Is Obama's candidacy constitutional?

[Warph]

ELECTION 2008
Is Obama's candidacy constitutional?
Secrecy over birth certificate, demand for 'natural-born' citizenship cited
Posted: June 10, 2008
9:44 pm Eastern

© 2008 WorldNetDaily


Bloggers are raising questions about Illinois Sen. Barack Obama's qualifications to be U.S. president, because of the secrecy over his birth certificate and the requirement presidents be "natural-born" U.S. citizens.

Jim Geraghty, reporting on the Campaign Spot, a National Review blog, cited the "unlikely" but still circulating rumor that Obama was born not within the United States, but elsewhere, possibly Kenya.

Geraghty defined the concerns most clearly, stating: "If Obama were born outside the United States, one could argue that he would not meet the legal definition of natural-born citizen ... because U.S. law at the time of his birth required his natural-born parent (his mother) to have resided in the United States for '10 years, at least five of which had to be after the age of 16.'"

He then points out Ann Dunham, Obama's mother, was 18 when Obama was born "so she wouldn't have met the requirement of five years after the age of 16."

Geraghty continues: " (Interestingly, apparently there isn't much paperwork on Obama's parents' marriage. 'Obama: From Promise to Power,' page. 27: 'Obama later confessed that he never searched for the government documents on the marriage, although Madelyn (Obama's maternal grandmother) insisted they were legally married.' Also note that Obama's father apparently was not legally divorced from his first wife back in Kenya at the time, a point of contention that ultimately led to their separation.)"

The reports released to date show Obama was born in Honolulu to Barack Hussein Obama Sr., of Nyangoma-Kogelo, Kenya, and Ann Dunham, of Wichita, Kan.

According to FindLaw.com, which is cited by Geraghty, the requirements that were in force from Dec. 24, 1952 to Nov. 13, 1986, encompassing the time of Obama's birth, state, "If only one parent was a U.S. citizen at the time of your birth, that parent must have resided in the United States for at least 10 years, at least five of which had to be after the age of 16."

Obama's father, a student sent to the United States from Africa, lived several places in the United States while attending class. He then returned to his homeland. Obama's mother later married another man and moved to Indonesia.

Geraghty said the Obama campaign could "debunk" the rumors about his birth simply by releasing a copy of his birth certificate, but the campaign has so far chosen not to do that.

"The campaign cited the birth certificate in their 'Fact Check' on William Ayers, so presumably, someone in the campaign has access to it," he said.

Hawaii doesn't make public information from birth certificates.

"If the concern of the Obama campaign is that the certificate includes his Social Security number or some other data that could be useful to identity thieves, that information could easily be blocked out and the rest released. (Although I wonder if identity thieves would find Obama a tougher than usual target, since using the name on purchases would almost inevitably bring closer scrutiny.)," Geraghty said.

The Obama campaign repeatedly has declined to respond to WND requests for comment.

The presumptive Republican nominee for president, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., already has gone through the same type of challenge, and the U.S. Senate responded with a resolution in April declaring him to be a "'natural born Citizen' under Article II, Section 1, of the Constitution of the United States."

That article declares that "no person except a natural born citizen ... shall be eligible to the Office of president."

McCain was challenged because he was born to two U.S. citizens in the Panama Canal Zone.

According to a report from Michael Dobbs on The Fact Checker, the McCain campaign consulted two leading jurists, Theodore Olsen and Laurence Tribe, and they agreed.

"They argue that McCain is a natural born citizen because the United States exercised sovereignty over the Panama Canal at the time of his birth on August 29, 1936, he was born on a U.S. military base, and both of his parents were U.S. citizens," the report said.

Others say the issue isn't quite that simple, and the matter could be resolved fully only by a constitutional amendment or a U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

[Teresa]

Interesting............

[dnalexander]

Warph. Many of your posts are sensational and dramatic.  Your use of bold type and red font colors are effective. You quote sources but do not include a link to them to support your claims You do not state your point of view but that of others. You leave us to  decipher what is your point. Rarely do you respond to others comments. I have to say that I do not agree what with you usually post I do see someone that is intelligent and cunning in posting. I think you hurt your cause by the sensationalism. If you really want to have a discussion we can have a debate\conversation. Obama and McCain both are proven U.S citizens able to run for President. I sincerely say that you do make me think.

David

[Teresa]

Once again..................

Interesting.

[sixdogsmom]

Thank you David!

[Teresa]

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=66787

There's your links.

[dnalexander]

I have spent several hours researching both sides of this debate. I read things by bloggers, legal experts, and many pages of Federal Law text. It was quite an education on "natural born citizenship", history and constitutional law. I sincerely say to WARPH thanks for the mental exercise. I learned something. It proves that debate is good and can lead to increasing your knowledge.

David

[Teresa]

You know? It is the most emotional election year to pass I think.. and no matter what anyone says.. it is a hell if you do and hell if you don't situation.

It wears me slick clean out!  Some times I get so emotional and over wrought at it all..
.and then other times I am so drained I just say

".......ahhhhhhh..wellll .. 
.........shuffling my feet.....

I can't really say on here, what I say... but  let me tell you.. when I say it.. I really say it! 

[Warph]

David,,, you're a "thinker."  This is good.... and you're quite welcome. Exercise is great, whether mental or physical.

By the way, I have a theory: I think we're far less evolved ourselves. I know we consider ourselves to be very twenty-first century creatures, we take it all in, we deal with it . .we put it back out.  We are just the hippest little creatures, but you know something?  We live in a madhouse and it's brought into our living rooms on a day-to-day level via CNN and other news channels.  And we see things that we probably aren't equipped to even vaguely get our head around. The problems in Somalia where they haven't had a functioning government since 1991.. . . the atrocities in Darfur and Mogadisha.... Iraq... and everything else that's going on in this wounded world of ours.  I think all this stuff comes down and we think, "Christ, it really is out of control."  And you know what, it is out of control.  I guess adult life is just a tall grade school and sometimes we forget the playground is way back there in the mist.  I know I sound cynical and grouchy at times with my posts but maybe it's my way of getting back at these worldly problems by doing this and it keeps my feet tethered to the planet.  I hate to say it but, I think this is what it's come to in contemporary America.  Everybody's broken off into these petulant little Travis Bickle tribes.  Everybody walks the perimeter of their own damaged esteem ever-vigilant against an incursion by: They. Them. The Other Guys.  Sometimes it's like everybody's touchy and everybody's encouraged to be touchy.  And if I'm expected to be genial, there's a principle of reciprocity here, and I expect everyone to do the same.  I'm sure it is that way for most people, too.  Enough of the soap box rhetoric.

[pam]

Y'know Warph,I think you've got a point.Part of the problem is that nothing positive comes in with the horrendous except maybe for their little 30 second feel good segment. A lot of things ARE out of control, but I think really they always have been. It's just that before the days of world broadcast news we didn't hear about every one of them. So we circle the wagons and wait for the next attack and if we think it's somthin we CAN or OUGHT to control we come out shootin. If not we stay hid and holler this is mine go away. I don't expect people to be genial about things they are passionate about and they best not expect me to be either. You can be passionate about somthin and still be respectful and that's what I generally try to do. But hey everybody has their moments, in them cases you step back pull the leg out of your mouth and start over lol. I enjoy readin your posts, they make me think also ( and laugh and sometimes say WTF?! LOL)