Replies

There you go again.

Like many people, he doesn't have the original, long-form certificate (I don't have mine).

I once found myself in the same position. Here's what I did: I phoned the hospital where I was born and asked them how I could get a copy of my birth certificate. I followed their instructions, and before long I received a nice crisp certified long-form-style copy in the mail. It was not a minimal-information short form, like this one. My birth certificate shows the name of my birth hospital, the name the doctor who delivered me, his signature, my exact weight at birth, the names of witnesses, and so on. Total time expended and money required: under one hour and under $20. It could not have been easier. Why does Obama prefer to spend a fortune defending himself in court, instead of simply doing just what I did, and releasing the long-form certificate to the public? Saying "he doesn't have to" is just dodging the question.

It's good enough to... prove birth in Hawaii for all legal purposes.

False. The short form has been considered inadequate documentation for paternity cases, for some Hawaiian state agencies, and for some federal agencies. Why on earth should it be good enough for him to satisfy the natural-born citizen requirement for becoming the POTUS? The short form is adequate to prove Hawaiian residency, but it does not prove the place of birth. Lurkers should read the Credibility of the "Certification of Live Birth" section of this piece by Robert Reece. Actually, read the whole thing.

Here is the quick, oversimplified partial recap for lurkers:

States need a procedure to deal with resident mothers who give birth abroad, then return home asking for a birth certificate for junior. Hawaii currently has such a procedure:

http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol06_Ch0321-0344/HRS0338/HRS_0338-0017_0008.htm

While that specific statute may not have been in effect when Obama was born, it seems very likely to me that there was a similar statute in effect at the time. It fills a pressing need. Parents understand that their kids will eventually require valid American birth certificates for identification. They don't want for those certificates that say something like “Birthplace: Kenya,” they want something that looks like proof of American birth. There is no good reason for states not to give them such documentation.

If Obama's mother gave birth in Kenya, does anyone doubt that after returning to Hawaii she would have tried to get him a legal Hawaiian birth certificate (or something similar) if it was available? If she did, Obama would now be able to produce a perfectly legal Short Form Certification of Live Birth. He has produced such a document. However, he would not be able to produce a detailed long-form birth certificate. He has not produced such a document. That's what this is all about.

I will touch on a couple of the standard objections:

But Hawaiian officials have confirmed that he was born in Hawaii!

Read Recent Statements Regarding Obama's "Birth Certificate" in the linked Reece article. Also, answer this: Why should the unsworn statements of state officials be considered sufficient proof when much more authoritative documentation is so easily available, but has not been provided?

But a Hawaiian newspaper contained a birth announcement!

Obama's maternal grandmother was in Hawaii when Obama was born. She could easily have placed the noticed after receiving a phone call from her daughter from Kenya.

Now, back to Curiosity's post.

I can see it now. Curiosity is pulled over while driving.

Cop: Sir, may I please see your driver's license?
Curiosity: Do have any reason to doubt that I have a driver's license?
Cop: No, but I still need to see that license.
Curiosity: You don't need to see my license. I have a license, I said so, and that's good enough!
Cop: Uh, no sir, it is not good enough. Do you have that license or not?
Curiosity: Only a crazy person would doubt that I have a license. You must be insane!
Cop: No sir, I am not insane, and I need to see that license now. Either you produce it or I will have to arrest you for driving without a license.
Curiosity: Nothing will satisfy you, mark my words. If I give you my driver's license, next you will be asking for my passport, and who knows what else! You tinfoil hatters are all alike!

And so on, to the predictable conclusion. There comes a point where it is perfectly reasonable for the cop to conclude that Curiosity does not have a license. That's where we are now with Obama and the long-form birth certificate.

As I have stated before on FR, I would be happy to be proved wrong about this. I am not comfortable being a "troofer," but until I see better evidence than I have seen so far, I will continue to believe that the most likely reason Obama has not produced his long-form certificate is that it contains information that he wants to hide, or it is missing information that would be present had he been born in Hawaii.

I think the best outcome for all concerned would be for Obama to produce a certified long form certificate showing all the particulars, proving his Hawaiian birth. That, plus a good explanation for the delay, would end the issue for most people, including me. I don't want for the idiot Biden to be president, and at this point, revealing that Obama was never a legitimate candidate would be a national disgrace.