Woman's Claim: GOP House Candidate Paid For My Abortion
Okay, we've got some more news for you on the bizarre House race for the open Dem-held seat in Oregon, where GOP nominee Mike Erickson is facing allegations that he pressured a woman into getting an abortion back in 2000 and early 2001.
The latest: In a development that boosts Dem chances of holding the seat, The Oregonian has published a detailed story based on claims from the woman herself, whose damning accusations against Erickson are a must-read.
Perhaps most damaging is the woman's recollection of Erickson's 2006 campaign, which he lost 54%-43% against the incumbent Democrat:
Tawnya, a registered Republican, said she received a campaign flier with a photo of Erickson next to a baby, touting his endorsement by the anti-abortion group Oregon Right to Life.The mailer made him out to be "some sort of safe haven for babies, and honestly, it made me sick," she said.
This district voted narrowly for President Bush in 2004, and would have been a prime target for a Republican takeover with an open-seat race. But this story has really damaged the overall Republican mood -- Erickson's primary opponent has refused to endorse him, and the leadership of Oregon Right To Life openly say they believe the story to be true and are not supporting him.
For his part, Erickson has said he dated her briefly and gave her cash for a doctor's appointment -- but claims he didn't know it was for an abortion.
All in all, national Democrats are feeling very confident about holding on to this one.
Must read? Did TPM just become the National Enquirer?
June 23, 2008 12:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
maybe he can be the new face of the republican party
http://sensico.wordpress.com
June 23, 2008 1:02 PM | Reply | Permalink
Definitely a must read! There's always a need for exposing hypocrits!
June 23, 2008 1:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
Republican hypocrisy is systematic.
June 23, 2008 1:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Wonderful!!! We need more stories like this.
This is hypocrisy folks. This is the wonder of letting them hang themselves.
Now, we need to go after the "Marriage party" folks who dumped their wives in Washington to marry young sluts. People like Roy Blunt (father of the current gov of MO) and Steve LaTourette. Steve is a particularily nauseating scumbag. He dumped his wife leaving her with 4 kids to marry some young slut who was a lobby-slut. The wife is not happy, but Steve uses his alimony payments as a club to keep her quiet.
June 23, 2008 1:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Kind of like: I think we should both take public financing...unless I get more donations... I'm against the FISA bill, until I realize I need votes in the districs that are for it...and my personal favorite "I could no more disavow him (Rev, Wright) than I could the African American community" Unless he starts dragging me down in the poles than he's ass out!...That kind of hypocrisy?
June 23, 2008 1:33 PM | Reply | Permalink
No, more like McCain: "I thought the Iraq was was going to be easy before it wasn't."
Or: "I was for immigration reform before I ran for President."
Or: "I talk a lot about the environment, but my policies are the same as Bush."
June 23, 2008 1:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
Don't forget to add that McCain's environmental score is zero and Obama's is 96. McCain hypes his earth helper role but he never votes for the environment if there's anybody anywhere (especially people who donate to his campaigns), who could make a buck out of screwing the planet.
June 24, 2008 11:35 AM | Reply | Permalink
Or the "I'm a maverick" except every one of my positions is now identical to the positions that the GOP has held for the last thirty years. That kind of hypocrisy.
June 23, 2008 1:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
There's plenty of room on the Hypocrisy Bus for members of both parties, and both candidates. Well, Barr, too, come to think of it.
June 23, 2008 3:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
..Or perhaps McCain now sucking up to those 'agents of intolerance' he denounced back in 2000, Robertson and the thankfully-deceased Falwell.
One difference is that this clown cost a life for his own career. Much like our Junior President has killed many of your friends in the service, with the full-throated support of John McCain.
(I'm assuming your service from your icon, although by now, I think you should just put up the RNC elephant or the FNS logo, as they're apparently paying you to troll. And before you object, remember, the new FISA's 'Nixon amendment' allows bucket warrants, and protects all participants under the 'because the president does it, it is not illegal' principle. So we'll be able to find out after the Dems win the White House.)
June 23, 2008 6:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yes, there are so many districts where people are clamoring to support the FISA bill. It's just sweepin' the nation.
June 23, 2008 10:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
whoa -- the real "sluts" in these stories are the men having affairs. We know the men are scum, we don't know anything about the women they had affairs with and later married.
I think hypocrisy is the key here -- personal lives should be off the table in politics unless they base their candidacy on certain principles, e.g., anti-abortion, and are known to have violated those very principles (or are doing something illegal in those private lives, such as child pornography).
June 23, 2008 1:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is a howler, in no small part because Erickson's story is so lame. I mean, come on -- a woman you've been dating asks for $300 to "go to the doctor" and you don't even ask "Are you OK?" He might have done better to wave his arms and shout that he was shocked, SHOCKED to learn that she had had an abortion.
June 23, 2008 1:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah, this guy is a douche. I don't think he has a prayer of winning that seat, even in a slightly conservative district. A Dem has held it for a very long time. The voters there aren't freaked out by the prospect of another Dem winning it.
Honestly, are Republicans really even shocked by this type of thing any more? Haven't they figured out that any one who gets up on a soap box and lectures others about their personal lives is with out a doubt full of shit?
Do they believe that there is really a single Republican politician who hasn't done one of the following in their career: Tried a toke of weed? Strayed from their marraige? Beat their wife or kids? Had a serious drinking or gambling problem? Taken some money from the till? Looked the other way on serious malfeasance? Profited from government business?
Why do Republicans let these guys lecture them on morals and "family values"? No one to blame but themselves.
June 23, 2008 1:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
He is an incredible(in both senses of the word)hypocrite.
Publicly, Erickson is both anti-choice and pro-abstinence. Privately, he is obviously not pro-abstinence.
June 23, 2008 1:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
As someone familiar with Oregon politics, I think it's absolutely hilarious that this revelation came out during the primary, and the GOP voters still favored this guy over his opponent: shameless career office-seeker Kevin Mannix.
June 23, 2008 1:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
The "Abortions For Me, But Not For Thee" Party strikes again. More of the same from the do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do Republicans. These stories of rank hypocrisy never get old. Also, Is a poster above really trying to equivocate abortion with campaign financing?...weak.
June 23, 2008 1:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, twiddling sabers is back. Good to hear your snide remarks again. Lots of experts on hypocrisy, but only an x military man (read REAL patriot) would know real hypocricy. Sargent First Class Wallplaque would like us to believe that real hypocrisy only comes from Obama, or really, only the democratic candidate, I'm sure. Semper fi, I guess. Ergo lacrime. See, the problem with make sweeping accusations of hypocrisy of your opponent without acknowledging the hypocrisy of your own candidate is that this in itself is hypocritical. Don't you get it troll? No one here buys this bullshit.
June 23, 2008 2:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's so obvious that he's a lying scumbag.
What sort of doctor's appointment did he think cost $300? Who takes someone to a doctor's appointment, for which they have asked you for $300, and doesn't ask what sort of appointment they are having, and just drops them off and doesn't go with them or wait for them?
June 23, 2008 2:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
Must read? Did TPM just become the National Enquirer?
Hypocrits are the worst type of human. Especially hypocrits who wish to limit your choices while pusing his d!ck into as many women as possible.
Do as I say, not as I do. IOKIYAAR....
June 23, 2008 2:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
$300 for an abortion? Really? I thought it was much more expensive than that.
June 23, 2008 3:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
No kidding. As for ohiomeister's comment above: a regular GP visit usually costs ~$120 if you don't have insurance, and a 15 minute visit to any specialist will run you $200. Never mind that most people aren't paying out of pocket and the insurance companies only pay the doctor about half that, so the cost can't really be that high. Just another product of our screwed up health care system.
June 23, 2008 3:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
The clinic she went to is run by a doctor who has been providing low cost abortions since 1973. He keeps his costs low, so he can charge less - he has been harassed at the clinic, at home, at his office, chased down the street, fire bombed, stink bombed, etc. for the past 35 years, and he keeps at it because he believe that women have the right to control their own bodies. He is a hero.
June 23, 2008 3:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
I live in this district (and in the same town as Erickson.) Here's another tidbit that is not being disputed as far as I know - he not only provided the money, but drove her to the appointment.
Erickson will lose to a terrific Democrat - Kurt Shrader. The mood here is not too keen on Republicans in general and Erickson's behavior doesn't help.
June 23, 2008 4:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
I can just see the money spent on new campaign ads which go something like..
"Our hypocrite candidate is better than YOUR hypocrite candidate!"
Of course, this still ensures us that a hypocrite will be our next president...
sad that we can never seem to support or elect any non hypocrites...
June 23, 2008 5:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
And don't forget John McCain who cheated on and then dumped his injured wife for Cindy.
June 23, 2008 6:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
WARNING- crass comment below.
*ahem* Well, I believe Erickson always WAS for abortions in the case of rape...
*tap* *tap* Is this thing on? I'm here all week folks.
June 23, 2008 8:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
Don't forget to tip your servers.
June 23, 2008 8:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
I always love how a man with an 88.3% partyline voting record is considered a 'Maverick' that 'Goes his own way, no matter the political cost'.
By my eyeball count, that puts him in 20th place among GOP senators - he's not even in the bottom half of the party. Not like those *rebels* like "Wild Man" Orrin Hatch, "Rebel without a cause" John Sununu, or "Wild Man" Dick Lugar, but gee, I suppose it's unfair to hold him up to the likes of Dick Lugar as an example - I mean, a man could get killed riding with an outlaw like Lugar - Grin.
http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/110/senate/party-voters/
June 24, 2008 12:17 AM | Reply | Permalink
Not too surprising that a republican candidate would try for expediency in his own life while trying to force his agenda down the throats of other people. I wonder how he'd react to it if we passed a law that the women in America get to decide when and how to deal with his prostate health? (I have some suggestions if anyone's interested.) If you life in the body, you're the one best suited to decide how to take care of the body. What a jerk!
June 24, 2008 11:39 AM | Reply | Permalink