Akin continues to dismiss Republican pleas to withdraw from Senate race
In an interview on NBC’s Today show, embattled Representative Todd Akin confirmed that Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan called him to personally plea that he step aside in the wake of the searing controversy surrounding his comments about abortion. Akin says he told Ryan that he was thinking things over and wants to “do the right thing.”
In the interview, Akin reiterated that he is not leaving the race and intends to win, adding that it’s not right for party bosses to override the voters of Missouri.
“Well, let me say this is not about me," said Akin. "This is not about my ego, but it is about the voters of Missouri. They’ve chosen me because of principles that I stand on and putting principles over politics. And I believe they stand with me on a whole host of principles.”
Akin acknowledges it was a mistake for him to refer to "legitimate" rapes but says he has apologized.
Students injured in morning school bus accident
About a half-dozen students have been hospitalized with what are believed to be minor injuries after a St. Louis school bus collided with a Metro bus. The accident happened before 7 a.m. Wednesday at North Kingshighway and Page Avenue.
Authorities say the Metro bus struck the rear of the school bus carrying students to Carr Lane Middle School. The driver of the Metro bus was also hospitalized with minor injuries. A second school bus arrived to take the uninjured children to school.
The cause of the wreck remains under investigation.
Bond to lead St. Louis delegation to China
St. Louis-area business leaders are planning a visit to China later this year in an effort to increase the region's ties to the fast-growing Chinese economy. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that former Republican Sen. Kit Bond will lead the delegation to four cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing and Hangzhou.
The trip is scheduled for the first week of December.
Bond was active in Asian relations while in the Senate and now leads a consulting firm that works on international trade. He says the visits to China help forge relationships that lead to deals and jobs.
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