Credentials

What are the qualifications for running for office in the U.S.?

House Rep?

No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the age of 25 and been seven years a citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that state in which he shall be chosen. (source)

Senate?

The Constitution sets three qualifications for service in the U.S. Senate: age (at least 30 years of age); U.S. citizenship (at least nine years); and residency in the state a senator represents at time of election. (source)

President?

As directed by the Constitution, a presidential candidate must be a natural born citizen of the United States, a resident for 14 years, and 35 years of age or older. (source)

I’ve looked—there doesn’t seem to be a requirement that a candidate understand how our government works, they don’t need to know what’s in the Constitution or the duties of the office they seek. There’s no aptitude test and no obligation to consider the needs of constituents. As long as you’re the minimum age noted for the office, a U.S. citizen for the noted length of time and are able to bamboozle the rubes, you’re all set.

All politicians, in my opinion, should be required to take tests to assess aptitude, intelligence, knowledge and understanding of the Constitution and our government before they can run for office. That should be a basic, bare minimum, prerequisite.

With irredeemably dimbulbed and on-the-take stars like Boobert, Marge Jewish Space Lasers Greene, Ron Johnson and Josh Hawley, testing requirements would effectively put an end to the Republican Party.

Win/win, eh?

Interestingly, there are tests if you want to join the military.

You must take the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) test. The ASVAB has 10 subtests.
…
Your scores from four of the tests—Word Knowledge (WK), Paragraph Comprehension (PC), Arithmetic Reasoning (AR), and Mathematics Knowledge (MK)—are combined to compute your score on what is referred to as the Armed Forces Qualification Test (AFQT). Scores on the AFQT are used to determine your eligibility for enlistment in the Army, Navy, Air Force, or Marine Corps. Scores on all of the ASVAB tests are used to determine the best job for you in the military. (source)

There are also mental health screenings.

So, to be sent to war, to fight for democracy, to become cannon fodder, you need to pass a bunch of not easy tests. Conversely, there aren't any tests at all to become eligible to send citizens to war or otherwise make our lives hell.

Wouldn’t it be smart to test candidates for office? In the form of the laws they pass, the rights they take away from us and the incendiary spewed lies, politicians also have our lives in their hands. Shouldn’t the mental instability and filth of Ted most-hated-man-in Congress Cruz, Don the Con, lying sack of hair Marsha Blackburn, etc. keep them from running for office?

The answer is yes. They should all be tested. BTW, Cake fully agrees.