Tonight, Vice President-elect Mike Pence decided to take in a performance of Hamilton. But apparently, as soon as he walked in the theater, the only good Hamilton fans in the world started booing like crazy. This is the sound Mike Pence should hear every single time he leaves his house.
Not everyone agreed, though. Because my friends, writers at The New York Times—the brave, Trump-fighting institution itself—are appalled.
Politicians do not deserve respect simply on the basis of the fact that they’re politicians. They do, however, deserve to be treated in accordance with their actions. And in the case of Mike Pence, he deserves nothing less than to be constantly—and publicly—criticized and humiliated. Because Mike Pence is a monster.
Mike Pence has opposed a bill that would protect LGBTQ employees from workplace discrimination, refused to address the HIV epidemic in his state because of “moral qualms,” and in the 90s, published articles attempting to find links between homosexuality and pedophilia while the editor of a conservative journal. It’s worth noting here that the current lead in Hamilton is openly gay and HIV-positive.
But wait! There’s more. From Right Wing Watch:
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.
On his campaign website, Pence said that gays and lesbians should not receive equal recognition or legal protections from discrimination, before urging the government to direct taxpayer dollars “toward those institutions which provide assistance to those seeking to change their sexual behavior” instead of those “that celebrate and encourage the types of behaviors that facilitate the spreading of the HIV virus.”
Mike Pence also signed a “religious freedom” bill that allowed businesses to explicitly discriminate against LGBTQ customers. And he backed several “personhood bills” that granted legal status to zygotes (zygotes!) and which would effectively ban abortion outright—along with some types of birth control. Pence also wanted women seeking abortions to have to undergo forced ultrasound exams where the provider would “describe the embryo in detail to her.” And of course, there’s also that law he signed requiring women to bury or cremate their aborted fetuses.
So yes, Mike Pence deserves every single bit of disrespect thrown at him, and to be booed absolutely everywhere he goes.
Update (10:41 p.m.): And here is video of Mike Pence being righteously booed.
Update (11:15 p.m.): The cast made a personal plea to Pence after the show.
Update (11:33 p.m.): And Pence didn’t hear it.
Update (Nov. 19, 9:06 a.m.): Donald Trump is angry the cast did not create a “safe space” for Pence.