Slog

News & Arts

The Stranger Suggests

Critics' Best Bets
Music Arts & Food


Line Out

Music & the City
at Night

Friday, March 2, 2012

"It's not the language I would have used."

Posted by on Fri, Mar 2, 2012 at 5:37 PM

Politico says someone finally asked Mitt Romney about Rush Limbaugh's suggestion that women who use contraception are sluts who should be forced to show video of themselves having sex in order to pay for their birth control. Here's what he said to say:

Mitt Romney, on a rope line on Ohio a short time ago, was asked about Rush Limbaugh's "slut" verbiage about a young woman testifying on birth control, and replied, per POLITCO's Reid Epstein, "I'll just say this, which is it's not the language I would have used."

Okay. Let me translate Limbaugh's comments to Mormonism:

"Golly gee, if ladies are going to run all around town all loosey-goosey like that, they should have to show their stag films when they go to pick up their darned monthly visitor pills."

Is that more like the language you would have used, Mitt?

 

Comments (25) RSS

Oldest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment
prompt 1
That makes it sound like he's saying "That's what I was thinking too, but I wouldn't have said it OUT LOUD."
Posted by prompt on March 2, 2012 at 5:40 PM
2
"It is important to keep in mind that this controversy involves a genuine public policy dispute, namely the attempt by Democrats to use ObamaCare to impose universal, mandatory, no-deductible, no-co-pay contraceptive coverage on private insurers — and to demonize any opponent as a misogynistic theocrat who would ban contraception." - RS McCain
Posted by delbert on March 2, 2012 at 5:45 PM
3
You guys just don't know how to speak passive-aggressive, which as a Mormon in Romney's native tongue. This is probably the nastiest thing Romney could get away with saying about someone as beloved by GOP faithful as Limbaugh.
Posted by Fairness Doctrine on March 2, 2012 at 5:45 PM
Matt from Denver 4
What a loser. Afraid to say anything which might rile up Rush further and get him going after him again.

Or maybe Paul's right. He's in complete agreement and only looks down on Limbaugh's lowbrow potty language.

Either way, he did nothing to reassure women that he would do anything to stop the war on women. All the more reason for any reasonable woman not to vote for him.
Posted by Matt from Denver on March 2, 2012 at 5:46 PM
5
So why didn't the journalist follow up and ask him that: "So you're saying you agree with him, but not in those words?"
Posted by mitten on March 2, 2012 at 5:46 PM
biffp 6
That is such a fucking lame response. I agree with Mitten that this can't just slip out of the news cycle. This is huge 'not going to get any votes from women who aren't self-loathing' stuff. He has to keep getting asked about this.
Posted by biffp on March 2, 2012 at 5:53 PM
7
"you don't have an intrinsic right to have others pay for your birth control" = "war on women"

lmao
Posted by Reader01 on March 2, 2012 at 6:10 PM
8
Nice going. Now the Democrats will use that sound bite (along with Limbaugh's) in their commercials.

You cannot object to "the language" if you don't also agree with content. What language would you have chosen?
"Loose"?
"Round heals"?
"Promiscuous"?
"Of easy virtue"?
"Tarts"?
"Hoes"?
"No better than they should be"?
"Tramp"?
"Strumpet"?
Posted by fairly.unbalanced on March 2, 2012 at 6:12 PM
balderdash 9
Whhaaaaaaaaat? Conservative Mormon patriarch politician is a secret misogynist?

And if you're in any doubt about what this actually means, just look to Romney's other gaffes for illumination: the man keeps getting in trouble for saying what he actually means! It just usually happens to be, "Boy, I sure am richer than all these people around me, I mean, whoa! I have way more money than you. And I don't actually believe in any of this nitpicky culture war stuff." This time it was a slight variant: "I just want to be in charge and subjugate ALL the women, as is God's plan for good Mormon men. I don't really give a shit about the specifics. Just vote for me."
Posted by balderdash http://introverse.blogspot.com on March 2, 2012 at 6:13 PM
10
"It's not the language I would have used" translates to "I agree with everything Rush Limbaugh said, but I would have called her a hussy instead."

It's interesting that he gives us an extremely weak protest against the language, but not against the content.

What a jerk.
Posted by Clayton on March 2, 2012 at 6:17 PM
11
That is a slight departure and embellishment from what he actually said.

Rush Limbaugh is disgusting, however, he did NOT say anything about forcing anyone to show videos of themselves:

He suggested that they post the videos online so they can be viewed and enjoyed by others, including himself.

I know it doesn't matter in the grand scheme, he said absolutely awful things: He's sick. But seriously, let him be sick on his own, don't make up stuff or embellish, that's just unprofessional and unnecessary.
Posted by scratchmaster joe on March 2, 2012 at 6:24 PM
12
If you hate Mitt Romney consider blunting his momentum before Super Tuesday by voting for the only non-Limbaugh Republican, Ron Paul in the Washington State caucuses tomorrow. If you are a registered WA voter you can find your polling location at wsrpcaucus.tumblr.com. It starts at 10:00 am tomorrow morning. This may be our only chance to keep Mitt from clinching the nomination. You have to be willing to sign a pledge stating that you consider yourself a republican. However, voting in the caucus won't in any way restrict your right to vote for Obama in the general election.
Posted by Bill46 on March 2, 2012 at 6:26 PM
13
@7 for the record, either stating or implying that all women on birth Control are sluts and prostitutes equals war on women.

Or is your pea brain incapable of making that connection?
Posted by Clayton on March 2, 2012 at 6:50 PM
biffp 14
"you protest having medical insurance pay for birth control but feel you have an intrinsic right to have them pay for your ED medicine that you take in a suitcase to the Domincan Republic to rape underage prostitutes" = "Rush Limbuagh"

stfu @7
Posted by biffp on March 2, 2012 at 7:01 PM
COMTE 15
Shorter Romney: "I would have used my 'inside her vagina' voice."

@17: Right. Because women paying for contraceptives as part of their health insurance coverage is exactly equivalent to them being parasites - unlike old men whose insurance covers their Viagra prescriptions...
Posted by COMTE http://www.chriscomte.com on March 2, 2012 at 7:46 PM
16
@14 - pretty sure Rush pays for his own Viagra. As for insurance coverage, erectile dysfunction is a disease. Pregnancy is not.

@15 IS A WIZARD AND CAN SEE THE FUTURE
Posted by Reader01 on March 2, 2012 at 8:22 PM
Shini 17
@7: You do realize some women have to take Oral Contraceptives to balance out their hormones to keep from going sterile, right?
Posted by Shini on March 2, 2012 at 8:43 PM
balderdash 18
@16, whether or not pregnancy is a disease really depends on who you ask.

And whether it's a "disease" or not, it's certainly a bigger problem in many cases than whether or not you can get your dick hard, about which I give exactly zero fucks.
Posted by balderdash http://introverse.blogspot.com on March 2, 2012 at 9:14 PM
19
Good! Don't cover dick pills either, that's fine. And no, it doesn't depend on who you ask. Pregnancy is not a disease, period.
Posted by Reader01 on March 2, 2012 at 9:20 PM
20
I wouldn't expect Rush to express such a negative opinion of prostitutes. I guess he saves his greatest contempt for the type of women who would have sex with him.
Posted by Proteus on March 2, 2012 at 9:23 PM
21
@16
"...erectile dysfunction is a disease."

Really? How do you catch it? Is there a vaccine? Can you tell who is a carrier?

I'll make this simple.
If a guy wants sex but can't get it up, his insurance will cover it.
If a woman wants sex there usually isn't much of a problem (usually).
But the moment she wants to sex AND birth control THE RIGHT WING HAS A HUGE PROBLEM WITH THAT. And then it's all about "religious freedom". No. You do not call someone who disagrees with your religious views a "slut" or a "prostitute". Usually you call them "heathens" or "infidels". "Slut" and "prostitute" describe sexual behaviors.

It's just like Santorum has been preaching. Sex should only happen for procreation within a marriage. It's what their base believes. A woman's health is SECONDARY to her purity. It is what the non-Santorum candidates have to avoid contradicting.
Posted by fairly.unbalanced on March 2, 2012 at 10:08 PM
Xenos 22
Translation: Denying women equal rights-like shafting working poor people and generally anyone making less than $175,000/year-is best left to discussions in 'quiet rooms.'
Posted by Xenos on March 2, 2012 at 10:58 PM
Supreme Ruler Of The Universe 23

Sounds like Romney had a pretty wild time post college when he was hanging around in a kind of "Real World -- Mormon Missionaries" villa in Paris.

How many mademoiselles got the brochure? Nudge, nudge...
Posted by Supreme Ruler Of The Universe http://yrihf.com on March 3, 2012 at 2:55 AM
24
How come NONE of the Republican candidates have spoken out against Limbaugh (Romney's tepid "It's not the language I would have used does not count)? How come neither Romney nor Santorum nor Gingrich nor Paul has stood up to this cretinous bully and said, "Regardless of your opinion, your language has no place in civilized discourse, and you owe Fluke--and all women--an apology"?

The question is merely rhetorical. I suspect that the reason they don't protest is because they secretly agree with him, and believe all women using contraceptives are prostitutes and sluts. Besides, Romney and Santorum's wives clearly don't use contraception, Mrs. Paul is too old to need it, and Calista Gingrich undoubtedly falls under Newt's "It doesn't matter what I do. It only matters what I say" rule.
Posted by Clayton on March 3, 2012 at 9:26 AM
biffp 25
Reader01, Fluke was testifying about a friend who took birth control to prevent cysts in her ovary. Given what you've written, you'd agree that should be paid for and thus Limbaugh was completely out of line.
Posted by biffp on March 3, 2012 at 1:25 PM

Add a comment

Advertisement
 

All contents © Index Newspapers, LLC
1535 11th Ave (Third Floor), Seattle, WA 98122
Contact Info | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Takedown Policy