I was taught in high school that a natural-born citizen was someone who was a citizen from the moment of birth. That would make him eligible if he was born to an American mother, would it not?
If what you say is true, McCain would be ineligible because he was born in Panama.
This has already been decided. Anyone born on a military base to American parents, as was McCain, is deemed to be born on American soil, and thus would be considered “natural born citizens.”
Obama’s grandmother alleges he was born in Kenya- not on a military base.
This from another poster: “What I don’t understand, however, is that we know his mother was an American citizen. According to federal law, aren’t children of American citizens considered natural born citizens if born in another country?”
Not true if one parent was not a US citizen. Here is from the Department of State.
Birth Abroad to One Citizen and One Alien Parent in Wedlock: A child born abroad to one U.S. citizen parent and one alien parent acquires U.S. citizenship at birth under Section 301(g) INA provided the citizen parent was physically present in the U.S. for the time period required by the law applicable at the time of the child’s birth. (For birth on or after November 14, 1986, a period of five years physical presence, two after the age of fourteen is required. For birth between December 24, 1952 and November 13, 1986, a period of ten years, five after the age of fourteen are required for physical presence in the U.S. to transmit U.S. citizenship to the child.
She did not live in the US for 5 years after the age of 14 before he was born. If he was born overseas, not only would he not have “natural born” citizenship, he would not have US citizenship.