McCaskill campaign: Todd Akin falsely claimed his highest paid staff member is a woman

(From the Claire McCaskill campaign)

At last night’s debate, Claire McCaskill highlighted the fact that Todd Akin pays his female employees 23 percent less than his male employees, a fact for which Todd Akin still hasn’t been able to answer. The episode serves as a reminder of Akin’s interview two weeks ago, when Akin tried to mislead voters by saying his highest-paid staffer is a woman, when in fact, Akin’s Communications Director, Steve Taylor, is paid $1000 more per year than his Chief of Staff, Lauren Ellis.

Akin Falsely Claimed The Highest Paid Staffer In His House Office Was A Woman. Reported Politicmo in October 2012, “Republican U.S. Senate candidate Todd Akin responded to charges that he is a ‘sexist’ by claiming his highest paid official staff member is a woman. ‘The person that’s paid the most in my current office is a woman,’ Akin said, referring to his Chief of Staff Lauren Ellis. ‘So, how do you prove that?’ But despite his claim on KTRS, Akin’s highest paid staffer is neither Ellis nor a woman.” [Politicmo, 10/4/12]

“Once again, Todd Akin is trying to mislead voters in an effort to distract from his extreme belief that freedom means having the freedom to discriminate against female employees,” said Caitlin Legacki, McCaskill for Missouri spokeswoman. “Todd Akin is opposed to equal pay because he believes he should have the freedom to pay his female employees less than their male counterparts. It’s bad enough that he’s wrong on the issue, but it’s even worse that he’s wrong on the facts when it comes to his own office. Todd Akin’s record and extreme positions paint a clear picture for Missouri’s women that he will never be a Senator on their side.”