President Pence?

Last updated on: October 8, 2016 at 12:15 pm by Jane the Actuary

President Pence? 2016-10-08T12:15:31-06:00 Jane the Actuary

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

In case you missed it, it was reported yesterday that Trump said really nasty things on a hot mike back in 2005, about groping women and some actions that are, at best, unsavory, at worst criminal. Late at night he made a “video announcement” in which he said he was sorry, and made the claim that he’s a changed man now, and, oh, by the way, Bill Clinton’s done worse and Hillary abetted him.

Lots of Republicans are — finally — waking up to what an awful example of a human being this man is, and voicing their opposition or even un-endorsing him. Was this event truly more shocking than everything else it’s been revealed that he’s said and done? Or was this the straw that broke the camel’s back? After all, it’s becoming increasingly clear that the man is not even making the efforts to win that any reasonable candidate would — for example, a Politico report that he wholly rejects the idea of debate-prep. Reports that he’s not placing TV advertisements (and, in my mind, a real concern that he is, or will be, pocketing the campaign contributions he’s received). And who knows how many other October Surprises there might be, because none of this came out in the primary season.

What next? There are calls for the Republican Party to replace him. Too late.

There are calls for him to resign. Carly Fiorna posted this on her facebook page:

Donald Trump does not represent me or my party. I understand the responsibility of Republicans to support their nominee. Our nominee has weighty responsibilities as well. Donald Trump has manifestly failed in these responsibilities.

I have traveled the country for years warning Americans that Hillary Clinton is unfit to be President.

We must have a conservative in the White House to restore accountability, opportunity and security. For the sake of our Constitution and the rule of law, we must defeat Hillary Clinton.

Today I ask Donald Trump to step aside and for the RNC to replace him with Gov. Mike Pence.

And Megan McArdle (sorry, can’t find the link any longer, will look again later) laid out a scenario in the RNC leadership tells Trump, “if you don’t step down, we will ensure that you have the most embarrassingly large loss in history, and you’ll never live it down.”

Is it too late? Even if this by some miracle were to happen, people have already voted, and various states have restrictions around whether a candidate’s name can indeed be replaced at this point in the process or not.

(By the way, early voting is dumb for exactly this reason. Vote absentee or early if you’re not able to make it to the poll on Election Day, but wait until the last minute. And vote on Election Day if you possibly can — if for no other reason than that there’s something meaningful about participating in this great civic ritual in a communal fashion rather than putting a ballot in the mail.)

What is possible is this: for Trump to say, “I pledge that I will step down after the election, at whatever point my constitutional law advisors tell me is appropriate. Vote for me — but do so knowing that a vote for me is a vote for Mike Pence.”

And, sure, Pence in any other situation would be well out of his league as a presidential candidate. But I’ll take what I can get.

Uncategorized

Election 2016

Trump

Previous Post

October 6, 2016

From the library: Hillbilly Elegy, by J.D. Vance

Next Post

October 9, 2016 What happens to Trumpism?

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Actuarial/Retirement Issues Politics Uncategorized

Select a Month September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 December 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 August 2021 June 2021 April 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who said, "If I perish, I perish"?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Deborah Hannah Esther Ruth