Mike Pence’s Galling Amnesia
'Back when Mike Pence hosted a talk radio show in the 1990s, he described himself as Rush Limbaugh on decaf.
For much of Tuesday night, he was like Forrest Gump on chamomile, squarely and steadily plodding forward, seldom tugged from his talking points and never particularly rattled. His expression was a sort of upbeat blur. His voice was a lulling drone.
It wasnt exactly a vivid performance, but it was an eerily consistent one, and it answered the question of how a man who supposedly prides himself on his virtue defends a running mate who is often bereft of it. He sets his jaw. He slows his pulse. He practices a bemused chuckle, perfects deafness to anything he prefers not to hear and purges from his memory anything he doesnt want to own.
That included the whole grotesque cornucopia of Donald Trumps slurs and bad behavior, which Tim Kaine had studied up on exhaustively, knew by heart and kept throwing at Pence, pressing for the barest glimmer of shame or the slightest hint of apology. It was pointless a point that Kaine himself made about an hour into this exercise in futility.
Six times tonight, I have said to Governor Pence: I cant imagine how you can defend your running mates position on one issue after the next, Kaine said, his voice somewhat squeaky with frustration. And in all six cases, hes refused to defend his running mate, and yet he is asking everybody to vote for somebody that he cannot defend.
Thats a fair enough summary of the vice-presidential debate, and it flagged what made the event so fascinating, which was Pence specifically, the astonishing peace he has made with Trump and his wholehearted readiness to promote a man who should be so offensive to him.'>>>
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/05/opinion/mike-pences-galling-amnesia.html?
ffr
(22,671 posts)He was also so vague and general or didn't even address the moderator's questions. Pence was plastic in his delivery. Kaine was fiery in his mastery of the facts.
Masterclass debate performance by Kaine.
HRC-Kaine 2 - 0
AmericanActivist
(1,019 posts)Description. And, just like Donald, he didn't answer the questions he was asked with the same arrogant attitude like he doesn't have to answer, like these things don't apply to him, like he is above having to answer your silly tiresome questions.
Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin
(108,192 posts)He don't need no stinking facts
AmericanActivist
(1,019 posts)I have not.
BainsBane
(53,066 posts)Amnesia is too kind. Of course he knows.
Beartracks
(12,821 posts)"He has always worn his religiousness conspicuously, even flamboyantly, introducing himself time and again as 'a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in that order.' ... and yet Pence has repeatedly vouched for Trump.
"He seems to have reversed the order of those three adjectives in his identity. Republican now comes first and 'Christian' last."
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