\u201cPutting Donald Trump Supporters Through an Ideology Test\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now, I\u2019m in favor of carefully screening potential immigrants in an attempt to block the entry of terrorists. \u00a0And I realize that there\u2019s something uncharitable and wrong (and unquestionably elitist) about laughing as\u00a0somebody who is obviously brighter and better educated toys with people of a different social, educational, and economic class who plainly aren\u2019t getting the joke.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
But I think it really needs to be said that, as usual with Trumpism, what Mr. Trump\u00a0seems to be talking about (and what some of his supporters seem to be endorsing) is poorly thought-out and \u00a0frighteningly vague. \u00a0Not to mention the fact that screening immigrants simply on the basis of their religious views is profoundly unconstitutional. \u00a0(In the nineteenth century, the federal government of the United States very nearly enacted restrictions on Mormon<\/em> immigration, which would have excluded European converts purely because of their religious affiliation.)<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
And so, as I\u2019ve done once or twice before, I share a passage that I love from a play and a film that I love, Robert Bolt\u2019s A Man for All Seasons<\/em>, centered on\u00a0Sir Thomas More:<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n- Alice More<\/b>: Arrest him!<\/span><\/dd>\n
- More<\/b>: Why, what has he done?<\/span><\/dd>\n
- Margaret More<\/b>: He\u2019s bad!<\/span><\/dd>\n
- More<\/b>: There is no law against that.<\/span><\/dd>\n
- Will Roper<\/b>: There is! God\u2019s law!<\/span><\/dd>\n
- More<\/b>: Then God can arrest him.<\/span><\/dd>\n
- Alice<\/b>: While you talk, he\u2019s gone!<\/span><\/dd>\n
- More<\/b>: And go he should, if he was the Devil himself, until he broke the law!<\/span><\/dd>\n
- Roper<\/b>: So now you\u2019d give the Devil benefit of law!<\/span><\/dd>\n
- More<\/b>: Yes. What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil?<\/span><\/dd>\n
- Roper<\/b>: I\u2019d cut down every law in England to do that!<\/span><\/dd>\n
- More<\/b>: Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil turned \u2019round on you, where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country\u2019s planted thick with laws from coast to coast\u2013 man\u2019s laws, not God\u2019s\u2013 and if you cut them down\u2014and you\u2019re just the man to do it\u2014do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I\u2019d give the Devil benefit of law for my own safety\u2019s sake.<\/span><\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now, I realize that the historical Sir Thomas \u2014 who, exactly four centuries\u00a0after his execution by Henry VIII in 1535, became St.<\/em> Thomas \u2014 was quite a bit more . . . \u00a0umm,\u00a0complex<\/em> than the play and the film let on. \u00a0I recently stood again in London where he was executed, and I\u2019m sorry to say that he wasn\u2019t an entirely guiltless victim of the violence of the period; he had inflicted more than his share of it himself. \u00a0But the words that Robert Bolt placed on his lips remain, in my view, essential and profound.<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u00a0 \u00a0 A reader of my blog declared his support this morning for\u00a0Mr. Donald J. Trump\u2019s proposal of \u201cextreme vetting\u201d for immigrants. \u00a0I couldn\u2019t help but think, with that in mind, of a funny four-and-a-half-minute video that one of my sons recently shared with me: \u00a0 \u201cPutting Donald Trump Supporters Through an Ideology Test\u201d \u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1019,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36528","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n
"Extreme Vetting"<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\" A reader of my blog declared his support this morning for\u00a0Mr. Donald J. Trump's proposal of "extreme vetting" for immigrants. \u00a0I couldn't\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\""Extreme Vetting"\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\" A reader of my blog declared his support this morning for\u00a0Mr. Donald J. Trump's proposal of "extreme vetting" for immigrants. \u00a0I couldn't\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Sic et Non\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-09-09T15:36:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2016-09-09T15:42:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/wp.production.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/files\/2016\/09\/800px-City_of_London_Tower_of_London_and_30_St_Mary_Axe_view_from_Tower_bridge.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dan Peterson\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Dan Peterson\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html\",\"name\":\"\\\"Extreme Vetting\\\"\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2016-09-09T15:36:51+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2016-09-09T15:42:06+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/77113e9b09701bd1599fa272c4f65045\"},\"description\":\" A reader of my blog declared his support this morning for\u00a0Mr. Donald J. Trump's proposal of \\\"extreme vetting\\\" for immigrants. \u00a0I couldn't\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"“Extreme Vetting”\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/\",\"name\":\"Sic et Non\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/77113e9b09701bd1599fa272c4f65045\",\"name\":\"Dan Peterson\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5ed1a72d26805e35a503e3167599df7c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5ed1a72d26805e35a503e3167599df7c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Dan Peterson\"},\"description\":\"\\\"Life was very unsatisfying until I discovered Dan's blog, which gave me a reason to live.\\\" (gemli, 7 November 2019)\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/author\/danpeterson\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"\"Extreme Vetting\"","description":" A reader of my blog declared his support this morning for\u00a0Mr. Donald J. Trump's proposal of \"extreme vetting\" for immigrants. \u00a0I couldn't","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"\"Extreme Vetting\"","og_description":" A reader of my blog declared his support this morning for\u00a0Mr. Donald J. Trump's proposal of \"extreme vetting\" for immigrants. \u00a0I couldn't","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html","og_site_name":"Sic et Non","article_published_time":"2016-09-09T15:36:51+00:00","article_modified_time":"2016-09-09T15:42:06+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/wp.production.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/files\/2016\/09\/800px-City_of_London_Tower_of_London_and_30_St_Mary_Axe_view_from_Tower_bridge.jpg"}],"author":"Dan Peterson","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Dan Peterson","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html","name":"\"Extreme Vetting\"","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#website"},"datePublished":"2016-09-09T15:36:51+00:00","dateModified":"2016-09-09T15:42:06+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/77113e9b09701bd1599fa272c4f65045"},"description":" A reader of my blog declared his support this morning for\u00a0Mr. Donald J. Trump's proposal of \"extreme vetting\" for immigrants. \u00a0I couldn't","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/2016\/09\/extreme-vetting.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"“Extreme Vetting”"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/","name":"Sic et Non","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/77113e9b09701bd1599fa272c4f65045","name":"Dan Peterson","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5ed1a72d26805e35a503e3167599df7c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/5ed1a72d26805e35a503e3167599df7c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Dan Peterson"},"description":"\"Life was very unsatisfying until I discovered Dan's blog, which gave me a reason to live.\" (gemli, 7 November 2019)","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/author\/danpeterson"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36528","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1019"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36528"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36528\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36528"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36528"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/danpeterson\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36528"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Tower](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/186\/2016\/09\/800px-City_of_London_Tower_of_London_and_30_St_Mary_Axe_view_from_Tower_bridge.jpg\")
<\/a>