IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

Scarborough: Mourdock, Akin drive away 'so many swing voters'

Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough called on the Republican Party to throw out members like Richard Mourdock and Rep.

Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough called on the Republican Party to throw out members like Richard Mourdock and Rep. Todd Akin who are "driving away so many swing voters" with their remarks on abortion and rape.

"It is remarkable what Republican candidates have said this year regarding abortion, regarding rape, regarding contraception," Scarborough said Thursday. "I’m a pro-life guy, but they are driving away so many swing voters...He’s not alone. You’ve got other Republicans out there just saying the craziest, most offensive things. And you just think about what goes through their minds. Do they say: ‘You know what I want to be when I grow up? The next Todd Akin.’ Is that what they’re saying? They’re morons."

Mourdock, the GOP Senate candidate from Indiana and state treasurer, who won nomination against 35-year-Senate veteran Richard Lugar in a primary election earlier this year, commented earlier this week that pregnancies occurring from rape are something "that God intended to happen."

"This Mourdock statement in Indiana…just beyond the pale….dragging God into it," Scarborough said.

The Indiana Senate race remains tight and something both parties are watching given that if Democrat Joe Donnelly wins, Democrats will have an easier chance of holding onto their advantage in the Senate.

The Hill's Ballot Box blog cites a recent poll from Donnelly's campaign that has him barely leading Mourdock with 40% to 38%.

How has the Romney campaign and other GOP top brass responded to Mourdock's assertions? Seems to be something of a mixed bag.

Romney's campaign released a statement Wednesday afternoon saying that while Romney continues to back Mourdock, he doesn't support the comment. Sen John McCain appears to have taken back his demand for Mourdock to apologize.

"When guys say things like this, they need to be thrown out," Scarborough added.

Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski added that "any 60-year-old man running in a Southern or Midwest state" should "stay away" from the subject.

"I’d say just don’t talk about babies and how they’re created," she said.