Akin poisoned his chances... he’s not going to win. If he has a modicum of love for America, he’ll override his own ego and step aside.
But he won’t. He’s enjoying the attention too much.
Todd Akin made two very unfortunate statements - one was to use the word “legitimate” in conjunction with the term “rape”. This idea may not have been original, but as Mark Twain remarked, “The difference between the almost right word & the right word is really a large matter—it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.”
The word, the only one that applies in this situation, would have been “forcible” rape.
The second was to delve into old and discredited medical belief with the claim the female body “shuts down” the normal hormonal balance that leads to implantation of the fertilized ovum. While the rape was highly unwelcome, the processes are not that compromised, and conception is about as likely in those circumstances as in the instance of mutual consent.
This was Todd Akin’s “Macaca moment”, which was enough to derail a highly popular and charismatic candidate, George Allen of Virginia, in 2006. And George Allen was on track to be one of the rising young stars of the GOP. He did not recover sufficiently to overcome the wave of opprobrium and disgrace that swelled up in response to that ONE word.
Why is it so hard for Tood Akin to see the effects of that supposedly “innocent” remark?
Once you unleash the avalanche, there is no way to outrun it.