Posted on 03/01/2008 7:57:07 AM PST by jdm
Via S&L, a typically shrewd move by the Messiah on three counts — blunting any criticism of his own citizenship status; showing himself to be as magnanimous towards his opponent as Maverick was after l’affaire Cunningham; and avoiding any potential confrontation foisted on him by his dimmer supporters who’d dare challenge McCain’s right to American citizenship based on his military pedigree.
Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign announced he would co-sponsor legislation introduced yesterday by his political ally Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) to ensure that John McCain can become president, even though he was born in the Panama Canal Zone.
“Senator McCain has earned the right to be his party’s nominee, and no loophole should prevent him from competing in this campaign,” Obama said.
Also, he gets another bill with his name on it signed into law. This makes what now? Two?
Update: A commenter complains that Congress can’t define “natural born citizen” since it’s a constitutional phrase and thus falls within the purview of the Supremes. Yes, true, the Court has final say, but the Court isn’t about to snatch citizenship from the children of military families and having a co-equal branch on record as supplying a definition makes it easier to defer.
Political grandstanding. Totally unnecessary!
The whole issue is not an issue.
Oops. Sorry about that. I passed out when I saw Obama’s name.
Has anyone seen Obama’s birth certificate? ;)
As I said earlier, it’s a feel-good move. McCain’s citizenship is not in doubt, and this law is actually narrower than previous findings and law on this subject.
Glad to see HotAir sees it this way.
I suspect this was a planned move. The NYTimes can be stupid, but they must have known this wouldn’t fly. I’ll bet the Dem powers organized the entire play beforehand, just to make Obama look good, and they ran the story so O’B could jump in and do this. It makes him look generous to his enemies, caring for the military and their children. Fodder for months of press admiration to follow.
Never mind that it doesn’t actually mean a damn thing.
McCain should announce that he doesn’t support the bill and if it comes to the floor he will put a hold on it to prevent a vote. There’s absolutely no reason he should let himself be bushwacked by this kind of cynical manipulation. Knowing our John though, he’s likely to thank Hussein profusely for acknowledging his problem and fixing it for him.
Faux Noose Alert! MommaObama said “loophole”! That is what a noose is and it should qualify as “hate speech”!
If anyone wants to get an official copy of McNut’s birth certifiate, write or call here:
Canal Zone Vital Records Office
Vital Records Branch
Passport Services
1111 19th Street NW, Suite 510
Washington, DC, CZ 34011-2300
202-955-0307
There is no loophole, Obama doesn't know the Constitution from his elbow.
Senator McCain has earned the right to be his party’s nominee, and no loophole should prevent him from competing in this campaign,” Obama said.
When will all this: “I’ll be nice to you if your nice to me” crap end?
Good.
You have the right to your opinion as the rest of us do.
And quit shouting.
We the people had no say in his nomination. Most of the Republican nominees were shoved at us through the back door without our say.
This is crap. The only reason they are doing this is to get the question on the table for debate. They know it is a bogus issue, but it will capture a few headlines and engage a few discussions on cable news to make people wonder.
HUSSEIN IS FULL OF S**T, A LOW DOWN PIECE OF C**P
TITLE 8 > CHAPTER 12 > SUBCHAPTER III > Part I >
§ 1403.
Persons born in the Canal Zone or Republic of
Panama on or after February 26, 1904
(a) Any person born in the Canal Zone on or after February 26, 1904, and whether before or after the effective date of this chapter, whose father or mother or both at the time of the birth of such person was or is a citizen of the United States, is declared to be a citizen of the United States.
(b) Any person born in the Republic of Panama on or after February 26, 1904, and whether before or after the effective date of this chapter, whose father or mother or both at the time of the birth of such person was or is a citizen of the United States employed by the Government of the United States or by the Panama Railroad Company, or its successor in title, is declared to be a citizen of the United States
The 14th Amendment defines citizenship this way: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.” But even this does not get specific enough. As usual, the Constitution provides the framework for the law, but it is the law that fills in the gaps.
Currently, Title 8 of the U.S. Code fills in those gaps. Section 1401 defines the following as people who are “citizens of the United States at birth:”
-Any one born outside the United States, both of whose parents are citizens of the U.S., as long as one parent has lived in the U.S.
-Any one born outside the United States, if one parent is a citizen and lived in the U.S. for at least one year and the other parent is a U.S. national
-Any one born in a U.S. possession, if one parent is a citizen and lived in the U.S. for at least one year
- one born outside the United States, if one parent is an alien and as long as the other parent is a citizen of the U.S. who lived in the U.S. for at least five years (with military and diplomatic service included in this time)
The question isn’t whether McCain is a citizen of the United States. It is whether he qualifies as “natural born”.
Sorry but both I, Mark Levin and others all agree.
McCain is a natural-born citizen under 8 USC 1401(c): “a person born outside of the United States and its outlying possessions of parents both of whom are citizens of the United States and one of whom has had a residence in the United States or one of its outlying possessions, prior to the birth of such person.”
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