Mike Pence’s fear of women

Mike Pence is not a fan of women except when they’re subjected to suitable male dominance. He objects to women putting their kids in day care so they can work. He thinks abortions should be illegal, and the fetuses buried like babies and while governor made it mandatory.

Now it turns out he also won’t eat alone with a woman to avoid any hint of scandal (he also won’t attend an event involving drinking unless she’s there). This is known as the “Billy Graham Rule” though Graham’s was even stricter — never to be alone under any circumstances with a woman other than his wife (from the article, it doesn’t seem Pence goes that far — though then again, it doesn’t rule it out). Which as the article points out, is a bad deal for women: if a man in authority can’t talk to women alone, that adds another layer to the glass ceiling. As witness the dentist who fired an employee because he lusted for her. And multiple female congressional staffers who can’t be alone with their bosses.

National Review’s David French thinks Pence is wise (not a direct link) — liberals may delude themselves that men and women won’t jump each other the second they get the chance, but conservative Christians know better (yet another version of right-wingers insisting men are bad, so women’s career prospects should suffer). And what happens to bisexuals? Should they refuse to be alone with anyone?

As Slacktivist points out (in contrast to French) the issue isn’t being alone with a woman, it’s wanting to cheat. If Pence wants to, he will, rule or not. If he doesn’t, he won’t, even if he’s alone with a beautiful woman. And no, calling Pence out on this isn’t a “culture war” attack — Pence has spent his entire career engaged in culture warrior-ship (his views on day care go back twenty years).