On the SDMB there have actually been a few comments to the effect that Pence would be less desirable than Trump, because Trump actually is not conservative and cares relatively little about social issues such as LGBT or abortion, whereas Pence is actually truly, deeply, conservative red on all such issues.
So - when all factors taken into account - and without saying HOW Pence becomes president - who would you prefer as president?
(Poll to come)
Pence. More consistently conservative than Trump, but not a childish, oft-Tweeting, thin-skinned liar with zero experience in public office. Hence this thread: http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=816812
I think Pence will be driving policy either way. Trump has shown an astonishing level of ignorance in how the presidency works, and a lack of interest in governance. I imagine this will be a similar situation to the Bush years, when the VP will do most of the work.
Pence seems significantly less likely to get the country nuked, so – Pence.
Speaking as a European, I prefer the one least likely to drop our collective pants and bend us over Putin’s desk, not trying to enact economic policies that would tank the world economy would be nice too.
I don’t like either of them, but Pence at lease seems like he’s got a little bit of class (see his handling of the Hamilton kerfuffle vs. Trump’s) and isn’t likely to get us into war or worse. It wouldn’t be a fun four years for a lot of us, but I’d be a lot more confident we’ll all still be here in four years with Pence.
Pence has actually read the constitution.
Pence has political views I find deplorable. Trump is just deplorable through and through (and has no political views).
Tough choice, but I’d go with Pence. (Cruz, on the other hand, would be worse than both)
I believe Pence would be much more likely to just toe the GOP party line, while Trump, for better or worse, is more likely to march to his own beat.
It’s a hard question, due to Trump’s insanity. Will he give us cake, or death? Death seems likelier, but cake’s a possibility.
Pence will just kick us a lot.
I’d rather be kicked a lot than deal with President Joker, but that’s not saying I’ll enjoy the kicking.
Pence, by a hair.
After some thought, I finally chose Pence. It’s a little like choosing flesh eating bacteria or ebola.
I think that Pence would encourage and sign some truly awful legislation, but he may put qualified people into cabinet positions, and he understands government. He probably would not collapse the economy or order a nuclear strike because someone made fun of his hair.
Trump will also sign awful legislation, but I think on the whole he has potential to cause a lot of economic and other destruction.
I don’t agree with Pence on virtually anything. I don’t agree with Trump on virtually anything.
Pence seems mentally and emotionally stable. Trump seems very unstable.
Winner: Pence.
Pence has deplorable views but essentially no fan base, so he won’t be able to count on the GOP Congress backing him up on his nuttier wishes and desires.
Also: from all we know of him so far, he’s within normal parameters of mental stability. Trump fails that test.
I’m kinda sad that asteroid missed us a few days ago.
I prefer Pence. He does have deplorable views. But, I think the bad experience he had in Indiana with the "religious freedom’ bullshit will tend to temper his interest in going all out on the extreme social agenda.
Pence. When you compare his reaction to the Hamilton incident with Trump’s, it’s clear who the grown-up is. I hate everything Pence stands for, but I cannot take four years of Trump’s asinine tweets and tiny hands on the nuclear button.
Pence is much preferable to Trump in the way that Feyd-Rautha is preferable to Rabban of Lankiveil.
For you Trump supporters out there, that’s a literary reference. That means it’s based on something in a book.
My main take on Trump at this point is that he’ll be the guy distracting everybody all the time with shiny [del]objects[/del] tweets while the GOP Congress and Trump’s Cabinet tear down as many of the major liberal accomplishments of the past 85 years that they can. Plus he’ll have a pro-Putin, anti-Europe foreign policy, which is nuts. Plus he’s an ignorant, vengeful asshole with less self-restraint and sense of responsibility than your average four year old.
Working back up the list, Pence is at least an adult human being, he’d have a more standard-issue Republican foreign policy (and the two parties aren’t normally very far apart on foreign policy, so that’s OK), and he wouldn’t be much of a distraction domestically; as President he’d be the front man for GOP policy, rather than the distraction. The good people of conservative Indiana had had enough of him, so I expect he’d be a pretty lousy front man, and would discredit GOP policies by his association with and advocacy of them.
Easy choice: Pence.
But what’s the practical downside of that?
If Trump is incompetent, then eventually everyone will just start to ignore him and go on with regular governance. China will get pissed off for a while, then decide that it’s not worth going to war when they can just wait four years and have everything come back around to sanity again. The EU and the UN will do likewise. The legislature will simply ignore Trump’s policies, and he’ll veto their policies, except for the ones they can push through with a super majority.
Trump will install more centralist Supreme Court Justices than Pence would. He will have a lesser hard-on for dismantling ACA and Planned Parenthood than Pence would. He will be far less inclined to establish [del]Sharia[/del] Halakhic law than Pence would.
Trump will be an ass and a blight on our history, but his lasting effect will be minimal. Pence could actually point the country in a new (and worse) direction for the rest of time. Trump will serve as evidence that we need to do a better job electing our presidents. Pence, backed by a Republican congress, can start us on the path to theocracy.
Trump. After all we’ve been through already, we now just need to see what happens w/ him as POTUS.