Those who make it to the final stage of selection for the Army’s Delta Force special operations unit must pass a commander’s board interview. There, Delta’s commanding officer and other unit personnel barrage the candidate with various questions to test his intellect and character under pressure. I’ve been told by former Delta personnel and have read in at least one memoir that one frequent question is: “How would you respond to an order by the president of the United States to kill a political opponent?”

It can be presumed that a similar question is asked in the selection process for candidates to join the Naval Special Warfare Development Group, also known as SEAL Team Six, and the Air Force‘s 24th Special Tactics Squadron. These organizations constitute Joint Special Operations Command’s three combat-focused special mission units.