Mike Pence Has Said Some Interesting Things About Karen & I'm So Uncomfortable
These days when we're not spending an inappropriate amount of time dissecting the relationships of reality TV couples, we're taking a deep dive into the marriage of President Donald Trump and Melania Trump. But there's another presidential couple that deserves some of our attention, and that's Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen Pence. These Mike Pence quotes about Karen Pence prove they're close, but also make me just a little uncomfortable.
Personally, I have come to associate Karen with some pretty, uh, interesting Pence quotes. Most of which the public hasn't always been a fan of. The way Pence talks about his wife shows that the two have a very close relationship, but I'd be a little hesitant to call it romantic. Then again, romance is in the eye of the beholder, I guess?
It's been 'round the rumor mill that Pence calls his wife "Mother," or "Mother, Mother" if we're being technical, according to a 2017 profile of the second lady in Rolling Stone. As the story goes, while Pence was serving as the governor of Indiana he hosted a dinner for the Democratic minority. According to unnamed sources, it was there that they heard Pence refer to his wife as "Mother."
He reportedly asked, directed at Karen, "Mother, Mother, who prepared our meal this evening?" Then later on asked Karen, "Mother, Mother, whose china are we eating on?"
So, that's weird, right? I mean, it sounds like a nursery rhyme and could have been a joke, but even jokingly referring to your wife as "mother" is pretty odd, especially when there are guests around.
Needless to say, Pence's guests were not having it. According to Rolling Stone, the legislators just looked at each other across the table and kind of gave a look that said, "Uh, did he just call his wife 'Mother'?" Awkward.
Maybe the Pence family just, um, plays by their own rules. They are very close.
During a 2013 interview as Pence was gearing up to move into the governor's residence in Indiana, the now vice president was very loving towards Karen. "She's the best part of my life," he said. "Everything we do in public life, we do together. I can't imagine it any other way."
Well no one knew just how far that extended until a 2017 Washington Post profile of Karen brought to the surface some rules that the couple has. It went pretty viral at the time, and with good reason.
In that 2017 profile, it surfaced that in 2002, way before Pence was anywhere near the White House, he told The Hill that he would never dine alone with a woman who is not his wife, and that he also won't go to events with alcohol if his wife is not with him. Of course, the public did not take that well. As a politician, I am sure, there are times when he would need to meet with female lawmakers, but if he won't do that, then are women getting passed over? Also, why is the rule in place? Does his wife not trust him? Does he not trust himself? It seems... odd, and more than a little antiquated.
In that same Washington Post profile, it was very apparent that Karen and Pence are nearly inseparable (as you might have already gathered). Karen is even referred to as his "gut check," which means he seeks her advice on issues in business as well. Even Trump praised Pence's marriage, according to The Hill. "I tell you one thing, he has one hell of a good marriage going," he said.
Despite how odd the things Pence has said about (or to) his wife seem (and how truly uncomfortable I am sure you all felt reading them), it's also kinda nice — I guess. Like I said, romance is as romance does, and if awkward codependency and the nickname "Mother" is what floats your boat, well, at the end of the day, it's your relationship. Whatever you do in it.
