Former Senator and long-time Missouri politician John Danforth has announced his support of Ed Martin, the Republican challenger to Chris Koster in the state attorney general campaign - but the two politicians are split on one issue: Whether or not to support Congress member Todd Akin.
At a lunch on MU campus Wednesday, former Senator Danforth, who also served as Missouri's attorney general from 1969 to 1976, announced his support for Martin in Missouri's attorney general campaign. At the same event, Martin declared his support for Akin, who lost some party support after his controversial comments about rape and abortion, which Akin later apologized for.
"I will vote for Todd Akin," Martin says. "I think Claire McCaskill and Barack Obama have done things to our country that are much worse than anybody’s even realizing."
The comments yesterday followed Senator Roy Blunt and the Missouri Republican Party announcing support of Akin earlier this week.
Danforth, Wednesday, was not on the same page. He says voters should remember that Akin doesn’t represent the values of the Republican Party and he’s hurting other party members by staying on the ballot.
Even with this disagreement, Danforth calls Martin an attractive candidate and says the hardworking and driven energy he brings to the job will appeal to voters.
"I think that’s what Ed offers," Danforth says. "I think he’ll put together a law office that attracts very good people to us and that’s not so active in playing politics."
Martin says voters should remember this dedication and his focus on the job rather than politics this election.
