Obama Hits Mourdock: 'Rape Is Rape'

Issues Roe v. Wade warning in Leno appearance
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 25, 2012 5:03 AM CDT

President Obama slammed Senate candidate Richard Mourdock's rape comments on the Tonight Show last night. "I don't know how these guys come up with these ideas," Obama said. "Let me make a very simple proposition. Rape is rape. It is a crime." He noted "Roe vs. Wade is probably hanging in the balance" of the election, Politico reports. Mourdock's comments that pregnancies from rape are "something God intended" are "exactly why you don't want a bunch of politicians, mostly male, making decisions about women's health care decisions," Obama said. "Women are capable of making these decisions in consultation with their partners, with their doctors."

Meanwhile, asked by Anderson Cooper whether he still supports Mourdock, John McCain said it "depends on what he does," the Huffington Post reports. "If he apologizes and says he misspoke and he was wrong and he asks the people to forgive him, then obviously I’d be the first" to support him. Mourdock has in fact issued an apology. Mitt Romney, for his part, still supports Mourdock, though his campaign says he "disagrees" with the Indiana Republican's comments: "We disagree on the policy regarding exceptions for rape and incest but still support him." The campaign says it hasn't called on Mourdock to withdraw ads featuring Romney. (More John McCain stories.)

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