The calls are growing louder: From RNC chairman Reince Priebus to GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney, members of the Republican Party think Rep. Todd Akin should withdraw from the Senate race in Missiouri.

Congressman Akin has until 6:00pm Eastern tonight to make his withdrawal bid from the Senate after comments about rape and abortion caused an uproar. If he waits until after 6:00 tonight, it becomes more complicated legally and with Republican convention just around the corner, the pressure to get him to withdraw has been intense.

This morning on "Starting Point," Tea Party Express chair Amy Kremer tells Soledad O'Brien why she thinks Rep. Akin should withdraw from the Missouri Senate race.

"I think what he said is completely indefensible and changes the narrative of what's going on here," Kremer says. "The fact Claire McCaskill wants him to stay in the race speaks volumes. We need a good strong candidate. If he looks at the bigger picture, he will do what's best and step aside."

Kremer adds "on a state level as far as presidential politics...this is a distraction, we don't want to talk about this. We want to talk about the $16 trillion debt and how to get rid of it. Soledad, quite frankly, had he said this three weeks ago we wouldn't be sitting here discussing this because he would have lost in a landslide. We need to get back to what every American is concerned about right now, and that is the economy and jobs. And focusing on this, the longer he stays in the race, this is going to be the narrative that everybody is going to focus on and get us off message, and we can't afford that. I hope that congressman Akin will do what's best for the party and for the people across this country and step aside."

Tea Party Express chair Amy Kremer on Romney campaign aide's Etch-a-Sketch comments and how it will affect the GOP race.