Fundie Host Bryan Fischer: Throw Terrorists’ Families Out Of The Country Too (VIDEO)

The religious right–or, at least, what passes for leadership in the religious right–has gone all in for Donald Trump. That’s been clear for a long time. But on Monday, we learned just how far some elements of that movement are going in their support. A very prominent religious right talk show host declared that if someone is arrested for terrorism, that person’s family should be severely punished as well.

Bryan Fischer, the afternoon drive-time host of the American Family Association’s American Family Radio, went to air with his show, Focal Point, just hours after Ahmad Khan Rahami was arrested on suspicion of planting a number of bombs in New York City and northern New Jersey. Fischer argued that if Rahami is convicted for his role in the bombings, his entire family should be deported back to their native Afghanistan. People for the American Way’s Right Wing Watch got a clip.

Fischer pointed out that Rahami is a naturalized American citizen. As far as Fischer is concerned, if Rahami was responsible for the bombings, he committed “an act of treason”–which is grounds for being stripped of your citizenship. But Fischer thought it should go further than that. He believed that naturalized citizens’ families should be put on notice that if they engage in acts of terrorism or other acts of treason, “we’re going to revoke the citizenship for your entire family.”

Lest you think this is just another wingnutty idea from a wingnut radio host, this is actually a new twist on an idea Trump threw out last winter. He argued that terrorists’ families should be held to account because “the families know what is happening.” Indeed, when I first heard this, I wondered if the Trump camp fed it to AFR so Fischer could gin up the social conservative vote.

Fischer says that he believes in “keeping families together,” so everyone would win under his plan. He’s trying–and failing–to put a pretty gloss on a proposal that would put this country on a very dark, and very un-American, path. What Fischer wants to do sounds a lot like “Sippenhaft,” or kin liability. It’s a very common punishment in totalitarian societies–most notably in czarist Russia and Nazi Germany.

In modern times, North Korea is the most infamous practitioner of Sippenhaft today. Since the days of Kim Il-sung, anyone convicted of serious political crimes in North Korea gets packed off to a labor camp for life–and the next two generations will be born there as well, since the regime believes in punishing three generations of families. Additionally, if it emerges that someone’s relative committed a political crime in the past, that person can be packed off to a labor camp. Is that the company you really want to keep, Bryan?

Fischer and Trump’s plan is not just wrong, it’s outrageously illegal. What they are proposing sounds a lot like a bill of attainder–an act that declares a person or group of persons guilty without trial. This is explicitly forbidden under Article I, section 9 of the Constitution.

But then again, Trump has already made clear that such pesky things like the First Amendment get in the way of fighting terror. If Fischer and Trump were to get their way, it would effectively put the entire Constitution in the dumpster. After all, if you can be convicted and punished without trial, one of the most basic concepts of democracy goes out the window.

You’re probably wondering why this matters. Well, Fischer, like any other religious right host, is speaking to the true believers. He’s saying what a number of religious right leaders say in unguarded moments, when they don’t think we’re watching. And apparently what they want is to destroy the Constitution in the name of saving it.

Also, consider that a significant portion of AFR’s constituency either sends their kids to Christian schools or educates them with Christianist-aligned homeschooling curricula. You have to wonder what warped version of the Constitution is being taught to these kids.

For those reasons, and others too numerous to count, talk like Fischer’s should send a chill down your spine.

(featured image courtesy Fischer’s Facebook)

Darrell is a 30-something graduate of the University of North Carolina who considers himself a journalist of the old school. An attempt to turn him into a member of the religious right in college only succeeded in turning him into the religious right's worst nightmare--a charismatic Christian who is an unapologetic liberal. His desire to stand up for those who have been scared into silence only increased when he survived an abusive three-year marriage. You may know him on Daily Kos as Christian Dem in NC. Follow him on Twitter @DarrellLucus or connect with him on Facebook. Click here to buy Darrell a Mello Yello.