Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich was being interviewed by Sean Hannity last night about the awful terrorist attack in Nice, France. I typically resonate with what Gingrich has to say about Islamic terrorism. I remember when he ran for President in 2012 he was one of the candidates, Rick Santorum being the other, who were incredibly articulate and informed when it comes to Islamic terrorism.
It seems, to me, that he was trying to audition to be Donald Trump’s running mate by saying the most radical thing imaginable.
You can watch his full interview here.
“Let me start with where I’m coming from, and let me be as blunt and as direct as I can be. Western civilization is in a war. Frankly, we should test every person here who is of a Muslim background, and if they believe in Sharia, they should be deported. Sharia is incompatible with Western civilization. Modern Muslims who have given up Sharia, glad to have them as citizens, perfectly happy to have them next door, but we need to be fairly relentless in defining who our enemies are,” Gingrich said.
Look, I am against Sharia law, I think aspects of it are misogynistic, I think it is backwards, and in its fullest expression has as its goal a theocracy. I understand that that it is a system that also includes more than what we typically think of, and I’m not against Muslims practicing aspects of it that are benign and do not violate human rights within the context of their homes and mosque. Much like I believe churches can handle some civil issues within the church without involving the courts.
I agree with Gingrich that by large Sharia law is incompatible with Western civilization, and it should never be considered in a court of law and should never trump local, state, and federal law, as well as, the Constitution.
Gingrich, in his comments, made no distinction between those who were American citizens and those who are not. The Constitution is pretty clear, what Gingrich proposes would be blatantly unconstitutional. Also, I think we all should be chilled by the idea of deporting someone based on what they believe. Start with the Muslims and then who is next?
I agree that political correctness will not keep us safe, but what he is suggesting is simply unAmerican.
