Unstamped certificate suggests Obama may not be "natural born" US citizen

Israel Insider ^ | June 24, 2008 | Reuven Koret

[2ndDivisionVet]

The "birth certificate" claimed by the Barack Obama campaign is not certified as authentic and appears to be a photoshopped fake.

The image, purporting to come from the Hawaii Department of Health, has been the subject of intense skepticism in the blogosphere in the past two weeks. But now the senior spokesman of that Department has confirmed to Israel Insider what are the required features of a certified birth document -- features that Obama's purported "birth certificate" clearly lack.

The image became increasingly suspect with Israel Insider's revelation that variations of the certificate image were posted on the Photobucket image aggregation website -- including one listing the location of Obama's birth as Antarctica, one with the certificate supposedly issued by the government of North Korea, and another including a purported photo of baby Barack -- one of which has a "photo taken" time-stamp just two minutes before the article and accompanying image was posted on the left-wing Daily Kos blog.

That strongly suggests that Daily Kos obtained the image from Photobucket, not the State of Hawaii, the Obama family, or the Obama campaign. Photobucket is not generally known as a credible supplier of official vital records for any of the fifty states, and the liberties that other Photoshoppers took with the certificates confirms this.

Some of these oddities surfaced in Israel Insider's previous article on the subject, but new comparative documentary evidence presented below, and official verification obtained by Israel Insider from a senior Hawaiian official, provides the strongest confirmation yet.

An authentic Hawaiian birth certificate for another Hawaiian individual has since surfaced which, using the same official form as the presumptive Obama certificate, includes an embossed official seal and an authoritative signature, coming through from the back. Obama's alleged certificate lacks those features, and the certificate number referencing the birth year has been blacked out, making it untraceable.

Janice Okubo, Director of Communications of the State of Hawaii Department of Health, told Israel Insider: "At this time there are no circumstances in which the State of Hawaii Department of Health would issue a birth certification or certification of live birth only electronically." And, she added, "In the State of Hawaii all certified copies of certificates of live birth have the embossed seal and registrar signature on the back of the document."

Compare the top image presented by his campaign as evidence of Obama's 1961 birth and the other certifying the birth of one Patricia Decosta.

So if he were registered as being born in Hawaii, Barack Obama -- because only he or another member of his immediate family could by law request a "Certification of Live Birth" -- must have a certified paper copy, with embossed stamp and seal, or he could request one. But what his campaign has put forward as genuine, according to the senior spokesman in the relevant department of the State of Hawaii, is not in fact a certified copy. It is not valid.

Whereas the uncertified Obama document provides the date "filed by registrar", the certified DeCosta document provides the date "accepted by the registrar." The difference between filing an application for a Certification of Live Birth and having it accepted may be key here.

The Obama campaign, however, continues to flaunt the unstamped, unsealed, uncertified document -- notably in very low resolution -- on its "Fight the Smears" website, with campaign officials vowing that it's authentic, sending the image around as "proof" to reporters, and inviting supporters to refer to it as they battle against supposed distortions and calumnies against their candidate. However, the campaign refuses to produce an authentic original birth certificate from the year of Obama's birth, or even a paper version with seal and signature of the "Certification of Live Birth." Nor has it even published an electronic copy with the requisite embossed seal and signature.

The failure of the Obama campaign to do so, and its willingness instead to put up an invalid, uncertified image -- what now appears to be a crude forgery -- raises the dramatic question of why the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate might have to hide.

Until now, it has been thought that there might be some embarrassing information on the real certificate: was the candidate's name something other than Barack Hussein Obama II, as it is claimed? Was no father listed because of the uncertainty over Obama's paternity? Was his father's race listed as Arab, or Muslim, rather than African? These revelations might be embarrassing, and further undermine his credibility, but he could disavow and downplay their significance. Would revealing such embarrassment outweigh the far greater risks involved in perpetuating a palpable forgery, or passing off an uncertified official document as being certified?

There is one possibility, however, which alone might justify the risk that Obama and his campaign seems to be taking in putting forward the uncertified document image: Obama was not in fact born in Hawaii and may not be an American citizen at all, or at least not a "natural born citizen" as the Constitution defines the requirement for the nation's chief executive. Real original birth certificates, circa 1961, have all kinds of verifiable information that would confirm Obama's origins, or throw them into doubt should they be lacking.

Research has since uncovered the law, in force at the time of Obama's birth, that were he to have been born in another country, his young American mother's youth extended time abroad would not suffice to make him a "natural born citizen." Even if he were naturalized later -- and there is no evidence that he was -- he would not be eligible to run for the office of president and -- if forgery or misrepresentation were involved -- he and his staffers might find themselves facing stiff federal and state charges.

But if, at this late date, Obama has no proof of being a US citizen by law, natural born or otherwise, then he or his advisers may be tempted to try to "tough out" the allegations about his "birth certificate" or the lack thereof. He and his campaign have gotten through other embarrassments: maybe this one will go away, too.

Because the consequences were he to admit, or should it come out, that he was not born in Hawaii would be so grave as to make it tempting to take the gamble and hope that no one dares call his most audacious bluff by demanding proof. Talk about the audacity of hope.

But now the State of Hawaii has dashed those hopes by clarifying that a certified birth certificate must have an embossed seal and signature, features his claimed birth certificate image lack.

The longer Obama waits, the graver grow the consequences of waiting.

There is one simple way for the candidate to clear up the issue once and for all: produce for public inspection and objective analysis the paper copy of his original Hawaiian birth certificate -- if one exists. If he's lost the original, he can request a certified copy. Ordinary citizens are required to produce one to get a passport or a driver's license. Surely it's not too much to ask from a man who aspires to hold the highest office in the land.

The issue is not whether Obama is black or white, Christian or Muslim. It is whether he was born in the USA and thus a citizen eligible according to the Constitution to run for President.

If proof of citizenship does not exist, then surely it would be wiser to admit it now.

Because if Barack Hussein Obama II does not produce definitive proof of his "natural born" American citizenship with original, verifiable documents, he will be setting the stage for a very public battle over his personal credibility, the basic legitimacy of his candidacy, and its possible criminality.

UPDATE 6/26: Janice Okubo, in response to an Israeli Insider question on Tuesday, would not confirm nor deny whether she had told a St. Petersburg Times reporter whether she had said the birth certificate was "real", citing the statutory stipulation that "Hawaii state law (HRS §338-18) prevents disclosure of information contained in vital statistics records except to those people who have a direct and tangible interest in the record as defined by statute." This would, however, seem to negate the propriety of any disclosure by her of confidential information.

Jim Geraghty of The National Review Online, following up on this Israel Insider report, said he had contacted Okubo:

"I spoke to Ms. Okubo late Wednesday afternoon, and she said she had seen the version of Obama's certificate of live birth posted on the sites. While her office cannot verify the information on a form without the permission of the certificate holder (Obama), she said "the form is exactly the same" and it has 'all the components of a birth certificate' record issued by the state. In other words, she sees no reason to think the version posted on Obama's web site and Daily Kos is not genuine."

"The 'embossed seal' in question is, she said, probably on the back of the document provided to Daily Kos, but not visible (as in another certificate posted on Israel Insider for contrast). She thinks the difference in visibility can be attributed to the pressure used when applying the seal."

Geraghty's interpretation of Okubo's comments is inexact and tendentious. First, her observation that "the form is the same" is not contested, here or elsewhere. No one is doubting that the form that appears on the various websites (including this one) is a replica of that used for valid certificates. Therefore Geraght's interpretation that follows "In other words" is clearly his own conclusion, not hers.

Indeed, Okubo confirms to Geraghty that the image is lacking the "embossed seal" (and the official signature) that are required for the certificate to be valid. While "she thinks" that the difference in visibility might be attributed to varying "pressure," she admits that she does not know and has not seen the original.

Contrasting the purported Obama image with the DeCosta sample, it is hard to imagine the embossed seal and signature being of such light pressure that they would become completely invisible. An inked date of June 6, 2007, in reverse, does come through. But in any event, Okubo's confirmation that the premsumptive birth certificate is lacking the required stamps makes it all the more imperative for Obama to release the original paper certification, the only valid kind, and not an easy-to-photoshop electronic facsimile thereof. It should not be hard to produce, since Hawaii provides for family members to request them.

Even though Geraghy notes that Obama "initially refused to provide his birth certificate," he has suggested that it is "rather unlikely" that Obama was born in Kenya, since it would require that the candidate and his family do a lot of lying. In fact, there were reports of Kenyati relatives claiming he was born there, and there is the mysterious disappearance of his grandmother, who may indeed know something about this subject.

After all, being born in Hawaii is part of the "family legend" and it would be unreasonable to expect this to vary from interview to interview, especially when a non-Hawaiian birth would invalidate Obama's run for the presidency.

It is indeed hard to believe that Obama could have gone through his life without having to prove that he was an American citizen. But the credulity with which the mainstream media has automatically accepted as valid the image that appears on the radical left Daily Kos blog and on the Obama campaign's polemical "Fight the Smears" website makes it clear that many have been unwilling, now and in the past, to demand proof of an authentic document. They prefer to accept on faith that the candidate or his campaign would not lie about such a thing, assuming he has nothing to hide and no motive to lie.

But until the certified paper birth document is produced -- either by media pressure or a legal challenge in any state -- the fact remains that Obama has not proven that he is a "natural born citizen" eligible to be President according to the Constitution.

[LiteKeeper]

read later

[higgmeister]

If you had lied about it you would not have passed.

[blaquebyrd]

Yes but probably still only on a need to know basis.

All security clearances are granted on a need to know basis. Just because I possessed a TS in the Air Force didn't grant me the right to go on nuc sub and proclaim, "tell me all of your secrets to the level of which I am allowed". Security clearances don't work like that, at least in the military. That brings me back to my original point that Congressmen/Senators would face even more stringent investigations than I, simply because of the level of access afforded them.

[Vinnie]

How old was his mother when she gave birth? If she was under 19, he wouldn't qualify.

I believe that is the clause that is causing the controversy. Supposedly his mother was 18 ans ineligible to pass natural citizenship to Barack.

If he needs an embossed stamp on the certificate he'll pass some $$$ and get it.

[higgmeister]

That brings me back to my original point that Congressmen/Senators would face even more stringent investigations than I, simply because of the level of access afforded them.

I heard or read a long time ago that Congressmen and Senators only get a Secret Clearance initially. Of course that would have to be upgraded if they were on a committee that handled more sensitive information. If anyone has direct knowledge it might be helpful to debunk this urban myth.

Like you I am certain that they are investigated. Remember Hillary's bouncer, Craige Livingstone and "Filegate?" Those were the files that Hillary illegally obtained, FBI background investigation files.

[proudtobeanamerican1]

That is true if you take the assumption that the being born in Hawaii part is true. Where is your proof of that. If the birth certificate is in question, this is still not verified.

[Mogollon]

If his mom’s a citizen, he’s a citizen.

The constitution requires the POTUS to be a "Natural born ctiizen" though. If he was born in Kenya for example, he would not be a natural born citizen...therefore unqualified for the presidency.

[1rudeboy]

I think you are missing the point. If you are born in Kenya and your mom is a U.S. citizen (and meets the other conditions), then you are a "natural born citizen" for the purpose of Article II, Section 1 and eligible to be President.

[WellyP]

Thanks Higgmeister. It really and truly sounded interesting at the time! I am ever so glad that I had the good sense to step back, think and never show up again.

[WellyP]

If Obama was born in Kenya to Stanley Ann, a US citizen he would have had to renounce any claim to Kenyan citizenship at age 18.

[blaquebyrd]

Like you I don'teadily have available evidence to refute this allegation. However; I find it more than hard to believe that our government would grant our representatives the sacred right to cast a vote to send their citizens off to war without granting them the access to prove the necessity of said aggression. That's why on this I'll have to call a big ole American BS!.

[1rudeboy]

Now with regard to that I'd like to see the statutory provision.

[Phantom Lord]

How did the father get the baby into the country?

Not being very good with FR's search functin, especially for stuff from several years ago I have no idea how to find the thread. But its in there somewhere and will answer many questions.

[sphinx]

This would appear to be a red herring.

But it would explain the dem obsession with McCain's citizenship status.

[Grampa Dave]

Why is the certificate # blacked out?

African is not a race! In 1961, wouldn't Negro or Negroid have been used to describe his Father's race instead of African?

Where is the indentation of the official seal and the folded marks, the rest of us have on our valid birth certificate copies?

Last but not least: What are the reverse purple lettering past the last entry line on the lower middle right? What do they mean, and why are they there?

Did Dan Blather's liar, Mary Mapes create this bs?

Is this phoney birth certificate just another example of the Real but Fake Hussein ObamaMessiaHamas, the Islamofacist Manchurian Candidate for Changing America?

Compare this doctored and phoney BC with a real one shown below:

We probably have as much chance of seeing a real copy of his birth certificate as seeing John Kerry’s full military record. Kerry refused to release his military records, and Hussein ObamaMessiaHamas, the Islamofacist Manchurian Candidate will probably not show his BC. We will be labeled as racists for daring to question his birth.

[2ndDivisionVet]

"If he was born outside of the US, but one of his parents is a US citizen, he can be naturalized as a US citizen."

A naturalized citizen cannot be president, per the U.S. Constitution.

[PghBaldy]

“Okubo said a copy of the birth certificate was requested this month, but she wouldn’t specify by whom. But as we know from our attempts to get one in April, Hawaii law states that only family members can access such records.” THAT is strange, as the date on the reverse stamp appears to say LAST YEAR... http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/article630058.ece

[PghBaldy]

Herte’s my guess- they got one, and found it was different than Obamas remembered- some detail is off, and decided to make a forged one instead of dealing with whatever issue, however slight, is there. Heck, it COULD say “Father: UNKNOWN.” I would not be surprised as the mother seemed unstable, to say the least.

[cookcounty]

I have a friend who was born in Africa with a US citizen for a mom and a Canadian citizen for a dad. She was not considered a “natural-born” US citizen (though she was automatically permanent resident-eligible), and had to go through a naturalization process.

[ricks_place]

The laws circa 1960 were written in such a way that one parent being a citizen, child born in a foriegn land - citizenship was NOT automatic. This was to prevent a flood of babies fathered by US Servicemen while abroad (sorry!).

Guess the law was not written to prevent married marxist foreign men from impregnating gullible American minor girls!