[P-Marlowe]

It’s not about you or me, it’s about a presidential candidate who says he apparently doesn’t accept the Constitution’s “no religious test” clause.

Geez, LS, I thought you were smarter than that. Carson didn't suggest that NOBODY should be allowed to run if they were a Muslim and he didn't say that Nobody should be prohibited from being president. He simply said he would not support a Muslim for president.

Can't a candidate say that he does not support a Muslim president without running afoul of your peculiar interpretation of the Religious test clause?

[LS]

No, really, he can't. As a private citizen, he can. But as a presidential candidate, he needs to understand the Constitution and it clearly says there should be "no religious test." My next question is, "Could a Scientologist be president? How about Jew? A Mormon??" (We had a lot of people here last election who thought a Mormon could not).

There is a reason this is prohibited and a reason it's left up to the voters. But for a candidate to say this indicates that he would NOT support and defend the Constitution of the US as is. I just think it's stupid of Carson to say this, and especially now sounds like he's pandering to the Christian Right. He should have said, "The Constitution is clear that there can be no religious test on anyone, and that it's up to the voters to decide who best represents them."