US Vice President Mike Pence apparently has a very strange name for his wife

There's only one name that matters in America right now: Donald J. Trump.

President Donald J. Trump, to be precise (it still feels weird saying that). As Commander-in-chief, Trump is now one of the most powerful people in the world, but we mustn't forget about the man that ran alongside him in the Republican campaign, Vice President Mike Pence. Through the close relationship between Barack Obama and Joe Biden, we saw just how much of a major power a Vice President can be in the White House. Some people feel that Pence is potentially an even bigger problem than Trump, pointing to his record on issues like abortion, LGBT rights and education.

Photo: Chip Somodevilla / Getty

To that end, Rolling Stone published a profile of the Vice President which took an in-depth look at his past, present and possibly Presidential future. But one part of the profile stuck out as being particularly odd, concerning the way Pence addressed his wife at a dinner. He called her 'Mother.' Yeah, you read that right. Take a look at this extract from the profile.

While Mike Pence was governor, his relationship with the Democratic minority in the legislature was crap. Someone on his staff suggested having the Democratic leaders over to the governor's mansion for dinner. The table was set for 20, but there were only around seven in attendance. One unlucky legislator stuck next to Pence tried to make conversation, but found even at dinner she couldn't shift Pence off his talking points. Gov. Pence shouted to his wife, Karen, his closest adviser, at the other end of the table. "Mother, Mother, who prepared our meal this evening?" The legislators looked at one another, speaking with their eyes: He just called his wife "Mother." Maybe it was a joke, the legislator reasoned. But a few minutes later, Pence shouted again. "Mother, Mother, whose china are we eating on?" Mother Pence went on a long discourse about where the china was from. A little later, the legislators stumbled out, wondering what was weirder: Pence's inability to make conversation, or calling his wife "Mother" in the second decade of the 21st century.

In Pence's defence (and I hope to never type that again), calling your wife 'Mother' or your husband 'Father' was an acceptable way of addressing your spouse in the past, referencing their roles as the heads of a family. But this is the here and now, and it's more than a little weird. So if the Vice President lives in the early 19th century, by all means go ahead. It may even explain his views on the issues of today. You can read the full profile of Vice President Mike Pence in Rolling Stone. Feature: Drew Angerer