Inquirer Editorial: Will comments define GOP?

If you play with fire, you may get burned.

That's the lesson the Republican Party should be learning from its steady march toward the extreme right. The heat it should be feeling comes courtesy of a Missouri congressman, Todd Akin, who in his efforts to outdo his brethren as an abortion opponent made an asinine statement.

Akin, who appeared destined to defeat Democratic incumbent Claire McCaskill in their U.S. Senate race, may have kissed that victory goodbye with his comments Sunday to a St. Louis TV reporter. Citing bogus medical evidence, Akin claimed that victims of "legitimate rape" don't have to fear pregnancy because a woman's body acts prophylactically to prevent conception.

Does that mean it's not rape if the victim gets pregnant?

Akin's remark further damaged a party that already had problems winning women's votes. Presidential candidate Mitt Romney and his running mate, Paul Ryan, quickly joined the chorus of party leaders asking Akin to end his Senate quest. Their response is appreciated, but its swiftness had more to do with their own political fortunes than having views very different from Akin's on abortion.

In fact, just like Akin, Ryan wants to prohibit federal funding for abortions in all but instances of "forcible rape," as if there were any other kind. Both he and Akin also supported a "personhood" bill, which would grant to fertilized eggs and clones the same legal rights as adult humans. Such legislation has sprouted from intense lobbying by fringe groups that would outlaw abortion under any circumstance, even incest or when pregnancy threatens a mother's life.

These same groups are behind recent moves by Republican governors and state legislators to require women seeking abortions to first undergo invasive transvaginal ultrasounds, which some critics say is a form of rape. Gov. Corbett says women can look away from the ultrasound monitor if they don't want to see the fetus. Can they also ignore feeling the probe?

Pennsylvania Republicans also championed a tougher building code for abortion clinics, including requiring them to install hospital-size elevators at considerable expense. Meanwhile, in New Jersey, Gov. Christie joined others in turning away millions in federal dollars for Planned Parenthood clinics. Never mind that the money wasn't going to be spent on abortions. Clinics have since closed, and women now face long waits for essential cancer screenings.

But those are the results you would expect with Rush Limbaugh as your radio muse, a man who called a woman a "slut" because she thought her health insurance should cover birth control. Beyond abortion, the Republican Party's nearly lockstep opposition to raising the minimum wage and support for education cuts, including for day care, represent an agenda that is hostile to women and families.

Akin says he will continue his Senate bid, but major donors are abandoning him. As he loses support, maybe his party will reconsider whether it should reel itself in from the far, far right.