Kirk Cameron defends Todd Akin: 'I respect him'

Christian conservative actor and activist Kirk Cameron on Tuesday offered praise for a Republican Senate candidate who recently said that women were less likely to get pregnant through "legitimate" rape.

During an interview on CNN, host Soledad O'Brien asked Cameron if Rep. Todd Akin should give up his bid for the Senate after telling KTVI that “the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down,” referring to pregnancy as a result of so-called "legitimate rape."

"You know, I would encourage people to sit down and watch the video," Cameron advised "You know, he clearly is a pro-life advocate, and for that, I respect him."

"He said that he misspoke and that he mis-phrased something, and he apologized," the actor-turn-evangelist added. "I'm the kind of person that believes that I would like to be evaluated by my entire career and my entire life, not two words that I would misspeak and then later apologize for. So, he's in a tough spot."

Amid calls from Republicans for him to quit the race, Akin admitted on Tuesday that he had "made a couple of serious mistakes," but insisted that he was "not a quitter."

The congressman has until 5 p.m. on Tuesday to step aside. After that, a court order would be required to remove his name from the ballot.

Watch this video from CNN's Starting Point, broadcast Aug. 21, 2012.