Born In The USA

January 27, 2011

It's nutty to believe Barack Obama wasn't born in the U.S.  For that matter, it's nutty to believe, after he's been elected, that there's anything anyone can do about it.  But this I find interesting.  Arizona, and other states, are considering a law that will require candidates for President to prove they are "natural born citizens," as the Constitution requires.  This raises some questions for which I have no answers.

First, are states allowed to require candidates prove their Constitutional standing, or is it up to a federal authority to decide?  (While we're at it, could a state also ask all candidates to prove they're at least 35 years old, and been a resident for 14 years in the U.S.?) Can they pass such a law if they show no one at the federal level is requiring any proof?

Second, just what is a natural born citizen?  Has this ever actually be adjudicated?  (I could look it up, but I'm too lazy.)

Third, how do you prove you're a natural born citizen?  General records?  Testimony?  Will only a birth certificate do?  Can the state law decide the level of proof?  Let's say they require a birth certificate--if the candidate can't produce one (for whatever reason), would that, then, make him ineligible? Would he only be ineligible in that particular state, or would this chance his status elsewhere?

Finally, what if a state isn't satisfied with a candidate's evidence.  Can it then remove him from the ballot?  What if people write him in anyway?  What if people vote for a candidate that doesn't fulfill all the requirements?  Are those votes counted, or thrown away?

PS  I don't think this movement will come to much, but it won't be the first time someone tried to take down a competitor through ineligibility.  In fact, that's how Obama got his start.