Cheer up Conservatives, there's a Libertarian on the ballot for US Senate in Missouri

Todd Akin's remarks about "legitimate rape" were inexcusable, insulting and embarrassing to the GOP -- Sarah Steelman

by Eric Dondero

Conservatives were stung over the weekend, by an outlandish statement from religious right GOP candidate for US Senate in Missouri Rep. Todd Akin. He used the horribly awkward line "legitimate rape," in attempting to explain his opposition to abortion, even in cases of rape and incest.

It's too early to tell what the fall-out will be. But so far, so bad. Even prominent conservatives are bashing him this morning and calling for him to be ousted as the MO GOP's nominee.

Ed Morrisey of Hotair.com writes:

Good grief. First, pregnancy from rape isn’t all that uncommon, as Twitchy discovered with just a little research; it’s around 5%. At least one researcher has found that conception rates for rape actually exceeds that of single instances of consensual sex. Second, what in Akin’s mind constitutes legitimate rape? Was he trying to distinguish between forcible rape and statutory rape? If so, that’s a pretty fine distinction, and one that’s really nonsensical even in the argument Akin was trying to make. And if he wanted to suggest that some women would lie about being raped in order to secure an abortion, then he’s really setting up an argument that any woman who is pregnant couldn’t really have been raped … which as noted above is simply not the case.

And then Morrisey breaks this stunning news:

Can Republicans replace Akin, if they so choose? Apparently they can — but the deadline is tomorrow.

Of course, the most likely replacement would be Tea Partyer/Palin-endorsed Sarah Steelman (whom we passionately supported here at LR).

But in the event that the GOP chickens out, there is another alternative: Vote Libertarian! The Libertarian Party of Missouri has a viable and quite credible candidate on the ballot.

Jonathan Dine (photos) is a hardline Libertarian. He is a personal fitness trainer who lives in Kansas City. From his website:

Taxes at all levels -- federal, state, and local; hidden and visible -- take almost 50 percent of a family's income. We must work from January to June just to pay taxes. Ask yourself: Is the government spending that half of your income wis ely? The government didn’t earn the taxpayer’s paycheck and shouldn’t be entitled to it.

He's a huge marijuana legalization advocate:

I support the legalization of Marijuana, not because Marijuana is good or beneficial, but because marijuana does less harm to our lives, our property, and our humanity, than marijuana laws.

And thankfully, for conservatives and for us pro-defense libertarians here at LR, Dine takes a rather moderate approach to non-interventionism:

I believe the role of the military is to provide a strong national defense, but the optimum word is defense.. not offense. I support the maintenance of a sufficient military to defend the United States against aggression. I support the offensive efforts to combat terrorism when attacked, but do not support the occupation and nation building of other countries.

One of the perfectly legitimate reasons for the existence of the Libertarian Party is to act as a fallback when the GOP fucks up. This Akin deal, anyway you spin it, is a major fuck-up.

Republican Party of Missouri: Have the balls to replace Akin with Steelman, like now! And if not, mainline conservatives and libertarian Republicans will thankfully have another option on the ballot in November.