State Rep. Sherman Parker official announced his bid for the U.S. House of Representatives seat held by Rep. Todd Akin last week. Parker, the lone black Republican in the state legislature, is challenging the incumbent “because he has not done a good job representing the district.”
An Akin campaign worker immediately called Parker a “liberal Republican,” a rebuke intended to damage any GOP candidate.
The spokesman called Akin “a voice that Republicans can trust to advance conservative principles such as lowering taxes, standing up for fiscal responsibility [and] fighting illegal immigration.” The EYE asks when illegal immigration was one of the most pressing issues in Missouri politics?
Parker countered by saying, “Throwing around labels never wins a debate and it doesn’t get legislation passed. During his 18-year political career, Congressman Akin has never had a bill passed into law. This includes six terms in the Missouri house and three terms in Congress.”
Akin is a right-wing ideologue driven more by the religious beliefs of some constituents than what is best for all of the residents and voters in the district he represents. It would be an upset if Parker won the GOP nomination in August, but Akin has tied himself so tightly to floundering President Bush that it could conceivably happen.