Huckabee: Cruz Should Go To Court To Settle Presidential Eligibility Issue

TPM ^ | January 14, 2016, 8:01 PM EST | Allegra Kirkland

[CpnHook]

O's eligibility is so murky that any official judicial ruling for Cruz would certainly be problematic for O.

I'm not seeing how that would the case. That's especially true if the question is framed simply as "are you born within or outside the U.S." and eligibility hinges on the answer. Plus, a judge is a case involving Cruz isn't going to let any party start trying to haul in issues about Obama. Judges have little patience for side issues.

My point is that in the eyes of the judiciary, defining NBC may be too toxic to ever consider ruling on.

That's probably true. If the case against Cruz were to somehow land on the SCOTUS's lap where they had to review a decision calling him ineligible (and I give that a very, very low probability), it would occur after Cruz has already received the party nomination or (even more likely) after the general election. The Court has no practical choice then but to affirm his candidacy. The exigencies of the political process and the technical demands of the judiciary, with its "case and controversy" requirement and attendant doctrines of standing, ripeness, and mootness don't mesh well, to say the least.

And thus Cruz's status will ultimately hang in the court of public opinion- which could be argued is unfair to him.

And it's hard not to be a cynical that Trump's ploy ("Hey, Ted, why don't you go get a declaration from the Court on this") plays off the practical reality that Cruz can't likely do that.

There are articles stretching back near 50 years (to the Geo. Romney days) stating this issues demands clarification. Though I don't see that happening in any shape or form this time around. So probably it will remain for 2020 and beyond.

[RC one]

Currently, Title 8 of the U.S. Code fills in the gaps left by the Constitution. Section 1401 defines the following as people who are "citizens of the United States at birth:"

I don't see the words Natural Born Citizens strung together anywhere in title 8. I see the words "citizens at birth" and a whole lot of Cruz supporters suggesting that that means the same thing as a Natural Born Citizen despite the fact that that has never been decided and loads of supreme court justice opinions have suggested that that is not at all the case. and then there's the fact that article II, section I, clause 5 doesn't say you have to be a citizen at birth, it says you have to be a Natural Born Citizen. And to put a finer point on it, article II, section I, clause 5 actually does distinguish between a citizen at birth and a natural born citizen.