And also Claire McCaskill's. She remains in the Senate because the Tea Party split its vote between two better candidates, allowing Claire basically to pick her opponent.
Akin was a perfectly decent guy, but he lacked the skill to avoid being trapped into making a remark on a sensitive topic that the 'Rats could twist.
Reagan cites the example of Matt Bevin speaking a pro-cockfighting rally. It seems Mitch McConnell voted for a farm bill that happens to make cockfighting a federal crime. Now, of course, cockfighting should be a matter for the states and is not a proper concern of the concern of the federal government. It happens to be a misdemeanor in Kentucky, which is fine by me, because it is an abomination.
So how did Bevin wind up appearing to be for cockfighting? It seems he thought the event was a states' rights rally. Presumably, he thought it would be an opportunity to make a point about McConnell's lack of a sense of states' rights and of the proper role of the federal government. A valid point. But a point that would be lost as the media promoted the impression that Matt Bevin is pro-cockfighting. He or his handlers should have done the due diligence and had the judgement to keep him away from that scene.
Reagan's point is the Tea Party needs to put up candidates that have the skill to win and the judgement not to lose over trivial stupidity.
It shouldn’t have taken much skill to not do an interview with Charles Jaco.