Mike Pence

[[File:Goblin_Pence_2.jpg|thumb|right|165px|Pence in 2023, after seeing the polls before suspending his campaign.]]
{{uspolitics}}
{{cquote|Despite the hysteria from the political class and the media, smoking doesn't kill.|||Mike Pence<ref name=Fusion>Hogan, Patrick (July 14, 2016). [http://fusion.net/story/325513/mike-pence-1990s-essays/ "Here are some of the weirdest columns Mike Pence wrote in the '90s"]. ''Fusion''. </ref>}}
{{cquote|{{wpl|Beelzebub|There's a fly on your head.}}|||[[Kamala Harris]], following the 2020 Vice Presidential debate<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UiBjq0ht7U Mike Pence Fly Remix]</ref><ref>[https://www.ajournalofmusicalthings.com/the-kamala-harris-theres-a-fly-on-your-head-remix/ The Kamala Harris "There's a Fly on Your Head" remix] by Alan Cross (October 9, 2020) ''A Journal of Musical Things''.</ref>}}
{{cquote|He ''looks'' like he’s from the 1950s, but he thinks like he’s from the 1650s.|||John Oliver, on [[Last Week Tonight]]<ref>[https://www.bostonherald.com/2016/11/14/john-oliver-urges-vigilance-against-trump-sounds-alarm-about-fake-news-and-declares-f-2016/ John Oliver urges vigilance against Trump, sounds alarm about fake news and declares 'f– 2016'] by Cynthia Littleton (November 14, 2016 at 1:57 p.m. | UPDATED: February 15, 2019 at 2:14 p.m.) ''Boston Herald''.</ref>}}

'''Michael Richard Pence''' {{lived|1959}} served as the 48<sup>th</sup> Vice President of the United States from 2017 to 2021.  He is also formerly the 50<sup>th</sup> Governor of [[Indiana]], a representative from the state's 6th District, and the only man in the world who thinks MILF has a comma in it. A [[Republican]], notorious [[Christian]] [[fundamentalist]], and supporter of the [[Tea Party]], he was a potential candidate for the Republican nomination for the presidency in 2012 and 2016 but chose not to run. In spite of his previous denouncement of Trump<ref>[http://www.vox.com/2016/7/14/12189754/mike-pence-tweets Mike Pence Tweets]</ref> and endorsement of [[Ted Cruz|Ted "Vote your Conscience" Cruz]], he was later chosen as Trump's Vice President.

The sad part is Pence didn't do much for Indiana; that was all {{wpl|Mitch Daniels||.}} Pence first came to national prominence when he introduced and subsequently signed a [[Religious Freedom Restoration Act|bill into law]] that would allow private individuals and companies to [[Discrimination|discriminate]] against [[LGBT]] people on "[[religious freedom]]" grounds. However, after hundreds of businesses pointed out the economic impact of such a bill, he quietly backed down, tail tucked between his legs.

Despite bearing an eerie resemblance to {{wpl|Robert Shaw (actor)|a James Bond villain}} Pence is incredibly boring ("Born to be Mild"),<ref>[https://www.wsj.com/articles/BL-WB-64869 ‘Born to Be Mild’ Mike Pence: I Stand ‘Shoulder to Shoulder’ With Trump] by Valerie Bauerlein (Updated Aug. 4, 2016 1:41 pm ET) ''The Wall Street Journal''.</ref> which is why walking infomercial [[Donald Trump]] chose him as his VP, in order to make Trump's mad ramblings more palatable to [[fundamentalist|fundie]] Republicans.<ref name=CNN1> Spodak, Cassie (August 5, 2016). [http://edition.cnn.com/2016/08/04/politics/pence-trump-question-young-boy/ 11-year-old puts Pence on the spot with Trump question] by Cassie Spodak (August 5, 2016) ''CNN Politics''.</ref> Pence thinks [[Jesus]] wanted him to be a politician, which became funnier after some in [[MAGA]] nicknamed him "[[Judas]]" for his opposition to the [[2021 U.S. coup attempt]].<ref>Katia Patin (January 8, 2021). [https://www.codastory.com/disinformation/mike-pence-conspiracies/ "Trump supporters are casting Mike Pence as a modern-day Judas"]. ''Coda Story''.</ref> He wants the [[Separation of church and state|line between religion and politics]] completely erased. Furthermore, he's an outright Dick Cheney fan, "I frankly hold [[Dick Cheney]] in very high regard in his role as vice president."<ref>Tani, Maxwell (September 18, 2016). [http://uk.businessinsider.com/mike-pence-dick-cheney-vice-president-2016-9 "Mike Pence: I'd model my vice presidency after Dick Cheney"]. ''Business Insider''.</ref>

==Bio==
He was born, raised, and educated in Indiana. Born into an [[Irish]] [[Catholic]] and [[Democrat]]ic family, Pence and his family idolized the first Irish Catholic president, [[John F. Kennedy]].<ref name=mahler>[https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/21/us/politics/mike-pence-religion.html Mike Pence’s Journey: Catholic Democrat to Evangelical Republican] by Johnathan Mahler & Dirk Johnson (July 20, 2016) ''The New York Times''.</ref> He converted to [[Evangelical]] [[Protestantism]] during his college years and became a Republican.<ref name=mahler/>

He studied law at Indiana University in Indianapolis and briefly worked in private practice before moving to the more content-free life of a [[Think tank|think-tank]] whore and [[right-wing]] [[talk radio]] presenter in the 1990s. In the latter capacity, he reportedly styled himself "[[Rush Limbaugh]] on decaf", indicating his comparative dullness in comparison to the rabid shock jock, although in retrospect maybe he knew something about [[Limbaugh]]'s [[Drug abuse|drug problems]] too.

He unsuccessfully ran for [[Congress]] in 1988 and 1990; in the latter race, he was widely criticised for finding unusual uses for campaign funding, including mortgage payments on his house and entrance fees for [[golf]] tournaments.<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/mike-pence-used-campaign-funds-to-pay-his-mortgage--and-it-cost-him-an-election/2016/07/15/90858964-49ed-11e6-bdb9-701687974517_story.html?utm_term=.cfae5dbe9907 Mike Pence used campaign funds to pay his mortgage — and it cost him an election] By Rosalind S. Helderman et al. (July 15, 2016) ''The Washington Post''.</ref> He finally succeeded in entering the [[House of Representatives]] in 2000. In 2006, he lost badly to [[John Boehner]] in the election for House minority leader, but he became Republican Conference Chairman in 2009, which is nearly as good.

While in Congress, he served on committees concerned with agriculture, the judiciary, small business, and foreign relations; he introduced 90 bills, of which zero became law. He also proposed a constitutionally-enshrined government spending limit and spoke in favor of the [[gold standard]]. He voted for the [[Iraq War]] and [[Patriot Act]] and supported immigration restrictions, campaign finance liberalisation, every [[free trade]] treaty there was, and partial privatisation of [[Social Security]].

He was the only candidate in the 2012 Republican primary for governor of Indiana and polled 49.6% in the general election to defeat Democratic candidate John Gregg; this was a sharp fall from the vote for his predecessor Mitch Daniels but still enough to keep the Republicans in power.

Although a [[climate change denier]] in the past, [[Stopped clock|in a rare episode of sanity]] Pence said he now supports the [[scientific consensus]] on climate change (somewhat).<ref>[http://fusion.net/story/351926/pence-climate-change-trump-human-activity-no-question/ Mike Pence believes in climate change (don't tell Trump!)] by Andrew Joyce (September 28, 2016) ''Fusion''.</ref>

==Trump VP pick==
During his first [[CNN]] interview with Trump, Pence's initial answer on [[waterboarding]] was a rather creative cop-out, we'll give him that: "I don't think we should ever tell our enemy what our tactics are."<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/17/politics/donald-trump-mike-pence-60-minutes-interview/ Trump: I'd declare war on ISIS, send 'very few' troops] by Eric Bradner & Tal Kopan (Updated 7/17/16 at 7:59 PM ET) ''CNN''.</ref> Trump rather patronizingly said that Pence was "entitled to a mistake" — voting for the Iraq War, [[Hypocrisy|one of the most common sticks he uses to beat Hillary with]].<ref>[http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/288097-trump-on-pence-voting-for-iraq-war-i-dont-care Trump: Pence entitled to make mistakes, Hillary's not] by Rebbecca Savransky (7/17/16 at 7:01 pm) ''The Hill''.</ref> That isn't even discussing the frickin' ''[[gold]] chairs'' they were sitting in. Yes ''gold chairs'' that looked just like [[Saddam Hussein]]'s or [[Vladimir Putin]]'s or [[Bashar al-Assad]]'s or… Just an all-around disaster of an interview. Notably, perhaps foreshadowing what would happen later, he was not the first choice — [[John Kasich]] turned down the job because he was staunchly anti-Trump.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/20/magazine/how-donald-trump-picked-his-running-mate.html How Donald Trump Picked His Running Mate] by Robert Draper (July 20, 2016) ''The New York Times''.</ref>

==Religious views==
{{cquote|When the conversation turned to [[gay rights]], Trump motioned toward Pence and joked, “Don’t ask that guy — he wants to hang them all!”|||Jane Mayer<ref>[https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/10/23/the-danger-of-president-pence/amp The Dangers of President Pence] by Jane Mayer (16 October 2017, 5:00 AM) ''New Yorker''.</ref>}}
{{cquote|My deepest-held conviction, @VP, is USA is being ruined by fake-Christian [[pharisee]]s like you, who devote lives to ignoring [[Jesus]] to further their petty ambitions, by being [[greedy]], judgmental [[war]]mongers, who enable [[Adultery|adulterous]] liars like Donald J. Trump. We're awake to that, girl!|||[[Betty Bowers]]<ref>[https://twitter.com/BettyBowers/status/995470203843694592 My deepest-held conviction, @VP, is USA is being ruined by fake-Christian pharisees like you…] @BettyBowers (4:06 AM - 13 May 2018) ''Twitter''.</ref>}}
Pence converted from [[Catholicism]] (and from being a [[Democrat]]) in the 1990s and became an [[evangelical Christian]].<ref name=fehrman>[https://craigfehrman.com/2013/01/09/mike-pences-religion/ Mike Pence’s religion] by Craig Fehrman (9 January 2013).</ref> He is a [[creationist]] (pro-"[[intelligent design]]") and opposes [[evolution]] and has used the "[[Just a theory|just ''one'' of ''many'' theories]]" gambit.<ref>[http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2016/08/04/mike-pence-creationist/ Mike Pence, creationist] by PZ Myers (4 August 2016) ''Pharyngula''.</ref> Though he doesn't like to talk about his religion,<ref name=fehrman/> his political career has been marked by the [[social conservatism]] characteristic of evangelical Christianity, and he has associated with [[dominionists]]. He may also have argued in favor of taxpayer-funded [[conversion therapy]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20161128080229/http://www.politifact.com/california/statements/2016/jul/28/gavin-newsom/true-mike-pence-advocated-conversion-therapy/ True: Mike Pence advocated for 'conversion therapy'] by Chris Nichols  (July 28<sup>th</sup>, 2016 at 1:25 a.m.) ''Politifact'' (archived from November 28, 2016).</ref>

==''Mulan'' review==
As a radio show host, Pence was known for his range of… ''interesting'' opinions on a wide variety of topics, to put it lightly.<ref name=Fusion/> In 1999, Pence argued in an op-ed that the [[Disney]] film ''Mulan'' was liberal, [[feminazi]] [[propaganda]]:
{{quotebox|Just spent a memorable Father's Day, like so many other all American Hoosier dads, with my kids at the new Disney film entitled, "Mulan". […] Despite her delicate features and voice, Disney expects us to believe that Mulan's ingenuity and courage were enough to carry her to military success on an equal basis with her cloddish cohorts. Obviously, this is Walt Disney's attempt to add childhood expectation to the cultural debate over the role of women in the military. I suspect that some mischievous [[liberal]] at Disney assumes that Mulan's story will cause a quiet change in the next generation's attitude about women in combat and they just might be right. (Just think about how often we think of Bambi every time the subject of deer hunting comes into the mainstream media debate.) […]

The hard truth of our experiment with gender integration is that is has been an almost complete disaster for the military and for many of the individual women involved. […] Housing, in close quarters, young men and women (in some cases married to non-military personnel) at the height of their physical and [[sexual]] potential is the height of stupidity. It is instructive that even in the Disney film, young Ms. Mulan falls in love with her superior officer! Me thinks the [[politically correct]] Disney types completely missed the [[irony]] of this part of the story. They likely added it because it added realism with which the viewer could identify with the characters. You see, now stay with me on this, many young men find many young women to be attractive sexually. Many young women find many young men to be attractive sexually. Put them together, in close quarters, for long periods of time, and things will get interesting. Just like they eventually did for young Mulan. Moral of story: women in military, bad idea.<ref>[https://img.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeed-static/static/2016-07/17/14/asset/buzzfeed-prod-web04/sub-buzz-24551-1468778861-1.png "The Women in the Mulan Military] (1990) ''Mike Pence Show''.</ref><ref>[https://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/mister-ill-make-a-man-out-of-you? Mike Pence Argued In An Op-Ed That Disney's "Mulan" Was Liberal Propaganda] by Andrew Kaczynski (July 17, 2016) ''BuzzFeed''.</ref>}}

If he really hated the movie that much, just sticking to the valid criticism that it was the typically cheesy Disney [[fakelore]] would have sufficed. Pence [[Willful ignorance|willfully ignores]] the fact that actual ancient [[Chinese]] [[history]] had {{wpl|Fu_Hao|several}} {{wpl|Li_Xiu|real}} {{wpl|Yuenü|famous}} {{wpl|Huang_Guigu|female}} {{wpl|Mother_Lü|warriors|.}} It also doesn't seem to have occurred to him that many young men find each other attractive, [[Don't Ask Don't Tell|with or without openly admitting it]], and that this has never brought the army tumbling down. Unless maybe it did occur to him and people were right to call his statements alluding to conversion therapy [[dog whistle]]s.

==Sex==
Pence recommends [[abstinence-only sex education]].<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/whos-worse-for-the-nation--trump-or-pence/2017/08/07/d6815e12-7ba0-11e7-9d08-b79f191668ed_story.html Who’s worse for the nation — Trump or Pence?] by Richard Cohen (August 7 at 7:35 PM) ''The Washington Post''.</ref> He has [[lie|falsely claimed]] that "[[condom]]s are a very, very poor protection against [[sexually transmitted disease]]s".<ref>[http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2016/07/22/mike_pence_thinks_condoms_are_too_modern_and_liberal.html Condoms, More Than 10,000 Years Old, Are Too “Modern” for Mike Pence] by Nora Caplan-Bricker (July 22 2016 12:49 PM) ''Slate''.</ref>

==Global warming==
Pence has claimed that [[global warming|climate change]] is a myth and part of a "[[liberal]] [[Environmentalism|environmentalist]] agenda" to raise [[taxes]].<ref>[http://www.politico.com/story/2016/10/what-does-mike-pence-believe-229104  In a Trump-free election, Pence might not seem so mainstream: The governor's long career in the public eye contains its share of controversy] by Madeline Conway and Brent Griffiths (10/04/2016 01:32 PM EDT) ''Politico''.</ref>

==Tobacco smoking==
Decades after there is any scientific doubt that [[tobacco]] smoking kills, and [[denialists]] are hard to find, Pence claimed in 2000, "Despite the hysteria from the political class and the media, smoking doesn't kill."<ref>[https://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/smoking-doesnt-kill-and-other-great-old-op-eds-from-mike-pen "Smoking Doesn't Kill" And Other Great Old Op-Eds From Mike Pence] by Andrew Kaczynski (March 31, 2015, at 10:38 a.m.) ''BuzzFeed News''.</ref>

==Homophobia and transphobia==
{{main|1=Homophobia|3=Transphobia}}
Besides already drafting a [[Religious Freedom Restoration Act|religious freedom act]] during his time as the governor of Indiana, he was in favor of the [[North Carolina]] HB2 bill that would give the right to discriminate against transgender people in North Carolina.<ref>[https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2016/9/14/1570042/-Pence-supports-North-Carolina-s-right-to-discriminate Pence supports North Carolina's right to discriminate] by Laura Clawson (September 14, 2016 · 8:51 AM PDT) ''DailyKos''.</ref> He was also the one responsible for Trump signing the transgender ban in the United States military in July 2017.<ref>[https://thinkprogress.org/pence-responsible-for-trump-transgender-military-ban-f4d3b67bde47 Pence secretly drafted Trump's latest transgender military ban: Junk science informed the new order, not military readiness.] by Zack Ford (Mar 25, 2018, 12:51 pm) ''ThinkProgress''.</ref>

==Views on science==
Like most fundamentalists and creationists, Pence is [[anti-science]]. He wanted to replace science classes with teaching the Bible instead.{{fact}}

==The fall guy==
{{cquote|Mike Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our country and our [[United States Constitution|constitution]], giving states a chance to certify a corrected set of facts, not [[big lie|the fraudulent or inaccurate ones]] which they were asked to previously certify. USA demands the truth!|||Donald Trump throws Pence under the bus amidst the [[2021 U.S. Capitol riot]], at 2:24pm on 6 January 2021<ref name=blumenthal />}}

Pence's unfailing support for Donald Trump has cost him dearly. After years of securing evangelical support for Trump, he was unceremoniously thrown under the bus for failing to selectively overturn the results of the [[2020 U.S. presidential election]] when presiding over the certification of the [[electoral college]] results on 6 January 2021. Trump, seeing his last chance at remaining in power slip away, egged on the protestors in a speech on that day, mentioning Pence no less than 13 times. Shortly thereafter, a [[2021 U.S. Capitol riot|mob of insurrectionists stormed the U.S. Capitol]], and many of the rioters were prepared to execute Pence for failing to stand up for their doomed cause (their antics included the setting up of a gallows). After this debacle, Pence, now disgraced and shunned by the Republican Party, retired to an isolated cabin in Indiana to contemplate his misguided deal with the [[devil]] and assume his new role as a [[martyr]] for [[Trumpism]].<ref name=blumenthal>[https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/feb/07/mike-pence-donald-trump-republicans-religion-evangelical The martyrdom of Mike Pence] by Sidney Blumenthal (7 February 2021) ''The Guardian''.</ref>

This was Trump's way of shifting the blame as he had promised the mob that he would win but had failed to do so. A [[scapegoat]] was required, and for Trump, there's no problem that this was his most loyal aide.

Despite the incredible level of abuse from Trump, including that during the riot Trump said that he though Pence should be hanged for not following through on the [[coup]],<ref>[https://www.politico.com/news/2022/05/25/trump-expressed-support-hanging-pence-capitol-riot-jan-6-00035117 Trump expressed support for hanging Pence during Capitol riot, Jan. 6 panel told] by Betsy Woodruff Swan & Kyle Cheney (05/25/2022 01:35 PM EDT) ''Politico''.</ref> Pence repudiated nothing about his former boss except the attempt to overturn the election and he never mentioned death threat.<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/08/09/donald-trump-has-been-preparing-this-moment/ Donald Trump has been preparing for this moment for a long time] by Philip Bump (August 9, 2022 at 1:54 p.m. EDT) ''The Washington Post''.</ref> In the aftermath of Biden's speech where he declared Trumpism a threat to democracy, too, Pence seemed very conciliatory to the same people who threatened to lynch him.<ref>[https://twitter.com/Mike_Pence/status/1568063687767777280 @Mike_Pence] on Twitter: ''Never before in the history of our nation has a President stood before the American people and accused millions of his own countrymen of being a “threat to this country.” To top it off, President Biden had the audacity to claim, “I’m asking our nation to come together, to unite.”''.</ref>

==See also==
*[[Billy Graham#Billy Graham rule|Billy Graham rule]]
*[[Lying for Jesus]]

==External links==
*[http://www.vulture.com/2016/07/trump-pence-logo-a-doomed-love-story.html  "Trump and Pence: A Doomed Love Story"]
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymeqZpm9fgM Mike Pence - The Worst Case Scenario]"

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

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