Twelve Reasons Why Mike Pence Is Just As Bad As Donald Trump.

A Dozen Reasons Why Mike Pence Is Just As Bad As Donald Trump. – Posted 9 October 2016 on the “Right Wing Watch” website by author Brian Tashman.

Here are 12 reasons [which I’ve - J.P. - abridged due to length] why Pence, a self-described Rush Limbaugh acolyte, is hardly a better presidential option than Trump.

One: Abortion Rights

A fervent opponent of abortion rights, Pence frequently declares that he wants to “send Roe v. Wade to the ash heap of history where it belongs.” His record as a congressman and governor shows that he is deeply committed to the anti-choice cause.

Two: Planned Parenthood

“The days of public funding for Planned Parenthood are over when a Trump-Pence administration arrives in Washington, D.C.”

Three: Ex-Gay Therapy

During his 2000 run for Congress, Pence came up with a proposal to divert funds from organizations working to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS to groups involved in discredited ex-gay therapy.

Four: HIV/AIDS

While Pence never achieved his plan of transferring money meant for HIV groups to ex-gay therapists, as governor he did slash funding for public health programs, continued attacks against Planned Parenthood, which provides testing services, and was a staunch opponent of needle exchange programs.

Five: LGBT Rights

In Congress, Pence opposed a 2007 “bill to protect gays and lesbians from workplace discrimination,” the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, and the 2009 Shepard-Byrd legislation “to expand the definition of a hate crime to include the victim’s sexual orientation.”

Six: Don’t Ask Don’t Tell

In 2000, Pence said he wanted to scrap Don’t Ask Don’t Tell and replace it with a sweeping ban on gay service members, saying that he supported “bringing an end to the ‘don’t ask/don’t tell’ policy of permitting homosexuals to serve in the armed forces.” “Homosexuality is incompatible with military service because the presence of homosexuals in the ranks weakens unit cohesion.”

Seven: Refugees

As governor, Pence tried to prevent Syrian refugees from settling in Indiana.

Eight: Race

Pence has criticized those who want to address issues about racial disparities and bias within law enforcement, accusing them of using “the rhetoric of division.”

Nine: Science

In a 2002 speech on the House floor, then-congressman Pence mocked evolution and said that schools should “consider teaching other theories of the origin of species,” praising Creationism as a legitimate scientific theory because it is based in the Bible and “was believed in by every signer of the Declaration of Independence.”

Pence is also a climate science denialist, stating that “global warming is a myth” and opposing regulations on greenhouse gas emissions.

Ten: Media

Pence, as the Indiana governor, has already taken the conservative movement’s contempt against the media to a whole new level by attempting to create a state-run news agency.

Eleven: Smoking

The “pro-life” leader, Mike Pence, has been an ardent defender of the tobacco industry. Pence mocked talk “about the scourge of tobacco and the resultant premature deaths” as “the worst kind of Washington-speak” and warned that a “government big enough to go after smokers is big enough to go after you.”

Twelve: Mulan

Back in 1999, Pence criticized the Disney movie “Mulan” as the creation of a “mischievous liberal” who was trying to influence “the cultural debate over the role of women in the military.” And yet, Pence said that “Mulan” actually justifies bans on women in combat since “young Ms. Mulan falls in love with her superior officer!”