Warning: You Are About to Read a "Forbidden" Column

The Death of the Grown-Up ^ | 4/4/2013 | Diana West

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Meanwhile, British paternity, even if it does, in Obama’s case, come via Africa, is the very disqualifier the founders had in mind on crafting the “natural born” criterion more than two centuries ago to guard against a president with divided loyalties.

Yet all of the founders had "British paternity." Clearly they wanted to ensure against foreigners coming here to take the country over electorally.

It's less certain that they'd exclude anyone who was born here to one American parent from holding office because the other parent may have been foreign-born.

We have already had presidents who fit that description (Arthur, Wilson, Hoover). While Wilson's and Hoover's mothers received US citizenship at the time of their marriage according to the law of the times, it's not clear to me whether they lost their British citizenship under British law.

The early constitutional commentator William Rawle has become controversial because of his views on secession, but he was clear about his reading of the natural born clause, writing:

The citizens of each state constituted the citizens of the United States when the Constitution was adopted. The rights which appertained to them as citizens of those respective commonwealths, accompanied them in the formation of the great, compound commonwealth which ensued. They became citizens of the latter, without ceasing to be citizens of the former, and he who was subsequently born a citizen of a state, became at the moment of his birth a citizen of the United States. Therefore every person born within the United States, its territories or districts, whether the parents are citizens or aliens, is a natural born citizen in the sense of the Constitution, and entitled to all the rights and privileges appertaining to that capacity.

I'm not saying Rawle is right about this. I certainly would disagree with some of the views I've heard attributed to him on other subjects, and I'm pretty sure he didn't say the last word on citizenship law, but Rawle was writing at a time (1825-1829) when a few of the founders were still alive and able to argue with him if they disagreed.

[ex-snook]

I think people with dual citizenship today should be disqualified from the Presidency. They are more likely to give preference to another country than where someone happened to be born because it was their decision.

[highball]

, ex-snook wrote: I think people with dual citizenship today should be disqualified from the Presidency. They are more likely to give preference to another country than where someone happened to be born because it was their decision.

If you're talking about anyone who has potential dual citizenship that they've not exercised, I can't agree with you. That would exclude every American Jew, after all, since they all have the right to apply for an Israeli passport.

If you're talking about people who, as adults, choose to exercise or obtain dual citizenship, then I agree with you. That's a good idea, although we'll need a Constitutional amendment for it.

[TNoldman]

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