The Trump train has been chugging along for months, spewing idiotic and, sometimes, vitriolic remarks that leave one scratching their head.

At first, it seemed his campaign was destined to land in the garbage heap as he inserted his foot in his mouth time and again.

But, he has endured, the credibility concerns rolling off his back like he is coated with Teflon. His latest diatribe, in which the Republican presidential hopeful calls for a ban on Muslims entering the United States, has been roundly condemned across the political spectrum.

Even former Vice President Dick Cheney has condemned Trump’s suggestion.

“I think this whole notion that somehow we can just say no more Muslims, just ban a whole religion, goes against everything we stand for and believe in,” Cheney said on a conservative radio show Monday.

That’s Dick Cheney!

It all begs the question, “What kind of country do we want to be?” The United States was built on the concept of religious freedom — that government wouldn’t impede a person’s right to worship however they choose. Now, millions of Americans seem to be embracing the notion that religious freedom isn’t acceptable when it’s not a Christian god.

It’s a slippery slope that hasn’t played out well in history. Rivers of blood have been shed before over differing religious philosophies, yet our nation has remained steadfast that religious freedom is the very foundation of our free country that we are unwilling to relinquish.

Yes, we are a different country since the events of Sept. 11, but we said then, and should reiterate now, that changing our belief systems and the way we live is essentially a victory handed to the terrorists.

Trump defended his proposal on Good Morning America, citing President Franklin D. Roosevelt. He cited three proclamations made by FDR after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor which dramatically limited the rights of Japanese, German and Italian nationals living in the United States.

Trump has forgotten that we learned that creating internment camps and limiting the rights of citizens based on their heritage was ill conceived and un-American to its core.

Trump has also forgotten another act by FDR, one that has stood the test of time. During his first inauguration speech, Roosevelt proclaimed, “let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself …”

Fear cannot be a justification for trampling the freedoms or rights of others because we either don’t like, or we don’t understand, someone else’s religious beliefs.

The Trump train needs to be derailed.