ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - Missouri Rep. Todd Akin held the shortest of news conferences Friday to reiterate that he will continue his campaign to unseat Democratic incumbent Sen. Claire McCaskill, ignoring calls from dozens of Republicans in Missouri and across the nation who have suggested he leave the race.

“Apparently there are some people who are having trouble understanding our message,” Akin said in brief remarks to the press. ”I would like to be clear on that today. We are going to be here through the November election and we’re going to be here to win.”

“This is an election, not a selection,” Akin said in response to one of only five questions taken after his brief remarks.

Many of the questions that were unasked of the Congressman had to do with money — how much he had managed to raise since his controversial comments about “legitimate rape,” how much funding from outside groups he had lost and if other major donors were following the lead of Emerson Electric and pulling out.

Akin’s son and campaign manager, who imposed the limitations on reporters, did not answer those questions. He would also not say when Akin would next be in public.

Meantime, a survey conducted for the Post-Dispatch and KMOV-TV shows Akin trailing McCaskill by nine points. A Rasmussen Reports poll earlier in the week had Akin trailing by ten points.