Where do we start re Pence acting like an old woman scolding about politics and who is the baddie in his eyes and who is the goody re govt shutdown– WHEN ADDRESSING DEPLOYED young military people whose very lives are on the line RIGHT NOW in the Middle East, in DANGER in the air and on the ground EVERY day. Unlike Pence’s cushy life in more ways than one, including his personal squadron of bodyguards, attaches, drivers, cooks, pamperers –everywhere he goes.

JERUSALEM — Vice President Mike Pence met with U.S. troops in the Middle East on Sunday, and scoring points against Democrats on the shutdown was top of mind.

Though it is considered unusual for the president or vice president to attack the opposition party while speaking to members of the military, Pence took the opportunity to place the blame for the stalemate in Washington squarely on Senate Democrats.

“Despite bipartisan support for a budget resolution, a minority in the Senate has decided to play politics with military pay,” he told the troops. “But you deserve better. You and your families shouldn’t have to worry for one minute about whether you’re going to get paid as you serve in the uniform of the United States.”

The reason Pence had nothing uplifting to say, and instead offered to lay down anxiety amongst men and women who are to be praised and uplifted, instead of caught in Pence’s hankie waving about how bad those ‘other people are [Dems]’: It’s because Pence NEVER served in the military.

And sorry Mike, that your father served honorably and you’re all so emotional about it, does not shine on you. His merit is not to your credit. Your son served, but you didnt serve. And should have. But you know, there are ways some weasel out.

Im a military wife of a now disabled vet who is 21 years USAF, ret. DON’T tell me Mike you are some sharp mind who knows what the deployed troops are about. You’ve never been there. You have lived the life of a rich, pampered, manicured and hair sprayed up man, not the challenging life of the enlisted and officer corp. who have families back home waiting for them with open hearts and sometimes broken hearts.

You have NO idea, and shame shame on you for dragging your merde-smearing to our in-line-of-fire troops. They deserve a statesman and a man of military knowledge about strengthening the troops instead of giving them one more thing to be concerned about because Mike the Mouth, insists on blathering so.

Back during the Gulf War, we acted as support to Army families here while their loved ones were deployed and served with honor. I didn’t see you going to lamaze classes with scared first-time-pregnant army wives far from home and their mothers and sisters, not knowing if their beloved hubbies were coming home. I didn’t see you weekly holding weeping sons and daughters who feared for their fathers’ lives. I didn’t see you walking with the enlisted, bringing food and school supplies and basic medicines, for the enlisted’s PAY GRADE is STILL pitiful compared to the officer class.

Army families on food stamps then and now. What have YOU done about it? NOTHING. In fact you want to take even what YOU call ‘entitlement’ from the troops’ children and spouses. Aid that is critial and needed. YOU are the entitled one Mike. Sotted with entitlement. SHAME on you forever.

You are as they say back to home, YES, in Hoosierland in many a person’s opinion, an exaggerator, a grandstander and not a truthful man. Remember the place where YOU and Trump mocked up a ‘victory lap’ with the people on the line at Carrier Corp in Elkhart Ind a year ago, filming the line men and line women cheering you down the gallery, you promising them they would not lose their jobs. Remember how they fanned on you and how you grinned and backslapped and shook hands like a king granting a reprieve of a death sentence? Youre no king. And you gave no reprieve whatsoever that could be counted on. Quite the contrary.

Just last week pal, those who bought YOUR koolaid at Carrier, have turned against you and your Trump, as their jobs are currently evaporating to Mexico. DONT tell us you tell the truth. You misled, and carefully made sure the cameras were there to record you, telling men and women on the line, young people and family people –Dont worry, your job is safe.

This outright prevarication is shameful, and is more of the carny than anything else, one who will say whatever in the moment whether it serves truth or not.

Shame on you. Shame on you for deceiving honest people. Your plan to cut their benefits, including unemployment is EGREGIOUS. Selfish while trying to preserve your many many privileges paid for by TAXPAYERS. Any clang there for you? Probably not.

Then just to mention one of literally hundreds of dunderheaded things you have said and done: You walked out of an Indianapolis Colts game after some 49ers players knelt during the national anthem. You said you were “standing up for members of the military…I will not dignify any event that disrespects our soldiers, our flag, or our national anthem.” You stooped to ‘tweet’ this.

Just this again, because you surely dont know history, not military history, not the MILLENEA of oppressions of persons not like YOU…and you dont know the history of the pathetic national anthem, which was written by a rabid slave owner who saw certain of humanity as less than human… and in the third stanza of the ‘star spangled banner,’ makes that perfectly clear that this ditty, originally entitled ‘victory at ft. mc’henry,’ a tiny fort of no consequence no matter how overblown you’ve made it in your fantasy– This anthen that you SO revere, does not include African Americans nor Native people in ‘the land of the freeeeee, home of the brave’ etc etc. NO ONE ought be singing that song in our time.

Your ignorance of its words, its racist intention, is shameful, forever shameful. You wanted to act as though you were taking, in your fantasy, ‘the high road’ by pointedly walking out and making sure the cameras caught you and your wife.

Instead you took the lowest road possible by wanting to sing a song written by a slave master who in the song, excludes from freedom, two entire races.

You’ve also said that homosexuals should not serve in the military, saying, “Homosexuality is incompatible with military service because the presence of homosexuals in the ranks weakens unit cohesion…”

Yet you yourself, this day, have put forth words to WEAKEN the very people in the line of fire, instead of fortifying them –because of your selfish compulsion to blather and blame, instead of unite and uplift our troops.

Sexual orientation is not incompatible with honorable serving in the military. But you know what is incompatible? That you have no idea how to address troops at war to not interfere with their focus, strength and mission. That you are incompatible with military manners of honor.

Our troops have their own political ideas of many stripes. You are not likely to move them from their mission or certainties with your spinsterish complaints. But your loose lips have worried many of their families at home, about esp the enlisted and whether paycheck will be coming. We have a huge military grapevine that you know NOTHING about. Trust, you have unreasonably and selfishly distressed families. Shame on you forever.

Yet, a lot of enlisted families are far smarter than you. They know Claire McCaskill introduced a bill this day to preserve troop pay. YOUR party, the Republicans, sent it down in flames.

If you think people in service will believe your nah nah fingerpointing, you’re sorely mistaken. The preservation of their pay was put on the table and in spades. YOUR party, Mike Pence, killed it.

May all troops everywhere, just remain filled with heart and focus. May all be safe. And know they are covered in prayers no matter what ‘politic’ any one who prays, carries. Supportive prayer and supportive actions and words to strengthen and uplift are the highest bar.

Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés is a post-trauma recovery specialist for 49 years, working with men and women returned from war zones, POWs, those held unjustly, and those who have been isolated and tortured. Her first station was Hines VA hospital in 1965. She has served military, police, firefighters, and citizens regarding slaughters, losses of human life, critical incidents and aftermath of natural disasters. Her International Post Trauma Recovery Protocol is used by many responders worldwide.

Caricature by DonkeyHotey