With 35 days to go, McCaskill campaign to spotlight 35 outrageous Todd Akin comments

(From the Claire McCaskill for Senate campaign)

With exactly five weeks before Election Day, McCaskill for Missouri 2012 announced today it will spend the next 35 days using 35 of Todd Akin’s most extreme comments and votes to show voters why he is just too extreme for Missouri. Each morning, McCaskill for Missouri 2012 will send a press release highlighting another outrageous and shocking comment or vote that illustrates Todd Akin’s deeply held beliefs.

“With just five weeks before election day, it’s critical that Missourians understand exactly what’s at stake in this election,” said Erik Dorey, McCaskill for Missouri spokesman. “Over the next 35 days, we’ll find 35 different ways to illustrate that Todd Akin’s extreme beliefs and inappropriate comments are just the tip of the iceberg. Claire McCaskill has always been a Senator on our side, and Todd Akin’s extreme positions would simply be painful for Missouri’s families.”

Day 35: In 2001, Akin’s first year in Congress, he voted against fully-funding veterans benefits...just five days after he voted to give himself a pay raise.

“It takes some real gall for Todd Akin to tell veterans we can’t afford to fully fund their benefits just five days after he voted to raise his own Congressional salary,” said Dorey. “It took Todd Akin just seven months after he was sworn in to decide his pay raise was more important than fully-funding veterans benefits. What’s worse is in the 12 years since then, Todd Akin made it even more clear that he prioritizes his own well-being over the needs of Missouri’s veterans.”

Akin Opposed Full Funding for Veterans Benefits. In 2001, Akin voted against a motion to recommit the VA-HUD appropriations bill to the House Appropriations Committee with instructions to add language to increase funding for VA medical care programs by an amount adequate to fully fund the cost of all currently authorized services, including those under the Veterans Millennium Health Care Act (PL 106-117). The motion was defeated, 196-230. [Vote 296, 7/30/01]

Akin Supported Congressional Pay Raise in 2001.  Akin voted in favor of a motion to order the previous question (thus ending debate and possibility of amendment) on adoption of the rule to provide for House floor consideration of the bill that would appropriate $32.7 billion in fiscal 2002 for the Treasury Department, U.S. Postal Service, various offices of the Executive Office of the President and certain independent agencies.  If the motion had been defeated, an amendment to block the Congressional pay raise would have been allowed.  The motion passed 293-129.  [H Res. 206, Vote #267, 7/25/01]