Claire McCaskill Hits State Rep For Using Outdated, Misogynistic Language In Resolution

Missouri state Rep. Mike Moon (R-Ash Grove) invoked language from the Declaration of Independence in a state House resolution to repeal the Affordable Care Act, and U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) is not having any of it.

In a resolution calling on the Missouri congressional delegation -- which includes McCaskill, eight U.S. House members and one other U.S. senator -- to "endeavor with 'manly firmness' and resolve to totally and completely repeal the Affordable Care Act, settling for no less than a full repeal," Moon borrowed from the portion of the Declaration of Independence airing grievances against King George III.

McCaskill, one of three women in the Missouri congressional delegation, released a statement Tuesday criticizing Moon's use of the phrase and opposing a full repeal of President Barack Obama's signature health care law.

“I don’t think you prove your manhood by kicking folks off their health coverage and once again letting insurance companies discriminate against women and sick people," she said in the statement.

Moon defended his use of the phrase, the Columbia Tribune reported Monday, in a manner by which he's likely digging himself into an even deeper misogynistic hole.

“It is just like going to war," Moon said. "You want a soldier to fight like a man. If a woman is in the trenches, you want them to fight like a man, too.”

In his own defense, Moon admitted some of his female colleagues may even be more capable than he is.

“I know there are some women who are much smarter than I am and I tip my hat to them," he said, according to the Columbia Tribune.

The Missouri House Health and Mental Health Policy Committee is set to hear the resolution later Tuesday.