Could A President Pence Be Beaten In 2020?

[Me.]

Say something happens to the traitor in the WH before the next election, how hard would Dems have to work to defeat Pence?

[Siwsan]

1. More likely than not.

I can't even begin to imagine what those debates would be like, other than his responses putting people to sleep. I'm willing to bet that the biggest reason trump* selected him was his absolute lack of spine and appeal, so he would never be a threat.

[Hoyt]

2. Not too worried about Pence, but I am concerned trump drops out at last minute for some reason.

GOPers then put up some candidate that says she/he's going to repair all the crud trump did -- domestically and internationally.

If we spend the next year running against trump, we might have a problem adjusting to trump dropping out.

I know folks don't believe trump will ever drop out voluntarily, but I'm not convinced of that if the GOP turns on him because they see a slaughter coming in 2020 election.

[Me.]

8. I'm With You

Maybe wishful thinking but a year and a half more of this menace is a long time and I don't think the traitor will remain in the presidency so we better be prepared for anything.

[DFW]

11. "Some reason" would be the following:

Over the next year and a half so much comes to light about Trump's felony actions that require air-tight damage control, or else risking uniforms with handcuffs waiting for Trump on January 20th at the inauguration the second the new president takes the oath of office.

Trump resigns a week before the inauguration, Pence does like Ford did with Nixon and pardons him for any and all offenses committed while in office, and both are outta there scot free.

[Totally Tunsie]

16. Exactly.

[Aristus]

3. I would suggest working like the fate of the world depends on it.

Because it does.

At the same time, the bland, colorless, odious little Mike Pence can't swing nearly as much weight with Trump's demented supporters in an election. Trump is a vile, repulsive, loathsome, squalid excuse for a human being, but he is able to rouse the feverish, fanatical political support of people who are just like him.

Pence would have to stand on his head and recite the Lord's Prayer aloud and backward to get a fraction of that attention.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

4. Pasty, dull-witted Mike Dense is quite beatable, I think.

He would have the solid support of the evangelical-right, of course, and most "establishment" GOPers would probably breathe a sigh of relief because he's not nearly as bizarre, vulgar and chaotic as Trump. But Pence is also about as charismatic as library paste, and he does not have Trump's cult following. His cringe-inducing efforts to suck up to Trump (more accurately, to crawl right up his ass and take up residence there with Hannity and Lindsey Graham) are obviously intended to curry favor with the base as well as the boss, but Pence just doesn't have Trump's weapons-grade hatemongering skills. Pence has focused much of his own hate, in his uniquely boring and stupid fashion, on LGBT people and women, while neglecting to obviously hate immigrants and PoC quite as much as Trump so there might be some lack of enthusiasm from the cult. He won't get the wackos, gun nuts, and all-purpose haters out to vote in great numbers. He also won't have Hillary Clinton to pick on and spread insane rumors about.

On the other side of the aisle, there are a whole lot of really angry women who are getting even angrier by the minute. I think the latest anti-abortion legislation, which Pence enthusiastically supports, will prove to be the GOP's exploding cigar. A Dem candidate with charisma and brains (and we have many of those) could squash him like a bug.

And wouldn't you love to see him try to debate Pete Buttigieg?

[2naSalit]

5. Shessh, I would hope so...nt

[beachbum bob]

6. A PEnce is surely beatable as his record is nothing but EXTREMISM ladened

actually, he would be easily beatable

[meow2u3]

7. Pence has all the charm and charisma of a dead fish

A rotting fish can beat Pence in 2020!

[hunter]

9. I think Pence is beaten regularly... and he likes it.

It's impossible to be a high ranking 21st century Republican without a deep, dark, closet full of skeletons, disturbing kinks, and creepy-crawlies.

The modern Republican Party is held together by blackmail and threats of mutually assured political destruction.

But the scary thing is that the Republican Party can spit up any vile meat-puppet as a Presidential candidate and the deplorables will vote for him, and the rest of the "win" will be accomplished by cheating, dirty tricks, and corrupt mass media, especially radio and television.

[moondust]

17. Ha!

No meat-puppet! You're the meat-puppet!

I laugh at the way Pence lowers his voice and puts on his "big authoritative boss" act.



Rec

[ellie]

10. Yes

he doesn't have the cult of personality that surrounds Trump. And he's a weirdo.

[Bleacher Creature]

12. I think Pence was electorally a dead man walking before Trump picked him.

Which just adds to the mystery of why Manafort resurrected him.

I don't fear Pence one bit.

[Drunken Irishman]

15. Because he's a submissive, weak politician who'll go along with anything Trump does.

Beyond that, it also gave Trump serious credibility with the pro-life, right-wing fundy wing of the GOP.

[CrispyQ]

13. He couldn't win his primary if he had to.

Zero charisma. Zero personality. We'll play that video of Mike & Trump at a table & Trump removes his cup from the table & sits it on the floor & Mike removes his sippy cup, too, & sits it on the floor. Or that video of zombie Mike in the Oval Office as Nancy & Chuck school Trump on how Congress works.

I think Trump will dump him for 2020.

[Drunken Irishman]

14. I guess it depends on the backstory on what happens to Trump...

Trump's removed from office:

No. Pence would be tied to a President who is toxic - and, unlike, say, Ford, who was not in the Nixon administration during the cover up, he would likely be just as toxic as Trump.

Trump resigns from office:

No. This is pretty much similar to the above.

Trump declines a run for a second term:

Maybe - but probably not. If Trump isn't running for reelection, it's because he thinks he won't be able to win. Pence might do better - but I doubt he'd win.

Trump dies.

Possibly. In this scenario, it's 'don't speak ill of the dead, even if it's Trump...' and Pence is now the POTUS. If the economy is still roaring, he could default to, 'stability for the sake of stability' and the idea of healing a broken nation.

But at the end of the day, the Dems will be running against Trump in 2020.

[Mc Mike]

18. Yes. We go all out against even the weakest of nazis, and we'll win.

Pence was so widely hated in red Indiana -- before he became the vp choice (picked by Manafort, https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/do-we-remember-that-manafort-pick-pence ) -- so widely hated in Indiana that the repugs worried that they'd lose the governor's office if he ran for re-election.

[Kid Berwyn]

19. Like a drum.

The guy was hand-picked for veep by Paul Manafort.

[struggle4progress]

20. I'm terrified the GOP would sweep the country if Pence ran in 2020 with McConnell for his VP

I'm imagining posters of Pence and McConnell in Teutonic armor with banners flapping "Charisma" and "Excelsior"

[Mc Mike]

21. Don't throw us in that briar patch, br'er bear.

[Me.]

22. McConnell?

Hated in Kentuck, has big connections to both Russia and China, unappealing to say the least. We could whoop him easy.

[struggle4progress]

23. shhh

[3catwoman3]

26. Aauugggghhhhh! Bite your virtual tongue!

Pence and McConnell - what a horrifying thought.

[mahina]

28. Ha

Thanks for that. Haven’t laughed like that in a while.

[Wounded Bear]

24. IIRC, the last VP who successfully re-ran after his Pres didn't finish his term...

was Truman. Since then, VPs haven't done so well.

[NewJeffCT]

25. 100% yes - it would be a cakewalk

Pence has 0 charisma and no ability to drive the news cycle like Trump. Trump plays the media like a fiddle and they love him for it.

Pence will also be tarnished by association with Trump and the deplorables may not turn out for him like they did for Donny Dollhands.

[mahina]

27. Like he stole something.

[Blue Owl]

29. Well, he's good at leaving early, and just sitting there

So he's got that going for him...