What We Know About Trump's Proposed Ideological Tests

Donald Trump touted his new plan for ideological tests as a way to prevent would-be terrorists from entering the United States, but he has yet to detail how it would work.

The proposal follows his months-long call for a “total and complete” ban on Muslims, which has also been short on specifics.

The ideological tests, which Trump introduced in a speech that addressed “radical Islamic terrorism” Monday, are the latest version of Trump’s efforts.

Here’s what is known – and not known – about the plan.

Trump said that the ideological tests would be aimed at people attempting to travel or live in the United States from “regions where adequate screening cannot take place.”

The State Department would be tasked with determining the list, he said, noting that “there are many such regions”

“We will stop processing visas from those areas until such time as it is deemed safe to resume, based on new circumstances or new procedures,” he said Monday.

He argues that the “current immigration flows are simply too large to perform adequate screening.”

No specific countries were named, but he did cite the number of immigrants from the Middle East as an example of the scope of the perceived problem.

Trump did not give any specific examples of questions that would be asked, but said he wants to “only admit into this country those who share our values and respect our people.”

“In the cold war we had an ideological screening test. The time is overdue to develop a new screening test for the threats we face today. I call it extreme vetting. I call it extreme, extreme vetting,” he said.

This is not the first time Trump has cited a past practice as the grounds for reintroducing certain reforms.

When he first introduced his proposed Muslim ban, Trump cited three presidential proclamations that President Franklin D. Roosevelt enacted after the attacks on Pearl Harbor in 1941.

Now, Trump would be on the lookout for people harboring “hostile attitudes toward our country or its principles or who believe that Sharia law should supplant American law,” he said, as well as “screening out all members or the sympathizers of terrorist groups.”

“Those who do not believe in our constitution or who support bigotry and hatred will not be admitted for immigration into our country. Only those who we expect to flourish in our country and to embrace a tolerant American society should be issued visas,” he said.

Aside from the proposed ideological tests, Trump said one of his first acts as president would be to create a commission on “radical Islam” that he hopes would “include reformist voices in the Muslim community who will hopefully work with us.”

He said, for instance, that there were warning signs involving the Boston Marathon bombers, the fiancee and fellow shooter from the San Bernardino shooting, and the Orlando nightclub shooting that could have could prevented the attacks.

“We want to build bridges and erase divisions,” Trump said. “The goal of the commission will be to identify and explain to the American public the core convictions and beliefs of radical Islam to identify the warning signs of radicalization and to expose the networks in our society that support radicalization. This commission will be used to develop new protocols for local police officers, federal investigators and immigration screeners.”

During Monday’s speech, Trump also said he plans to keep the military base and prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba open as part of a “renewed emphasis on human intelligence.” He said that foreign fighters would be tried by military commissions.

Last week, when asked about the future of Guantanamo, he said that he would be “fine” with trying U.S. citizens in military tribunals, which violates federal law.

He mentioned nothing about trying U.S. citizens at Guantanamo during his speech Monday.

In December, Trump called for a temporary “total and complete” ban on Muslims, but as time went on, more and more exceptions were announced.

The day after Trump’s initial announcement, he clarified that U.S. citizens who are Muslim would be allowed back in the country under the ban. Then he said that Muslim politicians and athletes headed to the United States for sports competitions would also be exempt, though he did not specify what level of government officials or what level of athlete he meant.

Three months later, he added another group of possible exceptions: his friends.

During an MSNBC town hall event in Wisconsin, Trump said he was getting calls from friends of his — "they're very rich Muslims" — who reportedly told him that the proposed ban was "a great thing."

Of those friends, Trump said "they'll come in," and when host Chris Matthews pushed him on the question, he said: "They'll come in. And you'll have exceptions."

In May, Trump backtracked in a different direction, saying that it was a "temporary ban ... hasn't been called for yet. Nobody's done it. This is just a suggestion until we find out what's going on," he said during an interview with Fox News.

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