This is the result of so-called abstinence education that perpetuates myths, and the worst kinds of reproductive ignorance. These are the old white men who perpetuate conservative myths in legislation, without ever bothering to fact check any of their beliefs, no matter how implausible or ridiculous they are. The older and/or more conservative, the worse they seem to be, not only on this topic, but on every topic requiring some form of basic factual education.
If anything, maybe Mike Huckabee should sit down with King and give him a little bio lesson on the REAL origins of Ethel Waters. I can't wait, on the basis of a stupid belief by Steve King for the denial of the reproductive choice of non-violent statutory rape and incest next time the House of Representatives meets to engage in right wing culture war on women.
I continue to ask myself how anyone who is older than say.....9 years of age, could possibly believe the factually inaccurate things that these old white conservative men believe. King has at least a high school education, some college, and comes from an agricultural district where presumably he might have encountered some animal husbandry knowledge of the birds and the bees. It's not like he's one of those urban dwellers who have never seen livestock.
The following only serves to prove not only how badly informed and out of touch the Tea Party far right extremists are, but how bone ignorant, as a group, they tend to be. No one should allow someone this foolish, this ill-informed, this generally ignorant of the most basic facts of life to propose or vote on legislation at any level, much less the federal level where it affects the entire nation. King should be deeply ashamed of his deficiencies. No wonder these dolts don't believe in global warming, or evolution; we should probably be grateful if they understand the earth is not flat and that the earth rotates around the sun. While King's office tries to do damage control, it sure sounds like this guy believes that as with forcible rape, it just doesn't happen except as a freakishly rare occurrence, when in fact the opposite is true.
From Talking Points Memo:
Rep. Steve King: I’ve Never Heard Of A Girl Getting Pregnant From Statutory Rape Or Incest
10 inShare. share Evan McMorris-Santoro-August 21, 2012, 12:12 PM363083 Updated at 1:59 p.m. Rep. Steve King, one of the most staunchly conservative members of the House, was one of the few Republicans who did not strongly condemn Rep. Todd Akin Monday for his remarks regarding pregnancy and rape. King also signaled why — he might agree with parts of Akin’s assertion. King told an Iowa reporter he’s never heard of a child getting pregnant from statutory rape or incest. “Well I just haven’t heard of that being a circumstance that’s been brought to me in any personal way,” King told KMEG-TV Monday, “and I’d be open to discussion about that subject matter.” A Democratic source flagged King’s praise of Akin in the KMEG interview to TPM. But potentially more controversial for King is his suggestion that pregnancies from statutory rape or incest don’t exist or happen rarely. A 1996 review by the Guttmacher Institute found “at least half of all babies born to minor women are fathered by adult men.” Contacted by TPM, King’s office said that King didn’t mean he had never heard of pregnancy resulting from statutory rape or incest but that he had no direct, personal knowledge of such instances. “What he was saying was, he personally does not know a girl who was raped,” Brittany Lesser, a spokesperson for King said. “He never says, ‘I’ve never heard of that.’ There’s a fine line between ‘I’ve never heard of that’ and ‘I don’t know personally anybody who’s been raped. There’s a difference. There is a difference.” The tie between statutory rape and teen pregnancy has been the subject of ad campaigns from groups like United Way. H.R. 3, the bill co-sponsored by King, Akin and Paul Ryan in 2011, originally called for an exemption in the federal ban on abortion funding only in the case of “forcible rape.” That language was dropped after pressure from women’s advocates and Democrats. At the time, the Republican sponsors of the legislation weren’t too interested in discussing their reasoning for the wording. RELATED: Todd Akin Says Victims of ‘Legitimate Rape’ Don’t Get Pregnant King’s comments offer a window into the thinking behind the language, as well as the general belief in the different categories of rape that provoked Akin’s recent controversial comments about “legitimate rape” and the factually wrong idea that a woman’s body can prevent a pregnancy from rape. Lesser said “of course” King is aware that girls have been impregnated by statutory rape or incest, and said King supports people who have not been forcibly raped receiving federal abortion coverage under a rape exemption. “That’s a given for anybody who understands pro-life legislation,” Lesser said. In the KMEG interview, King defended Akin as “a strong Christian man, with a wonderful family” and appeared to push back on those calling for Akin to drop out of the Missouri Senate race. “I think this election should be about: How did Todd Akin vote and what did he vote for and what did he stand for?” King said. “In this case, I’m seeing the same thing, petty, personal attacks substituting for strong policy.” Watch raw video of the KMEG interview below. The version of the story as it was broadcast is here.
UPDATE 2:If anything, maybe Mike Huckabee should sit down with King and give him a little bio lesson on the REAL origins of Ethel Waters. I can't wait, on the basis of a stupid belief by Steve King for the denial of the reproductive choice of non-violent statutory rape and incest next time the House of Representatives meets to engage in right wing culture war on women.
I continue to ask myself how anyone who is older than say.....9 years of age, could possibly believe the factually inaccurate things that these old white conservative men believe. King has at least a high school education, some college, and comes from an agricultural district where presumably he might have encountered some animal husbandry knowledge of the birds and the bees. It's not like he's one of those urban dwellers who have never seen livestock.
The following only serves to prove not only how badly informed and out of touch the Tea Party far right extremists are, but how bone ignorant, as a group, they tend to be. No one should allow someone this foolish, this ill-informed, this generally ignorant of the most basic facts of life to propose or vote on legislation at any level, much less the federal level where it affects the entire nation. King should be deeply ashamed of his deficiencies. No wonder these dolts don't believe in global warming, or evolution; we should probably be grateful if they understand the earth is not flat and that the earth rotates around the sun. While King's office tries to do damage control, it sure sounds like this guy believes that as with forcible rape, it just doesn't happen except as a freakishly rare occurrence, when in fact the opposite is true.
From Talking Points Memo:
Rep. Steve King: I’ve Never Heard Of A Girl Getting Pregnant From Statutory Rape Or Incest
10 inShare. share Evan McMorris-Santoro-August 21, 2012, 12:12 PM363083 Updated at 1:59 p.m. Rep. Steve King, one of the most staunchly conservative members of the House, was one of the few Republicans who did not strongly condemn Rep. Todd Akin Monday for his remarks regarding pregnancy and rape. King also signaled why — he might agree with parts of Akin’s assertion. King told an Iowa reporter he’s never heard of a child getting pregnant from statutory rape or incest. “Well I just haven’t heard of that being a circumstance that’s been brought to me in any personal way,” King told KMEG-TV Monday, “and I’d be open to discussion about that subject matter.” A Democratic source flagged King’s praise of Akin in the KMEG interview to TPM. But potentially more controversial for King is his suggestion that pregnancies from statutory rape or incest don’t exist or happen rarely. A 1996 review by the Guttmacher Institute found “at least half of all babies born to minor women are fathered by adult men.” Contacted by TPM, King’s office said that King didn’t mean he had never heard of pregnancy resulting from statutory rape or incest but that he had no direct, personal knowledge of such instances. “What he was saying was, he personally does not know a girl who was raped,” Brittany Lesser, a spokesperson for King said. “He never says, ‘I’ve never heard of that.’ There’s a fine line between ‘I’ve never heard of that’ and ‘I don’t know personally anybody who’s been raped. There’s a difference. There is a difference.” The tie between statutory rape and teen pregnancy has been the subject of ad campaigns from groups like United Way. H.R. 3, the bill co-sponsored by King, Akin and Paul Ryan in 2011, originally called for an exemption in the federal ban on abortion funding only in the case of “forcible rape.” That language was dropped after pressure from women’s advocates and Democrats. At the time, the Republican sponsors of the legislation weren’t too interested in discussing their reasoning for the wording. RELATED: Todd Akin Says Victims of ‘Legitimate Rape’ Don’t Get Pregnant King’s comments offer a window into the thinking behind the language, as well as the general belief in the different categories of rape that provoked Akin’s recent controversial comments about “legitimate rape” and the factually wrong idea that a woman’s body can prevent a pregnancy from rape. Lesser said “of course” King is aware that girls have been impregnated by statutory rape or incest, and said King supports people who have not been forcibly raped receiving federal abortion coverage under a rape exemption. “That’s a given for anybody who understands pro-life legislation,” Lesser said. In the KMEG interview, King defended Akin as “a strong Christian man, with a wonderful family” and appeared to push back on those calling for Akin to drop out of the Missouri Senate race. “I think this election should be about: How did Todd Akin vote and what did he vote for and what did he stand for?” King said. “In this case, I’m seeing the same thing, petty, personal attacks substituting for strong policy.” Watch raw video of the KMEG interview below. The version of the story as it was broadcast is here.
After this post was published, King’s office said he had been taken out of context.
As TPM originally reported, King’s response to a question about whether a young girl who gets pregnant should have to carry a baby to term was, “I just haven’t heard of that being a circumstance that’s been brought to me in any personal way.” King was not asked whether he knew anyone personally who had been in such a circumstance.
Lesser said “of course” King is aware that girls have been impregnated by statutory rape or incest, and said King supports people who have not been forcibly raped receiving federal abortion coverage under a rape exemption.
“That’s a given for anybody who understands pro-life legislation,” Lesser said.
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Apparently not, not in the case of King, not in the case of Ryan, not in the case of Akin, and certainly not in the case of many other Republicans and Tea Partiers I've profiled in the last few days. But then when it comes to reproductive rights, these individuals say so much that is not true, it is perhaps understandable that they confuse themselves as to facts more than anyone else.
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