Todd Akin spoke truer than we knew at the time when, in response to questions about reputed intra-party negotiations to replace him with another GOP contender, he declared:

There may be some negotiations,” he added, “but they don’t include me.

The evidence, via Think Progress:

This morning on ABC News, however, Mary Matalin – a well-connected GOP operative – suggested that Republicans would run a write-in candidate to defeat Akin. Matlin said that, if necessary, Republicans would “transfer the money” to Ann Wagner – a former chairwoman of the Missouri GOP who is currently running for Congress – to run as a 3rd party or write-in candidate.

I would be tempted to say that this means that the GOP cares more about winning than about playing by the rules of a democracy – Akin won his primary fair and square after all – but it’s not clear that a GOP-sponsored challenger will do anything for anyone but Claire McCaskill.  Apart from the satisfaction some state GOP bigwigs may get from, metaphorically speaking, spitting in Akin’s face, splitting the GOP vote between the evangelicals and the big-business faction doesn’t seem like a really good idea. As far as the moral high road goes, Akin was right, for all the good it’ll probably do him, when he said that “This is an election, not a selection.”

There is, of course, a certain irony that comes into play when we hear Todd Akin defending the democratic process. He hasn’t always been so keen on majority rule according to some recent statements (h/t MinistryofTruth at DailyKos):

The money quote:

The Founders were really down on the idea of Democracy, they despised it, because they understood the danger of a rabble getting all excited about something and not knowing all the facts and going off half-cocked and doing the wrong thing.

Personally, I’m not sure that the fact that we have a representative rather than a direct democracy means that the founders despised democracy; nor do the checks and balances that are intended to prevent the dictatorship of the majority constitute a repudiation of democracy, but rather function as a mechanism that keeps our diverse democracy safe from religious theocrats like Rep. Akin. Nevertheless, if one is to take Matalin seriously, it does seem as if the members of the Missouri GOP political establishment might really believe that the hoi polloi in their rank-and-file need the benefit of the party’s supervision and superior wisdom.

Afterthought:  Of course, if the GOP ran the party’s go-to girl, Ann Wagner, against McCAskill, that would leave the GOP slot in the 2nd to some small potatoes also-ran. So if the GOP vote is split in the Senate race and the Democratic challenger in the 2nd, whom I believe is Glenn Koenen, actually got some party support, we might manage to get rid of not only Todd Akin, but Wagner as well? Too much to hope for?  

Then again, this strategically leaked rumor may only be one more part of the psy-ops strategy that the GOP is running against Akin. It may just be too dumb to be anything else.

According to Politico, Republican pressure on Todd Akin to withdraw will continue to intensify:

Rob Jesmer, executive director of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, underscored that effort in a private email to Senate chiefs of staff earlier this week, urging them to “keep up the pressure over the next several weeks.” One method, he suggested, was if senators publicly pressure Akin to step aside or directly lobby Akin and his son Perry Akin, who is his campaign manager.

One way to do this is for members to call or email Todd directly and explain to him that every movement is bigger than one person, and that for the good of all that he believes and has fought for, it is important that he step aside,” Jesmer wrote in the email obtained by POLITICO

But there’s more:

… Persistent chatter among Missouri political operatives is the possibility that Akin cuts a deal with Ann Wagner – who is running for the House seat he is vacating. The idea: allow Akin to continue serving in Congress so he can keep his seat and give Wagner a chance to take on McCaskill. Wagner didn’t rule out the possibility of a Senate run in a Thursday statement that criticized Akin’s comments.

The Politico article also floats a few other names of potential replacements, notably, for the first time I’ve seen it, that of Jo Ann Emerson, along with (ho-hum) John Brunner and Sarah Steelman. But it’s really tthe idea of switching races with Wagner that raises such a nauseating stench. First they tell us that Akin’s so befouled himself that the GOP presidential candidate himself has to implore him (Akin) to step down. Just about every GOP pol in the country has expressed the same, apparently requisite, horror and outrage. But when all’s said and done, they’re still willing to let ol’ Todd run for the House of Representatives?  

It’s nasty, but, from the point of view of pragmatic politics, I suppose it’s understandable.  Akin winning or loosing a race for a seat in what will probably remain a GOP-dominated House, no matter what, won’t hurt the party’s ambitions nearly as much as letting him stall the GOP drive to take back the Senate. So, if we can believe Politico, Official GOPdom may be willing to cut their losses and make peace with the obdurate Akin. The only people who would lose should this deal come to pass would a few odd souls who care about good government more than they care about the election prospects of the Republican party.