Pence Won’t Have Dinner With A Woman Who Isn’t His Wife

[JA]

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_58dd1740e4b05eae031d949c?

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[courts]

disagree obviously

[Dr. Arch]

Downright ridiculous

[Middle-aged Europe]

Well, it comes across as a bit creepy. Makes it sound as if Mike Pence can't be trusted to be left alone with other women because he could try to seduce/rape them.

But then again, it's the Pences' business, I guess.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Did he also practice celibacy before his wedding night?

[Maxwell]

so if he became President he wouldn't meet Theresa May alone? What a kook.

[7,052,770]

This isn't unusual for married couples, but obviously there have to be some exceptions for clearly work-related things.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

What do you mean do I "agree" with Mike Pence?  Do I think he should eat dinner with other women?     How should I know?  I'm not him, I don't know what goes on in his head and I'm not privy to inside information about him and his wife and what they think their relationship requires.  Give me a break.

[krazen1211]

This is interesting.

Slick Bill goes out of his way to avoid to nasty wretched loser that he is married to, and Weiner sends out pictures of....well, you know.

I guess Pence likes his wife?

[MasterJedi]

Well, it comes across as a bit creepy. Makes it sound as if Mike Pence can't be trusted to be left alone with other women because he could try to seduce/rape them.

But then again, it's the Pences' business, I guess.

The overt religious types generally can't be trusted on their own. Remember Bushie and what happened when he put alcohol and women together?

[Mr. Morden]

so if he became President he wouldn't meet Theresa May alone? What a kook.

He could meet with her, just not have dinner with her. 

This reminds me of the Gary Bauer 2000 presidential campaign, where he had a female twenty-something aide who he would often meet with, and some folks in the Christian conservative movement accused him of having an affair, simply because he would sometimes close the door when he was meeting with her, and that apparently makes it a sin.

[Ronnie]

I wouldn't personally abstain from that practice, but they have every right to make decisions about their relationship as they see fit.  

[Lincoln Republican]

A married man should not be having dinner with another woman, unless that other woman is his sister, daughter, mother, or grand mother, you get the picture.

[Maxwell]

so married men shouldn't be friends with ANY women?

[MasterJedi]

A married man should not be having dinner with another woman, unless that other woman is his sister, daughter, mother, or grand mother, you get the picture.

Or you know, in his case if it's for actual business purposes, or if he has friends that are women, colleges, etc. If the reason is because you can't control yourself alone with women than you're a sleaze ball.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

I strongly disagree with Pence, obviously—I’m an unmarried straight man with mostly female friends and a virgin at twenty-four—and I think this is a terrible rule for a public figure to have, but I also think it’s silly to descend into histrionics about it being intrinsically sexist for couples to have boundaries like this.

[Middle-aged Europe]

I took it to mean that he really really wants to prove to his wife that he's a trusting, monogamous man.

That implies that Pence feels the need to prove to his wife that he isn't an adulterer by deliberately limiting his contact to other women to the absolutely necessary minimum. Sounds more like the opposite of "trust" to me. (And yes, it also implies that he primarily regards women as "people you can have sex with".)

But yeah... whatever. It isn't exactly like they're showcasing this aspect of their lives to everyone. He happened to mention it to the press 15 years ago. If they want to be weird, they have a right to be weird.

[Ebowed]

Everyone should be able to define their own boundaries without imposing them on others.

I don't agree with Mike Pence, but if he and his wife are comfortable with the arrangement, let's leave it at that.

[Lincoln Republican]

Man  the lamestream media has become desperate to smear the administration.

This is just sad the way the press carries on.

[MasterJedi]

Man  the lamestream media has become desperate to smear the administration.

This is just sad the way the press carries on.

Deflection does not compute, try again.

[afleitch]

I strongly disagree with Pence, obviously—I’m an unmarried straightman with mostly female friends and a virgin at twenty-four—and I think this is a terrible rule for a public figure to have, but I also think it’s silly to descend into histrionics about it being intrinsically sexist for couples to have boundaries like this.

?

Everyone should be able to define their own boundaries without imposing them on others.

I don't agree with Mike Pence, but if he and his wife are comfortable with the arrangement, let's leave it at that.

I agree. If he in anyway asks her to adhere to this rule and she privately doesn't want to, then I would have an issue with that.

[DavidB.]

This is not my business but Mike Pence and his wife's. If they feel this works best for them, who am I to say they should behave differently? Edit: So yeah, what Ebowed said.

A married man should not be having dinner with another woman, unless that other woman is his sister, daughter, mother, or grand mother, you get the picture.

...

[Sprouts Farmers Market ✘]

Women would obviously just get in the way of what Mike is really after

Did he also practice celibacy before his wedding night?

I hope so, otherwise this man is completely irredeemable.

[DC Al Fine]

My wife and I practice a variation of this. I had no idea it was remotely controversial until today's kerfluffle.

I took it to mean that he really really wants to prove to his wife that he's a trusting, monogamous man.

That implies that Pence feels the need to prove to his wife that he isn't an adulterer by deliberately limiting his contact to other women to the absolutely necessary minimum. Sounds more like the opposite of "trust" to me. (And yes, it also implies that he primarily regards women as "people you can have sex with".)

That's not the reason why Evangelicals promote the practice though. People (both on Atlas and off) have setup this ridiculous strawman that it's because men can't be trusted or something.

The logic behind it is to:

a) Avoid the appearance of evil

and

b) Stop adultery before it starts

Most people aren't going to start sleeping with their staffer the second they're alone. But throw in some late nights working together and a bit of booze, and yeah maybe something might happen. By avoiding these situations you make adultery much less likely, since one's willpower is tested a lot less with the rules, than after you've developed feelings and been drinking.

People apply the same logic to diets all the time, but no one calls you a glutton if you decide not to buy junk food at the grocery store to avoid testing your willpower at home.

I strongly disagree with Pence, obviously—I’m an unmarried straight man with mostly female friends and a virgin at twenty-four—and I think this is a terrible rule for a public figure to have, but I also think it’s silly to descend into histrionics about it being intrinsically sexist for couples to have boundaries like this.

The 'don't judge' crowd seems to be quite judgy about this.

[KingSweden]

Every couple has arrived to their current place through experiences people on the outside haven't shared. If it works for them it works for them. Who cares.

I don't see anything inherently sexist about this, BTW. A little old fashioned maybe, but the Pences are devout evangelicals. This should surprise nobody