[malvosenior]

Being able to work effectively with anyone who acts professional is a much larger boon to productivity. There should be no social vetting of candidates, as long as they are skilled and act professionally, that's enough.

Would you want to go to coffee with someone who was staunchly in support of the opposite of your politics (be honest)? What if that person was a great coder and very professional? You're working with them, so the only thing that needs to be judged is if they can do that effectively.