Posted on 02/10/2016 1:55:32 PM PST by drewh
With Ted Cruz the victor of the first contest of the GOP nominating calendar, we can no longer avoid the question mischievously posed by Donald Trump: Is Cruz ineligible to be president? Cruz was born in Canada to an American mother and a Cuban father. The Constitution says that only a “natural born citizen†can be president. Is Cruz a natural born citizen? (You may recall that before he attacked Cruz on this front, Trump spent months flogging a ludicrous version of this critique against President Obama, who was actually born in the United States, unlike Cruz.)
The words natural born citizen, and their original meaning at the time that this constitutional clause was crafted, go a long way to answering this question. In founding-era America, like today, a person could be a citizen by virtue of birth on American territory; a citizen by virtue of a statute that granted citizenship to him at birth; a “naturalized†citizen, meaning one who entered the country as an alien but later obtained citizenship via a process determined by law; and a foreigner.
A natural born citizen cannot be a foreigner. Foreigners are not citizens. A natural born citizen cannot be a person who was naturalized. Those people are not born citizens; they’re born aliens. Most important for the purposes of the Cruz question, a natural born citizen cannot be someone whose birth entitled him to citizenship because of a statute—in this case a statute that confers citizenship on a person born abroad to an American parent. In the 18th century, as now, the word natural meant “in the regular course of things.†Then, as now, almost all Americans obtained citizenship by birth in this country, not by birth to Americans abroad. The natural way to obtain citizenship, then, was (and is) by being born in this country. Because Cruz was not “natural bornâ€â€”not born in the United States—he is ineligible for the presidency, under the most plausible interpretation of the Constitution.
Con-servatives don’t need to be eligible.
I love the little comment about “letting it stand” even if we don’t agree with it”.
Really ..?? You’re going to dredge up this mess AGAIN .. just because it didn’t get any traction before ..?? Really.
When are we going to be done with this stupidity ..??
We know why you’re dredging this up .. IT’S BECAUSE YOU’RE TERRIFIED HE WILL BE PRESIDENT .. THAT’S ALL THIS IS ABOUT.
I saw an article in which he said he was not taking an appeal because he did not have the money. I suspect, given his history, that he may be angling for backing. We shall see. What he has established is that it is easy in Illinois to be possessed of the standing to bring a ballot challenge on the eligibility question.
Because at that time citizenship was passed down by his father not his mother. His father was not a US Citizen.
incorrect.
a person will be a citizen when born on the soil ... IF the parents were subject to the jurisdiction of the US and reside in the state.
'subject to the jurisdiction' means... being a citizen of the US.
illegals do not legally reside within a state... and are not subject to the jurisdiction (which is why they get shipped home). as such, anchor babies CANNOT be granted citizenship via the 14th amendment (which was meant to give citizenship to slaves and indians at the time).
ROTFL!!
Click your heels together three times, and say, "There's no place like home ..."
Ted Cruz got his citizenship via his mother. In fact when people were arguing over Obama being born in Africa, they went to great lengths to say that at that time citizenship only passed from father to child not mother; therefore, he is not a natural born citizen. Well Ted Cruz is natural born via his mother. If not then how is Ted Cruz even a citizen of the US? Either he is natural born or he is naturalized. Which one is it? Or are you making up a third type for him...a "I don't want him to be President citizenship"
I believe Trump settled it when he said he would consider Cruz for VP (After he made a big stink about his citizenship). So I guess the challenge in Illinois sufficed for Trump so he is able to consider Cruz again. Or do you disagree with Trump?
And then AFTER that debate he said he was considering Cruz. So I guess he got it taken care of.
Supposedly, and that only at the election commission level. Next time around the same commission could flip flop on the question of its own competence. If objector doesn't like it, appeal.
Good point on Joyce maybe angling for financial backing.
That would be the Donald Trump who has been vociferously challenging Cruz's eligibility for weeks now? How does he suddenly do an about face and offer the VP spot to a man he has made clear he thinks isn't eligible?
Well said.
I have said I will vote for him.
He is just as eligible the man who is now in office.
Everyone in DC knew he wasn’t eligible.
They swore him in anyway.
Aside from being factually wrong, Cruz Mother was in no way a Cuban nor an migrant what is your point ?
I find the rule is better stated as a negative, "not owing allegiance to another nation." At the time of the founding, some states were stingy with citizenship, and even today, the US has under its protection, nationals (not citizens) and citizens.
Not so much, no. In the decision the court admitted there were differences of opinion on natural-born citizenship and admitted that it was not their job to put the question to rest as part of the decision.
Courts
Cruz’s father was Cuban, and Cuba has/had a law that a person boran abroad of one citizen parent is a citizen of Cuba. At the moment of his birth, Ted was as much Cuban as American. Canada’s claim was even stronger, because he was born there of lawful permanent residents.
Actually the law at the time had a Age limit that BHO’s mother would not have met thus the need for being born in USA.
to wit.
person born outside the geographical limits of the United States and its
outlying possessions of parents one of whom is an alien, and the other a citizen of
the United States, who prior to the birth of such person, was physically present in
the United States or its outlying possessions for a period or periods totalling not
less than ten years, at least five of which were after attaining the age of fourteen
years.
The math makes his mother too young.
https://americansabroad.org/files/3013/3478/0295/18-04-2012_1318_971.pdf
is a good primer on the BHO issues.
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