Into the cuckoo's nest: Fighting against Obama's natural-born U.S. citizenship

The report above says: "The Senate passed a non-binding resolution saying McCain was okay to run." After suffering through 8 years of Bush / Cheney / Wars-for-Profiteers (Halliburton, Blackwater) and a Dept of Justice that got stacked with religious fanatic graduates of fundamentalist law schools who were screening for political "purity" of newly hired lawyers instead of competence -- all of which found our Constitution absolutely TRASHED with violations of habeas corpus, massive Patriot Act assaults on privacy rights etc. etc. etc. Since WHEN do we let the Constitution get amended by a non-binding Senate Resolution which smacks of buddy-buddy Obama-to-McCain and McCain-to-Obama wink, wink, nod, nods. McCain was frontrunner by April. Did he (and the GOP) agree to pull punches and not raise Obama's legal eligibility issues during the campaign in return for Obama and Clinton co-sponsoring the Resolution that let McCain skate on thin ice? WE THE PEOPLE need to get tough in halting the games of "political convenience" that spit in the face of our rights by ignoring the Constitution. Orrin Hatch introduced the last Amendment to change the "natural born" provision back in 2003. It got nowhere. It's pretty obvious who that was probably intended to help. It was the 26th time such an amendment was brought up in the past 200 years. All have been shot down.

It would help if reporters following these cases would check for factual accuracy. This report does better than most. The two categories of lawsuits go like this. BIRTH CERTIFICATE CASES. People who claim problems that there was an abstracted Certification of Live Birth, that they want to see a certified original Certificate, and that they believe Barack might have been born in Kenya. My personal view of this category: Wingnuts. No private citizen has a right to demand a record like this from Obama, but the Dem party should have asked for it from Obama and all candidates, to discharge the screening duties that state Secretary of State offices expected of them. Ditto for the GOP. Or, the state officials in charge of elections should make good documents a filing requirement, since political parties and candidates might pull a "fast one" if a candidate looks like voter-candy but is known to have problems. McCain produced his original certificate from the Colon, Panama hospital (not a military hospital). There is a very convincing Michigan Law Review article that makes the case that McCain was not eligible. Clinton and Obama co-sponsored a NON-BINDING S.511 Resolution in April 2008 to paint McCain as "natural born" but it was hogwash, with no legal authority. Colleagues helping colleagues in the Senate Millionaires Club. NATURAL BORN CASES: The NJ case that went to the Supreme Court was filed in October, seeks a legal ruling on a three word phrase (and not production of fact-oriented documents) and challenged McCain, Obama and Roger Calero. All were on the NJ ballot. Nothing "wingnut" about it. Plain-vanilla facts based on what the candidates admit. Calero was born in Nicaragua to citizens of that country; it was discovered just before the election that he is still a citizen of Nicaragua. He was reported by Wiki to be here in the U.S. on a green card, to have an arrest record, and possibly he was deported a time or two. The same lawsuit challenged McCain, because the statute that allowed him citizenship as someone born of U.S. citizens at an overseas location was not passed until 1937, which was 11 months after he had been born in August 1936. His parents, also, could have used the nearest consulate to register his birth to claim citizenship through them, but that pro-active requirement would mean he wasn't "natural born" just as the reliance on a Statute for citizenship rights granted outside the 14th Amendment also shows NOT NATURAL BORN. Obama was challenged based on what he posted on FightTheSmears, his website. He had dual citizenship in U.K. (Kenya was colony) through his father and U.S. citizenship through his mother plus his place of birth, and I believe Obama was born in Hawaii and the claims otherwise are outlandish. He was a CITIZEN yes, but not a "natural born citizen" - sorry. (Half my family voted for him, I voted 3rd party, no bias here.) The 1787 Constitution's framers acknowledged the "Law of Nations" elsewhere in the Constitution. That reference was to a 1758 Law of Nations treatise using "natural law" concepts. That treatise defined "natural born citizen" in a way that was later echoed in the Supreme Court decision of Elg (1939) involving the daughter of U.S.-naturalized parents (origins: Sweden) who had returned to Sweden with her. Court said she had the right to return to U.S. as a citizen upon reaching adulthood because her birth conditions made her "natural born" even if the parents renounced U.S. citizenship when they went back to Sweden with her. Requirements: Born on U.S. soil (inside the states) and born of 2 parents who are citizens (either naturalized or native-born) on the date of one's birth. America is probably ready for an Amendment to change the "natural born" requirement. Bobby Jindal might rightfully be challenged if he tries to run. McCain would be facing more lawsuits right now if he had won. But, until the rules get changed the only CORRECT way to change them, to find that BOTH major parties have pulled a "fast one" around the existing rules is like having an Ump change the rules of baseball in the 8th inning. Americans deserve better than to have political parties screw around with known legal barriers to entry for the two highest offices, thereby setting us all up for the lawsuits that get filed and imperil a smooth transition of power. It's ridiculous. There are bigger problems that need to command attention.

Don't be fooled by the right-wing nutcases who keep saying that "it's not about race" in their stubborn, bullheaded -- and futile -- efforts to prevent President-elect Barack Obama from taking office. Baloney! It's got EVERYTHING to do with race. It's no accident that, with the exception of Alan Keys, the black conservative who was Obama's Republican opponent in the race for the U.S. Senate in 2004, every single one of these bozos are white men who simply cannot countenance a black man becoming president of the United States -- period. Of course, you'll never get them to admit that publicly. But several of these individuals -- most notably "Obama Nation" author (and the right-wing WorldNetDaily.com's senior writer) Jerome Corsi -- have ties to white-supremacist groups (As I and other bloggers, as well as the Southern Poverty Law Center, exposed back in June when Corsi's libelous anti-Obama book came out). And the longer these fools keep fighting, the more transparent their racial hostility toward Obama becomes. They might wear three-piece suits instead of Ku Klux Klan robes, but they're not doing a very good job in hiding their true colors.

Lets face it folks, the right wing wacko's are afraid to come out and say we do not like President-Elect Obama because he is black, so these racist,cacophonous,red necks, use the following canards: Obama is not a U.S. citizen ( to these people, no black American is a U.S. citzen and they are ALL considered second class citizens ); Obama will take everyones guns away and do away with the second amendment; he is a terrorist in disguise; blah,blah,blah. The racists on the extreme, right cannot stand the thought of an African-American family living in the White House and as for me, I think it should be changed to the black and white house!

When will these wacko wing-nuts get a clue? Cloaked in ecumenical sheep's garments, they continue to support a lame-duck hawk, a spineless ex-POW, and a shameless pretender who thinks war is "holy", all while hiding behind Jesus' robes.

No matter who one's father is, or where one's mother is at the time of one's birth, if the mother is an American citizen, so is the child (whether natural born or ceasarean:-). Now, I haven't yet heard anyone coming up with some arguement that Obama's mother was not his "natural born" mother! ................................... ............................................................... In a good # of countries, inc. the US, anyone born wirhin the boundaries of the country is considered to be a natural born citizen there. If one or both parents are US citizens, then the child will hold dual citizenship. ...................... ............................................................ One of my brothers was born in Istanbul, Turkey, in the Turkish hospital, and delivered by a Turkish Dr. The hospital was on the other side of the high wall marking the edge of the backyard behind our German built house. We lived in a "regular" Turkish neighborhood, Nishantash, where commercial, single family dwellings, and multi-family apartment buildings were intermingled and in walking distance from "downtown", Istanbul. My brother was STILL a "natural born" US citizen because his mother was quite naturally, a US citizen, and a "blue-blooded" sort at that! (bust of Queen Victoria above the fireplace:-) ... ................... ................................................................ Still, my brother officially held dual citizenship and a favorite saying to impress the curious was heard a number of times through the years, "yes, if after he turns 18 he were visiting in Turkey, he COULD then, as a natural Turkish citizen, be drafted into the Turkish army." The person would then, often with quickly indrawn breath (gasp!), exclaim that he best not be visiting there after 18, but then, of course he would at the same time have been just as "vulnerable" to being drafted into the US Army, in the US, at 18..... .................................... ................................................................. During the 80's, as a Foster Parent in AZ, the State sent a lovely young man to us for Fostering who had dual American/Mexican citizenship. One parent had had US citizenship, perhaps it was dual with MX, but nonetheless, the young man's birth occurred in the US which gave HIM dual US/MX citizenship. By 7, both parents had died and he was basically left on his own. Being exceptionally bright, highly motivated, and quite capably independent, he thrived and faithfully attended school as far as he could without parents & $$$. ........................................................... ................................................................ At 15 he was advised that he should cross the border to get further schooling in the US. A 15 year old in AZ, USA though, was not free to attend school without having a parent or guardian, could not even be allowed to live independently, as this young man had quite competently lived, in good health, and consistently attaining good grades at school while also coming to no trouble or harm, and all this, since the age of 7. He was in the US then, though, so immediately made a ward of the state of AZ and was bound into state custody by force of law, and pretty much ordered to become and behave like a juvenile. ................ ................................................................. Having quite capably conducted himself as "an adult" for a little better than half his life already, this was not possible. As a US citizen, he was not free to choose independence, no matter how capable, so the state and the first Foster parents classified him as a real "problem child", as "trouble", though he did nothing legally or actually troublesome. Being "too much trouble" for them to manage as a child, he was sent to our home as a "Foster Child" who at 15, after testing, had already been certified to be well beyond the US highschool curriculum academically, therefore had already been enrolled in, and was attending classes at, the community college. Actually, he was skipping many classes while showing up for tests & garnering "A"s. ................................ .................................................................. Being a "child", as a US citizen he didn't have the right to an adult explanation, so had been given the standard, "because I said so" and "just do as you're told" answers to his queries about why he needed to be present for classes when he knew the material well enough that he didn't need to attend the classes to score A's on the tests..... He couldn't understand why he was being cheated out of his grades! ............................ .................................................................. AS a licensed Foster Parent, for me to "take this young man off their hands" by accepting him as a "Foster Child" held by the state of AZ, I did so with the condition that they must agree and write into the "contract" that he would be allowed to live in a trailer parked a few feet from the back of our house as "his room". This gave him back much of his independence. He was very clean, tidy, and exceptionally well mannered, quite enjoyable to have around, and no trouble at all. ................. .................................................................. He WAS quite puzzled about the "problems" of getting the grade earned by his test scores at school. I explained to him, on a level with his well polished maturity, that in school, the US attachment to authoritarian rules and regulations was strictly applied and could be likened to those in a game like soccer wherein any player not complying was penalized, or disqualified from participating in the game; that if he wanted the grades of his test scores to be counted on record as his grade, he would have to play the game their way, according to their rules and regs. which required regular attendance in the classes to get the grades he earned on his tests to be counted as the grade of record, and to gain the academically required record of credits for each class as well. "OH!....." ................................................... .................................................................. Once treated, even though a juvenile US citizen, with respect for his capably self-trained maturity garnered through years of experience as a Mexican citizen where his capability allowed him to live with the freedom of independence, he attended quite faithfully the required number of classes to make the grade. Once allowed his maturity and independence, he also found he was free to learn to enjoy being playful and soon could even giggle freely too! ................................. .................................................................. So, yes, citizenship can be made into something seemingly complicated, with room to spin and bend out of shape to cast it as may seem fitting to one's preferred imposition of assumptions, but as generally the case, whether under the guise of officially following official regulations, or spun from the threads of prejudicial desire to exclude, degrade, discount, what people arbitrarily assume without knowledge or respect of actualities is most often best described as issuing from, and qualified by, the first three letters of the word, to ASSUME. ................................................ (-:G................................................. http://www.zianet.com/XLexcel/OHBOY.html ................................................................. MAKE--WAR--OBSOLETE

The choice is yours!

I subscribe to the Townhall spotlight newsletter to keep up with the latest rants and antics of the radical right. They are also claiming that Obama renounced his US citizenship sometime between the age of 6 and 10 when he was living in Indonesia. I think they feel like they didn't keep the pressure on Clinton as publicly as they should have when he was first elected and they seem fully geared to not let the same mistake happen with Obama. Almost every Townhall newsletter deals with planned efforts to impede everything that Obama will try to do and to fight his "radical left-wing agenda." They are adamant that Obama is a Muslim, non-citizen who is going to turn the US into a communist dictatorship. You can not argue with people who have such a bizarre mindset, so get ready for a continuing war from this segment. Yes, it is sad, as well as frustrating, but that is simply the way they operate.

As are, I'm sure, some of our own "pure progressives" on here who think Obama isn't liberal enough...or supportive of their particular hobbyhorses enough...or as becomes blatantly clear when you press most of them on it, White enough....

At least nobody can accuse Alan Keyes of the last, that's for sure! :D

Aren't birth certificates public records?
Can't you just pay a fee and get a copy of the basic public record - not
the health information, just the date and place of birth and mother's name
and sometimes father's?
Has Buzzflash not tried this?

Why is there even room for speculation and paranoia?
Of course, those who "know" that Obama was born in Kenya or Indonesia
(that one is really ridiculous because his mother hadn't yet met the Indonesian
man she later married) won't be deterred, much less reassured, by real information.
But it would seem to be pretty easy to squelch the basis for the rumors and leave
the crazies to be crazy off the public screen.
Colleen Clark
Cambridge, MA

The idea that WE THE PEOPLE are the sovereignty and supreme governing authority in the U.S. has escaped both pro and anti Obama camps.

The notion of Obama not being qualified to be president arose during the primaries and was rejected by the Democrats because they choose him to be the Democratic Nominee. The notion was again rejected by WE THE PEOPLE on election day when he became the undisputed President Elect.

At this point, only WE THE PEOPLE, collectively, can change the outcome of the recent presidential election. After the election, any argument concerning his eligibility, including his place of birth, is moot.

This is a highly significant point because I suspect in the very near future, a bogus birth certificate may originate from Kenya. But even if a Kenyan birth certificate were found to be real, it would not change the outcome of the presidential election. WE THE PEOPLE have spoken and WE chose Obama to be our 44th President.

'This country is owned by We the People. We created the Constitution to limit and shape the powers of government. We can, in point of fact, knowingly elect a felon to the House or Senate and prior US Supreme Court precedents like Powell v. McCormack uphold the inability of the House or Senate to remove the people's choice for any reason other than the qualifications clauses in the Constitution, which are minimal.

In turn, at least six US Senators and Representatives have served full terms even though elected when they were TOO young under the constitution.

Do We the People, the sovereign power of this country, have the power to resolve conflicting claims on a birth certificate where one side claims Kenyan birth and ratify that or assume the risks of that?

Puh-leeze. Of course We Can. And yeah, we can ignore discriminatory claims about kenyan birth that, even if true, just don't matter.

Can the Courts or Congress, on a basis completely independent of the will of the people, second-guess the election, tell us to "try again", or veto our choices?

No They Can't.

...the American people would never lose a struggle for democracy on their own country -- IF they understood it as such. So, of course, this direct attack (seeking to re-decide or overrule the election of Obama) is styled as "upholding the Constitution." In effect, our own national hunger for the restoration of justice, the rule of law and the Constitution is being harnessed -- in a twisted way -- so that the Constitution can start being enforced FIRST against Barack Obama. That's why it's important to see these lawsuits for what they are -- and go on offense against those who dislike democracy.

WE SHOULDN'T EVEN GO TO THE "MERITS" ON THESE CASES BECAUSE NOTHING IN THE NATURE OF WHAT THEY SPEAK OF JUSTIFIES A JUDICIAL OR CONGRESSIONAL OVERRIDE (OR RATIFICATION) OF THE PEOPLE'S DECISION.

We don't need their "help."'

http://tinyurl.com/5lbtsp

In other words, WE THE PEOPLE have decided that Barack Obama, American Citizen or not, will be our 44th president. Our decision cannot be overridden by Congress, the Supreme Court or even the Constitution.

WE THE PEOPLE are the sovereignty and hold supreme legal and legislative authority over the U.S. Our sovereignty supersedes the combined powers of our three branch federal government and the U.S. Constitution.

The U.S. Constitution was written to limit the powers of our government. It was not written to limit the powers of WE THE PEOPLE.

WE THE PEOPLE can indeed elect anyone we want to be president, regardless of what the Constitution says, and there is nothing anyone or any law can do to stop us.

Barack Obama is indeed the President Elect.

END OF STORY!

Do these people actually think that if Obama wasn't a citizen that he would have made it this far? Why can't these people except defeat and get on with their lives? After the last 8 years I would except a martian in the White House!!! I think President elect Obama will be a GREAT President. Why don't all you na sayers give him a chance? Peace to you and yours.....