In describing his pro-life position in August 2012, Akin stated that women who are victims of what he called "legitimate rape" rarely get pregnant. The comment led to widespread calls for him to withdraw from the Senate race, as well as support from pro-life advocates. Akin apologized for his remarks and stated that he would continue his campaign.
Early life, education, and business career
Akin was born in New York City, New York, and raised in the St. Louis, Missouri area. He is the son of Nancy Perry (n?e Bigelow) and Paul B. Akin. Akin's father is a third-generation graduate of Harvard University who served as an officer in the Navy during World War II, and who later succeeded his own father, William Akin, as president of the Laclede Steel Corporation of St. Louis. Todd's great grandfather Thomas Russell Akin founded Laclede in 1911.Todd Akin graduated from the John Burroughs School, a private prep school in suburban St. Louis, and went on to attend Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, Massachusetts, earning a B.S. degree in management engineering from WPI's School of Business in 1971.
Following his college graduation, he served as an officer in the U.S. Army with the Army Combat Engineers, then served in the Army Reserve until 1980. After his discharge from active duty, Akin worked as a salesman for IBM marketing large computer systems, and later went to work in management in the family steel business.
He earned a Master of Divinity degree in 1984 from Covenant Theological Seminary where he studied Greek, Hebrew and a socially conservative interpretation of the Christian scriptures. Instead of working in a church, he decided to make public service his ministry.
In 2011, Akin revealed that he was arrested for blocking the entrance to an abortion clinic about 25 years ago, saying "You know, don?t tell anybody I?m a jail bird, you know, but there were a bunch of us that were years ago involved in the pro-life movement." On October 23, 2012, the St. Louis Post Dispatch reported that: "Congressman Todd Akin was arrested at least three times in the 1980s during anti-abortion protests, not just the one time he has publicly acknowledged. Akin's previously undisclosed arrests, in 1985, were for criminal trespass and resisting arrest at abortion clinic protests in St. Louis and Illinois." On his US house website , the congressman goes by Todd Akin, nowhere in his biography is his first name William ever mentioned. According to the Saint Louis Post Dispatch, that is the reason why his arrest record was missed when they searched their database for Todd Akin. He was arrested as William Akin and soon after ran for political office as Todd Akin using his middle name.
Missouri House of Representatives
Elections
Akin was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives in November 1988, running unopposed to represent District 85 which included Town and Country and much of West Saint Louis County. He won re-election in 1990 with 59% of the vote. Due to re-districting, Akin represented District 86 from 1993 through 2000, never winning less than 66% of the vote.Tenure
Akin served as a member of the House Ways and Means Committee. During his 12 years in the state house, Akin advocated for homeschool rights, voted for carrying concealed weapons, voted against the parks and soils sales tax, and voted against the 1993 tax increase and education spending increase. Akin sponsored legislation to prohibit casino companies from contributing to Missouri state lawmakers. In 1995, he fought Democratic Governor Mel Carnahan over a bill providing state-funding for school nurses. Ultimately, the governor refused to sign the funding bill due to Akin's amendment which would have prohibited nurses from telling students about sources for information about abortion.U.S. House of Representatives
Akin has represented since January 2001. The district includes western suburbs of St. Louis in St. Louis County and northwestern exurbs in St. Charles County.Elections
In 2000, Akin ran in the Republican primary election to fill the House seat vacated by U.S. Representative Jim Talent, who was running for governor. Light voter turnout caused by heavy rains helped Akin win the tight, five-way primary by just 56 votes; he defeated two better-known candidates, former St. Louis County Executive Gene McNary and State Senator Franc Flotron. On the night he won the primary, Akin said, "My base will show up in earthquakes." He defeated Democratic State Senator Ted House in the general election, winning 55 percent of the vote. He never faced another contest as close, and was reelected five times. In 2010, Akin won re-election with 67.9% of the vote. He had been challenged for the seat by Democratic nominee Arthur Lieber, Libertarian nominee Steve Mosbacher, and write-in candidate Patrick M. Cannon.Tenure
Akin earned a 96% rating from the American Conservative Union in 2008, and 100% in 2007.Social issues
He is an outspoken opponent of abortion in all cases, including health reasons or in cases of rape or incest and opposes embryonic stem cell research. In a 2008 speech on the House floor, Akin called abortion providers "terrorists" and alleged that it was "common practice" for abortion providers to perform abortions on women who were not actually pregnant.Akin is a supporter of the right to keep and bear arms and has an A rating from the National Rifle Association. Akin is a staunch advocate of a federal prohibition of online poker. In 2006, he co-sponsored H.R. 4411, the Goodlatte-Leach Internet Gambling Prohibition Act, and H.R. 4777, the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act.
Akin also authored the Protect the Pledge (of Allegiance) Act. In late June 2011, Akin objected to NBC's recent removal of the words "under God" from a video clip of school children reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. After remarking that "NBC has a long record of being very liberal," Akin said,"at the heart of liberalism really is a hatred for God and a belief that government should replace God". Two days later, Akin said he did not mean all liberals hate God, only that liberals have "a hatred for public references for God." The next day, he apologized, saying his statement had been "directed at the political movement, Liberalism, not at any specific individual".
During his 2012 US Senate bid, Akin reaffirmed his opposition to legislation like the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009, which he voted against as a Congressman.
Fiscal issues
In his early years in Congress, Akin brought back earmarks for his district, voted to raise the debt ceiling, voted for off-balance-sheet wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and voted to create the unfunded Medicare prescription drug benefit. More recently, he has opposed increases in taxation and spending. He voted in 2007 against an expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), objecting to its potential coverage of children in families making up to $62,000 a year, and stating that proof of U.S. citizenship was not required. He also said the bill would "weaken the private health care system" and lead the country "further down the slippery slope to socialized medicine." He has voted against federally funded school breakfasts and lunches, and called student loans "a stage-three cancer of socialism". He has also voted against increasing the minimum wage. He was a vocal critic of the September 2008 bank bailout, and voted against it. He voted no on the Affordable Health Care Act in March 2010, and yes on Paul Ryan's fiscal year 2012 budget.Military issues
Akin has spent significant time working on military and veterans issues. On the House Armed Services Committee he currently serves as the Chairman of the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee, which handles all Navy and Air Force issues. In the past, he has served as Ranking Republican on the Seapower Subcommittee and the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee. Akin has also introduced a number of veterans-related bills, most notably the Open Burn Pit Registry Act, which creates a registry for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans who were exposed to burn pits. He opposed repeal of the Dover Policy which reversed the ban on media coverage of caskets of troops returning home from overseas citing privacy and decorum issues.Committee assignments
Caucus memberships
2012 U.S. Senate election
In mid-May 2011, Akin announced he would seek the Republican nomination in 2012 to unseat Democratic Senator Claire McCaskill. Other candidates in the August 2012 Republican primary included businessman John Brunner, author and business executive Mark Memoly, and former Missouri Treasurer Sarah Steelman. Despite losing some momentum and in a crowded field, Akin won the Republican nomination in the August 7 primary, 36% to 30% for his nearest challenger. In August 2012, National Journal named Akin one of "Ten Republicans to follow on Twitter".
Home of record
In May 2011, questions were raised about Akin's official address for voting. According to the Associated Press and St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Akin has lived in Wildwood, in far western St. Louis County, since at least 2009, and perhaps as early as 2007, since he and his wife purchased a second home there. However, he has continued to list his house in Town and Country as his official residence, and signed a polling place logbook attesting to his living there in April 2011.Controversial comments on rape and pregnancy
In an August 19, 2012 interview aired on St. Louis television station KTVI-TV, Akin was asked his views on whether women who became pregnant due to rape should have the option of abortion. He replied:
Well you know, people always want to try to make that as one of those things, well how do you, how do you slice this particularly tough sort of ethical question. First of all, from what I understand from doctors, that?s really rare. If it?s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down. But let?s assume that maybe that didn?t work or something. I think there should be some punishment, but the punishment ought to be on the rapist and not attacking the child.
The comment was widely criticized as false. Medical experts say there is no evidence to support the assertion that women are less likely to get pregnant from rape compared with consensual sex.
Akin apologized for his remarks and issued a state-wide television commercial apologizing.
His opponent in the 2012 Senate race, Claire McCaskill, told MSNBC, "For most Missourians I hope this is one of those gut check moments when they realize this is not somebody we want speaking for us and for our values on the floor of the United States Senate." Several pundits also believed that the remarks could change the race. Many Republicans dissociated from Akin as a result of the comments, with NRSC chairman John Cornyn saying the GOP would no longer provide him Senate election funding and describing Akin as "endangering Republicans? hopes of retaking the majority in the Senate". A campaign spokesman for Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan said both disagreed with Akin's position and would not oppose abortion in instances of rape. Akin said, "In reviewing my off-the-cuff remarks, it's clear that I misspoke in this interview and it does not reflect the deep empathy I hold for the thousands of women who are raped and abused every year." Several commentators criticized this defense, suggesting the comment was a reflection of personal belief and that he only rescinded the comment for political expediency. These commentators noted past actions and statements from Akin that were seen as consistent with his comment, and suggested it was evidence of scientific ignorance and a lack of trust in women.
Akin has been defended by some social conservative organizations and notable Republicans, including the Family Research Council and Mike Huckabee. A spokesman for the Council said that "We feel this is a case of gotcha politics... We know who Todd Akin is. We've worked with him up on the hill. He's a defender of life." Akin's remarks were also defended by the evangelical Christian activist Kirk Cameron. A representative of the American Family Association cited a 1999 article by Doctor John C. Willke to argue Akin "was exactly right". Pro-life theologian Pia de Solenni called Akin's remarks "idiotic", but also claimed that there is "no solid data" on the question of whether rape inhibits pregnancy, and opined that it was not a "far stretch
In response, some Democrats began calling a platform provision at the 2012 Republican National Convention which calls for a "human life amendment" to the Constitution banning abortion without an exception for rape or incest, the "Akin Plank". The wording of the amendment is the same wording that the party approved in 2004 and 2008.
Personal life
Akin married Lulli Boe, a graduate of Hollins University, in June 1975. The couple has six children. Lulli became a home schooling activist and all of the children were home-schooled. Three sons attended the Naval Academy and became officers in the Marines. One of his sons served in the assault on Fallujah, Iraq.Akin enjoys playing guitar and singing gospel songs, and over the years, has dressed in Revolutionary War attire for Fourth of July celebrations.
Akin and his wife resided for many years in the Town and Country, Missouri home that he grew up in and that his father owned. When his father sought to subdivide the 8.5 acre property a few years ago, Akin moved to a house in Wildwood.
Electoral history
| Year | Office | Republican | Democratic | Libertarian | Ref | ||||||
References
External links
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Category:1947 births Category:American Presbyterians Category:Covenant Theological Seminary alumni Category:IBM employees Category:Living people Category:Members of the Missouri House of Representatives Category:Members of the United States House of Representatives from Missouri Category:Missouri Republicans Category:People from New York City Category:People from St. Louis County, Missouri Category:Worcester Polytechnic Institute alumni
de:Todd Akin fr:Todd Akin it:Todd Akin fi:Todd Akin sv:Todd AkinSource: http://article.wn.com/view/2012/12/07/GOP_Senate_group_aided_Todd_Akin_despite_disavowal/
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