius, But he rides in a Limo, and flys in a GulfStream 3, and his house uses 90% more power than most homes, He sells out to Big Oil, Thats why he is a typical liberal hypocrite.
    Grow up now, and move on
  • stepped_in_it
    !
    Last I heard, brain transplants have not been successful. Generally both donor and recipient die......HMM, birth control for dumb Republicans but bad for the donor!
  • Jean
    !
    No it won't stop it. Human beings are after all "human" and being such are never perfect.

    The sin here lies in the liberal media and the political "system". "They" the liberal media and the political system are all about "controlling" us by "controlling" the elections. If you are standing up for right by God's law...you are a threat to their "system" . You might be a person with the absolute best intentions for your fellow man and they will see to it that you are painted to be the biggest threat to mankind that ever lived.

    Until the "low information voters" wise up......this country is going down the proverbial tubes.

    It is sad to say that people do make mistakes......but is miswording of a candidate with good intentions for his fellow man the sin.....or is painting these people as threats the greater sin? God in the end will decide and I personally am tired of the "liberal media" and "politicals" controlling our elections.

    People need to start using their "brains". everyone of us can fight for what we believe in individually without "branding" someone that is in opposition whether they are guilty or not.

    As they said in dragnet : "only the facts please".
  • Zazziness
    !
    The conflict you describe is not between you and the media. It is between you and the U.S. Constitution. You want a theocracy; our Constitution says we will never be one -- we are a nation of free citizens. So I don't really care if you want a theocracy for what you think are good reasons. I would prefer to remain free and I want this country to remain free, too.
  • Jean
    !
    @Zazziness i disagree with your summation of what I believe. I believe fully in the constitution and that it gives us the right to worship as we so choose. THe consitution says we have a right to "life" "liberty" and the "pursuit of happiness".

    Because a candidate chooses to believe in a certain faith....does not mean he is going to force you to believe in that faith as well. God would never want that. He gave us free will to choose Him or not choose Him. So if someone were really a person of faith, which means to try and emulate our God....why would they "legislate" their faith on anyone else?

    Rand Paul is advocating that Congress determine in relevance to our laws when it is that life begins. with the knowledge and tools in the medical industry (and his father being a doctor)....I don't think Rand would be going down this road if he didn't think there was scientific proof of when that life begins.

    some will say this is forcing his faith on others. is it? or is it only going by the facts of science?

    as for the media and the "politicians" they are all about power and winning elections and keeping control.

    i still advocate for poeple using their brains instead of taking what they are feeding us at face value. i personally feel we lost a lot of good candidates this last election because of all of this type of confusion. they were painted as being religious nuts....
  • paperdragons81
    !
    Let people say what they think whether what they really think is stupid or not. Everyone have said something they regreted, I would rather not cencer a politican because I want to know how they who they really are,not how they want us to think they are..
  • AtheistStand
    !
    Hahahahha, reminds me of an article in the Tennessean in which a conservative pastor was interviewed in regards to improving the GOP’s image and he made the statement of - "we have to work on appearing more compassionate".

    We are too informed nowadays and we wont stand for this BS anymore. I’m tired of pretenders and fairy tale performers. Good riddance GOP.(good bye pretenders!)
  • R Load more comments...