Recently, debates have sparked over what may be this decade’s most pathetic controversy. At a time where Turkish people are living in constant civil unrest, Syria is in rubble and the entire country of Venezuela is starving to death, the media has decided to devote time to picking apart our vice president’s dining habits. In a 2002 interview, Vice President Mike Pence admitted that after marrying his wife Karen, he made the decision to never dine alone with another woman. The internet and the mainstream media were immediately up in arms, with singer and actress Bette Midler even tweeting, “#MikePence won’t dine with a woman without his wife b/c he doesn’t trust himself or b/c he thinks his wife will run away while he’s out?”
Frankly, this sort of reaction is disheartening and utterly contrary to rational thought. It appears that we have seen constant coverage of marital infidelity and secret celebrity affairs for far too long. Jay-Z is quickly forgiven after making millions of dollars publishing his wife’s musical account of his own infidelities. Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis are considered one of Hollywood’s most prominent power couples only a few years after Kutcher cheated on, and subsequently divorced, Demi Moore. Yet, Mike Pence has become the villain in this story. The villain who cares enough about his wife to make their marriage the best that it can be. It seems that the only thing that is unforgivable is fidelity.
I invite you to criticize Pence for his politics at every chance that you get but don’t dare degrade the importance of a faithful marriage by attacking a man for admitting his own human frailties. The political world is filled with constant temptation and story after story of politicians cheating on their spouses (ever heard of Monica Lewinsky?). Every marriage is unique and each has its own challenges that must be faced. He chose to put his wife above himself and to prove the love that he has for her, tackling those challenges head on. He publicly admitted the temptations that this world presents and he does everything he can to ensure that those temptations don’t get the best of him. I challenge you to be that openly courageous.
Matt Walsh recently summed up the absurdity of this backlash in saying, “Do you believe your spouse is literally impervious to the sin of lust? If you do, please tell us how you managed to climb to Heaven and marry an archangel.” Mike Pence is no less immune to the temptations of lust than was John F. Kennedy or Bill Clinton or even Anthony Weiner. The difference is Mike and Karen Pence chose to set boundaries. Every successful marriage should have boundaries like these. The Pence family is no different. In fact, the Catholic Church teaches us to avoid the “near occasion of sin” just as they are doing. Let’s reclaim the love, sacrifice and commitment that used to be essential to a marriage and give Pence credit where credit is due. I thank Mike Pence for bringing attention to our society’s blatant disregard for successful marriages and faithful practices. Keep up the good work Mr. Vice President.
Cam Kormylo
class of 2019
April 3
