"No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under these United States." -- The Constitution, Article VI.
"We don't have religious tests here." -- President Barack Obama.
Citizenship is a public trust, and therefore the proposed ban on Muslims entering the U.S. is unconstitutional, regardless of what GOP candidate Donald Trump claims.
The shooter responsible for the massacre in Orlando was born in the Borough of Queens in New York City (coincidentally, so was Trump). Nevertheless, Trump insists on calling him "an Afghan," since that's where his parents came from.
But how many generations are needed until a family qualifies as "true American"? Trump's grandfather was an immigrant from Germany. Does that make the grandson less American?
In effect, Trump is echoing a chant used by 19th Century extremists to keep out newcomers from certain European countries. At the time, the ban was used primarily against Irish immigrants seeking jobs but also was used against people from Italy and Germany.
Now, the chant of "No Irish Need Apply" is being changed to "No Muslims Need Apply."
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