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To: Ray76; DiogenesLamp; Ha Ha Thats Very Logical
No, I don't claim that Wilson was a natural born citizen of the United States. Of course not.

Wilson was not born into that community. He was a naturalized citizen.

Here are some authorities from throughout history who all confirm that those born on American soil before the Revolution were considered to be our natural-born citizens:

No foreign-born person can fill the highest office in our government. This provision was made to guard against foreign influence, and the intrigues of ambitious foreigners for this position of honor and trust. One exception to this rule, however, was made in the Constitution: a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of the Constitution, though a naturalized citizen, could hold the office of President. This exception was made because of the many citizens of foreign birth who had risked their lives and spent their fortunes in the protection of their adopted country through the bloody war of the Revolution. To have denied them any privileges which were given to the native-born citizens would have been gross injustice.

The Civil Government of the United States. Fitch, 1889

The foreign-born citizen cannot be elected President; surely no great discrimination when the same rule of exclusion holds practically true of many millions of "natural born" citizens. Even to this rule there is an exception stated in the Clause, doubtless made out of respect for distinguished foreign-born members of the Convention, notably Hamilton, Wilson, Robert Morris, to whom the Convention here makes this bow of courteous recognition. Very appropriate will the little act of courtesy turn out, for one of these foreign-born citizens, Alexander Hamilton, will produce in The Federalist the best exposition of the Constitution that has ever been made in a book, being still the classic work on this subject.

The State, Specially the American State, Psychologically Treated. Snider, 1902

Many of foreign birth who had helped to create the United States would have been rendered ineligible had not the provision been inserted making eligible those of foreign birth who at the time of the adoption of the Constitution were citizens of the United States. The lapse of time long since removed that class and left the excepting clause the mere record of an interesting historic fact. Seven of the signers of the Constitution were foreign born: James Wilson, Robert Morris and Thomas Fitzsimons of Pennsylvania, Alexander Hamilton of New York, William Paterson of New Jersey, James McHenry of Maryland, and Pierce Butler of South Carolina.

The Constitution of the United States, Its Sources and Its Application. Norton, 1922

The committee also specified that anyone who was "a Citizen of the United States at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution" would be eligible to the presidency. This seems to have been done in consideration of certain prominent American leaders, including James Wilson, Alexander Hamilton, and Robert Morris, who had been born abroad.

Who Vies for President? Nelson, 1987

Only the presidency and vice presidency were reserved for birth-citizens. Even this reservation would not apply so as to exclude any immigrants who were already American citizens in 1787, men who had proved their loyalty by coming to or remaining in America during the Revolution. Seven of the thirty-nine Philadelphia signers were themselves foreign-born, and during the ratification process, countless naturalized Americans voted on equal terms with their natural-born fellow citizens.

[Note: As well as clearly alluding to the reason for the grandfather clause, this states that America's natural born citizens voted for ratification in 1787. Since the Declaration of Independence was in 1776, and 11-year-olds don't vote, it is clear that the author is referring to those born on American soil, who adhered to the Revolution, as natural-born citizens.]

America's Constitution: A Biography. Amar, 2005

Issues... that garnered little opposition included... that the president be at least thirty-five years old... and that the president be a natural-born citizen. This citizenship proviso seemed to eliminate aspirations to the presidency that might have been entertained by three of Madison's allies - Hamilton, Robert Morris, and Wilson. However, the committee on postponed matters added a clause requiring merely that the president be either a natural-born citizen or a fourteen-year resident of the United States, and the delegates approved it unanimously... The Committee of Style dropped even the fourteen-year requirement in favor of a requirement that the president be a natural-born citizen or a citizen at the time of the Constitution's adoption.

The Constitution and America's Destiny. Robertson, 2005

No doubt there are more.

422 posted on 03/20/2013 9:03:12 PM PDT by Jeff Winston
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To: Jeff Winston
Wilson was a natural born subject of the king of England, just as the colonists where. And like the other natural born subjects he was naturalized by the Declaration of Independence and became an citizen of the United States.

This diagram explains further.

423 posted on 03/20/2013 9:19:18 PM PDT by Ray76 (Do you reject Obama? And all his works? And all his empty promises?)
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