Pence Out

Audible gasps as Mike Pence suspends his campaign (msn.com)

DeSantis has been sinking fast.  A couple other Republicans have dropped out of the primary bid.  Now, Mike Pence is surrendering.  His euphemism was that "it's not [his] time."  (I hope for his sake that he's not holding his breath until it is his time.)  He tried to make himself appear somewhat legitimate by saying that no one who puts him- or herself above the Constitution (Trump) should be president, and no one who asks someone else to him- or herself above the Constitution (Trump's request of Pence) should be president.  He seems to pat himself on the back for not having acceded to the request.  Although if he really meant what he said about people who put themselves above the Constitution, he'd join forces with Liz Cheney, instead of making a pathetic effort to ride uncle Donnie's coattails.

And Pence had a couple of ways of explaining why he was dropping out.  He did not explain why the trips to Iowa and New Hampshire attracted only a few audience members.  But he finally did the math, and took the dive he had to take, since his efforts weren't going anywhere.

Being a good Republican -- he calls himself a "Christian, a conservative, and a Republican" -- interestingly, he doesn't call himself an American -- (it's clear why he calls himself a Republican, entirely unclear why he calls himself a conservative, since the conservative agenda is meaningless, with a capital MEAN, and inconsistent, and totally irrelevant that his entirely personal religious beliefs are some form of Christian) -- he cited Abraham Lincoln.  Lincoln would, of course, not identify today's Republican Party with his own.  Pence quoted Lincoln as having said a president, or perhaps even any elected representative of the people (Lincoln was famously the "of the people, by the people, and for the people" guy), should "appeal to the better angels of our nature."

I've said it so many times that I'm sick of hearing myself say it, but here we go again: it is not possible to adhere to the Rep/con agenda without being a hypocrite, dishonest, or both.  And I feel very sure that Lincoln wasn't referring to hypocrisy and dishonesty as indicators of "the better angels of our nature."

As much as Pence or I know about Lincoln, we can, I feel confident, agree that the president who gave his life to get the slaves freed would not approve of the kind of anti-African-American hyper-gerrymandering that practically defines today's Reps/cons.  Lincoln was willing to engage in a horrible war to keep the Union together.  No one has a reason to assume he'd be cool with the current talk of secession we hear from some Reps/cons today.  "Honest Abe..." well, no, he wouldn't be a booster of today's Party.  Part of Lincoln's legacy was seeing to it that African-Americans had "40 acres and a mule."  Today's Reps/cons want the mule and the 40 acres back, and they want to make life so difficult for African-Americans that they'll have a shorter lifespan than Caucasians, be far more likely to get accused of something, and incarcerated for it, or get assassinated by the police, who turn out to be selective about whom they "protect and serve."

Mikey Pence (if his wife is "mother," what does that make him?) is one of those "Christian conservatives" who doesn't want abortion later than 15 weeks.  That's not consistent with American common law since the 18th C, and I don't have to repeat the joke about the guy who asks the gorgeous woman if she'd have sex with him for $1M, and then asks if she'd have sex with him for $20.  OK, Mikey, so it's established common law in this country that abortion is legal until about 18-21 weeks, Roe v Wade confirmed it, and you accept abortion.  So, what's your point?

Are you still riding the gripe train about immigration?  Are your forebears Native Americans?  Neither are mine.  Neither are hardly anyone's in this country.  We are built on immigration.  What kind of smoke and mirrors are you working here?  Oh, right, none any more, since you dropped out.  But your uncle Donnie's people are from Germany.  You know, as in some country in the world that isn't this one?  You all make this stuff up as you go along.  (Check with "Little Marco" Rubio and "Lyin' Ted" Cruz, and ask them how much trouble their parents were put to to enter and settle in this country.)

So, Pence, who was accomplishing nothing with his campaign, has ended it, no one else is accomplishing anything, and it thus far appears, unless voters are put off by a candidate who might be in jail, that uncle Donnie gets to try again against Biden.

Hey, I'm not a big fan of Biden's, either, but give me a real choice.