Shortly after the news broke Friday about comments Donald Trump made in 2005 regarding how he treats women and gets away with it because he’s wealthy and famous, Mike Pence began to get questions regarding how he felt about the matter. A source told the Associated Press Pence had been “furious” and “beside himself.”

But let’s make something perfectly clear: Pence is guilty by association. Did he remove his name from the ticket because he was so angry and upset? Not so far. So this makes Mike Pence–he of the sanctimonious religious beliefs which he would love to impose on all of us–one of the biggest hypocrites in the world.

Pence has been asked repeatedly both Friday and today for some comment on Trump’s offensive comments, but instead of responding, he and his staff have withdrawn and refused access to the media. Guess they figure the storm will blow over and all will be copacetic in a few days. But it won’t.

This is the tipping point in the 2016 race for the White House. Donald Trump and Mike Pence are now toast, and Pence’s dreams of being the frontrunner in 2020 are also on indefinite hold. Chances are that Mike Pence is so tainted by the stench of agreeing to run on a ticket with Donald Trump that he will never be able to recover his reputation or distance himself enough.

It needs to be asked again, and it needs to be asked each and every time Pence emerges from his protective bubble: Governor Pence, if you’re such a deeply religious man, why don’t you cut your ties to Donald Trump and denounce him? We’re all waiting for your response.

I have a message for Mike Pence: You and your repulsive running mate are going to lose on Election Day. And you will lose badly. But you still have a chance to get away from Trump. If you truly have any principles–which I seriously doubt you do–you will remove your name from the GOP ticket and say that you will not vote for this cancer of a human being the Republicans nominated. If you don’t, that tells us all we need to know about you.

This article was originally published by the same author at LiberalAmerica.org