Posted on 07/13/2009 2:24:35 PM PDT by real_patriotic_american
“This isn’t even a close call. Barack Obama is the President. Military officers don’t get to question if his election was valid or if he’s fit for command. This Army officer will lose and his attorney has exposed him to prosecution under several Articles of the UCMJ.”
I respectfully disagree with you. An officer CAN question the lawfulness of an order. The source of that order is one thing that determines its lawfulness. IF President Obama is not constitutionally qualified to be POTUS, THEN any orders issued by him or flowing out of his decisions then become unlawful because the source was not lawful.
An Army Officer takes the following oath:
“I (insert name), having been appointed a (insert rank) in the U.S. Army under the conditions indicated in this document, do accept such appointment and do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter, so help me God.”
Notice that an Army Officer’s allegiance is to the Constitution. IF he/she has sincere concerns about matters (orders) pertaining to the Constitution....then the Constitution is his/her guide. An Officer is COMMISSIONED by act of Congress. Now notice the following enlisted oath of office:
“I, (NAME), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”
Notice the significant differences in the oaths. Enlisted specifically say, “I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me.....” You don’t find that wording in a COMMISSIONED Officer’s Oath.
Don’t pilor this Major. His intentions are good....to Support and Defend the Constitution. That is what is driving this whole thing.
IF President Obama was to simply stop stalling and produce proof of Natural Born status.....then the Major would have no grounds to question a POTUS directive.
President Obama needs to produce the proof and stop all the speculation. IF he is NOT qualified...he needs to step down. IF he IS qualified, the rest of us need to shut up about this issue. IMO, the ball is in the President’s court.
BTW - OldDeckHand - I was a “Sea Lawyer” a long time ago.:-)
The Major is seeking a temporary restraining order in a federal court.
The Major has also clearly stated in his brief that he is "ready, willing, and able" to deploy.
At this point in time, I do not see how that places him in any legal jeopardy.
“Then, Obama is the lawful President until noon on January 20th, 2013.”
I’ve said it before, but once again I will state that an election or even certification by a congress can’t nulify provisions of the Constitution. That would be to allow constitutional ammendment to occur in a manner not constitutional.....the same way some SCOTUS’s have gone way beyone the Constitution in making their decisions.
If President Obama trully cares about this republic, he will publically produce the proof of his “natural born” status. IF it is found that he is NOT “natural born”, then he needs to step down.
CASE NAME CORRECTION KEYES V. OBAMA (Not Keyes v. Bowen)
Major Cook just got off the phone with Orly Taitz, the attorney in Keyes v. Obama.
At the hearing today at the Federal Court building in Santa Ana, Judge Carter said the following:
1. There will be a trial.
2. It will be heard on the merits.
3. Nothing will be dismissed on procedural issues.
4. The trial will be expeditious, and the judge pledged to give case priority.
5. Being a former Marine he realizes the importance of having a Constitutionally qualified POTUS/CIC.
6. Judge stated that if Obama isn’t Constitutionally qualified he needs to leave the White House.
The DOJ will be involved with the case also.... It wasn’t clear if they would be trying to get to the truth or they would just be blindly representing Obama.
Orly will be adding members of the military from California as plaintiffs also.
Orly, asked me to disseminate this information out for her, she will be doing a posting later after she gets some sleep.
Please say a prayer of protection for Orly, her family, and Judge Carter. Please also pray that the truth will come to light regarding Obama and justice will be done.
Orly has done pretty good for herself:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2292174/posts
I hadn't realized that the Major is a reservist. That buys him a little latitude with this course of action because, until July 15 at 0800, he's technically still a civilian. The Major faces an uphill battle, in the extreme. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the grounds upon which a CO status can be claimed and approved are fairly narrow and well defined. No where in the legal definition of CO, does the statute provide for a claim on the grounds that "The President really isn't the President". I am dubious that any court will expand the defintion to include such a claim.
Lastly, while you're absolutely correct (as I pointed out in earlier posts), that an officer, NCO or enlisted uniformed service member has the right and even obligation to challenge an unlawful order, they do NOT have the right or prerogative to challenge national command authority. That is a specific term with a specific legal meaning and weight. Challenging command authority is also known as insubordination. The Major recieved deployment orders. Those orders came from the Secretary of Defense, a man who was confirmed for that job twice in the last four years. They're legal orders, of that their can be no argument.
I appreciate your service and your input as a "sea lawyer".
“Kind of interesting that the president will allow this soldier to destroy his career rather than produce a simple document.
It certainly doesn’t say much for his leadership abilities.”
My theory, which may be off base, is that FEAR is the motivating emotion for anyone within striking distance of Obama. Some of my friends disagree and say that media and his other sycophants aren’t afraid of him—they really DO agree with him. This judge would be TOAST if he were to render a decision that cast Obama in a bad light. Just as the full weight of the administration makes mincemeat of innocents like Joe the Plumber et al, it has cowered almost every member of our justice system.
“The DOJ will be involved with the case also.... It wasn’t clear if they would be trying to get to the truth or they would just be blindly representing Obama.”
Is this statement a joke?
“Those orders came from the Secretary of Defense, a man who was confirmed for that job twice in the last four years. They’re legal orders, of that their can be no argument.”
You have a point, but I still think that the SecDef is just an extension of the POTUS. IF (big if) the directives of the SecDef flow from a (hypothetical) illegitimate POTUS, then I still think the orders are unlawful...because the source is tainted.
I will say one thing, this Major has a lot more guts than I do. The CO status is dubious. He should stick to a line of arguement that his mobilization orders are unlawful because the ultimate source of their origin lies in the office of POTUS....which the litigate challenges as constitutionally unqualified. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
This is an interesting puzzle. IF the POTUS were to be declared constitutionally ineligible for office by the SCOTUS...then the Congress would have to remove him. IF they did such a thing, would all actions done by the POTUS become void? For instance, the appointment of General Officers by the POTUS that were confirmed by the Senate. Would they become void?
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