Clause B is a general rule of citizenship, which states that all persons born in the country are members of the nation. ---------------------- Clause A is a specific clause that says only those members of the nation who are “natural born” may be President. ------------------------- According to the rule of statutory construction, the court must determine that Clause A requires something more than Clause B.
Well that's pretty silly, no wonder he loses so many arguments in court.
The problem with that is that in addition to persons who are citizens because they are born in the country (his group B), there are also a bunch of persons who are not born in the country who are citizens at birth also--we call them statutory citizens. But to the extent they are born outside the US, they are subject to the sovereignty of some other head of state which is why the founders excluded them as Natural Born.
The entire thrust of the Natural Born Clause, as set out in the version of Vittel which was before the founders as well as in their discussion of the issue was place of birth.
Individuals who become citizens at birth as a result of some statutory provision are not Natural Born; only people born citizen's at birth within the geographical limits of the several states are Natural Born.
David, the only ones who constitutionally become citizens immediately upon birth are those who are natural born. All others are by statute because the Constitution, in the area of citizenship, only enumerated the power of naturalization to Congress. Thus ALL statute citizenship is naturalization. By parents signing the govt forms for a child born abroad, they are giving consent to the govt to legally naturalize their child as an American citizen.
Now, if there happened to come forward a child born to American parents in a country who's laws specifically hold to “jus sanguinis” without respect to “jus soli” and the parents would refuse to sign anything because under the laws of nations, their child had no other allegiance but that of the American parents, then that would be a case I would most enjoy following and getting behind. A child can not be born without affiliation and according to the laws of nations, it is the parents affiliation that determines the child's.
David, you are missing the fact that Wong Kim Ark REJECTED Vattel.
Common Law Doctrine is the authority as it pertains to citizenship. SCOTUS ruled the the 14th Amendment was just declaratory.
One Court of Appeals had used WKA to declare that Obama is a natural born citizen.
What you need is a Court of Appeals to say Obama is not eligible and that will get the case before SCOTUS and give them a chance to get rid of Wong Kim Ark
HIGHLY doubt that happens.