politics

The only man who would be more dangerous as the US President than Trump.

Mike Pence has kept a pretty low profile for someone who holds the second highest job in the White House.  His devotion to the President and refusal to dine alone with any woman other than his wife is the perfect foil for Trump’s anti-establishment, pussy grabbing anarchy.

But with the question of a Trump impeachment refusing to go away, the idea of a Pence White House might not be completely off the cards.  So is he the safe pair of hands we all assume or does his quiet, measured smile hide a set of ideals more dangerous than that of the President?

This week on Tell Me It’s Going To Be OK, journalist Amelia Lester and I discussed what a Pence Presidency would mean for the world and why his Stepford Wives demeanour shouldn’t have any of us fooled.

“Pence’s particular brand of evangelical Christianity is not open to gay people, it’s not open to feminism, it’s not open to science,” says Amelia.

“There was a cabinet meeting where the conversation turned towards gay rights and Trump turned to Pence and said “Don’t ask that guy, he wants to hang them all.”

A former TV and radio talk show host, Pence provides the connective tissue between the Trump administration and the most conservative right wing of the Republican establishment.  He also calls his wife “mother” which opens up a whole other rabbit hole I don’t think anyone has time to go down.

So what are some of the views that suggest President Pence might be good for alliteration but bad for society?

His long desire to defund Planned Parenthood and strong anti-abortion views, his belief that homosexuality can be cured and his opinion that working mothers stunt the emotional growth of their children.

So if we’re secretly hoping for a Trump impeachment should we also be simultaneously terrified of that actually happening?  Amelia still has some hope.

“He does at least seem to agree with the political norms that are in place, unlike Trump, so he’s familiar with the basic operating structure of Government and he doesn’t seem mentally unhinged.  So it’s about deciding whether you want a religious zealot who doesn’t think gay people or women are fully human, or Donald Trump.”

That doesn’t seem like much of a choice at all.