BREAKING -- Berg v Obama - Scheduled for SCOTUS Conference TWICE on Jan 16

US Supreme Court ^ | 12/23/08 | US Supreme Court

[BP2]

No. 08-570
Title:	Philip J. Berg, Petitioner v. Barack Obama, et al.
Docketed:	October 31, 2008
Lower Ct:	United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

Case Nos.:	(08-4340)
	Rule 11

~~~Date~~~	~~~~~~~Proceedings  and  Orders~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Oct 30 2008	Petition for a writ of certiorari before judgment filed. (Response due December 1, 2008)
Oct 31 2008	Application (08A391) for an injunction pending the disposition of the petition for a writ of certiorari, submitted to Justice Souter.
Nov 3 2008	Supplemental brief of applicant Philip J. Berg filed.
Nov 3 2008	Application (08A391) denied by Justice Souter.
Nov 18 2008	Waiver of right of respondents Federal Election Commission, et al. to respond filed.
Dec 1 2008	Motion for leave to file amicus brief filed by Bill Anderson.
Dec 8 2008	Application (08A505) for an injunction pending the disposition of the petition for a writ of certiorari, submitted to Justice Souter.
Dec 9 2008	Application (08A505) denied by Justice Souter.
Dec 15 2008	Application (08A505) refiled and submitted to Justice Kennedy.
Dec 17 2008	DISTRIBUTED for Conference of January 9, 2009.
Dec 17 2008	Application (08A505) denied by Justice Kennedy.
Dec 18 2008	Application (08A505) refiled and submitted to Justice Scalia.
Dec 23 2008	Application (08A505) referred to the Court.
Dec 23 2008	DISTRIBUTED for Conference of January 16, 2009.	---------------

No. 08A505
Title:	Philip J. Berg, Applicant v. Barack Obama, et al.
Docketed:
Lower Ct:	United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

Case Nos.:

(08-4340)

~~~Date~~~	~~~~~~~Proceedings  and  Orders~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dec 8 2008	Application (08A505) for an injunction pending the disposition of the petition for a writ of certiorari, submitted to Justice Souter.
Dec 9 2008	Application (08A505) denied by Justice Souter.
Dec 15 2008	Application (08A505) refiled and submitted to Justice Kennedy.
Dec 17 2008	Application (08A505) denied by Justice Kennedy.
Dec 18 2008	Application (08A505) refiled and submitted to Justice Scalia.
Dec 23 2008	Application (08A505) referred to the Court.
Dec 23 2008	DISTRIBUTED for Conference of January 16, 2009.

[ConservativeMind]

Don't you think the proper question ought to be, “If the Berg case has no merit, why have they scheduled it for conference, at all?”

Isn't it possible that the Electoral College and Congress have to act to certify the president prior to an actual legal problem occurring?

[ConservativeMind]

You are pretty clueless about the laws at the time of his birth.

His mother had to have residency for a certain number of years, of which, it appears she didn't.

[devere]

“And if he were born in Kenya, yes he is a liar but he would still be a natural born citizen in that at the moment of his birth he became an American.”

As is well known, if Barry Obama was born in Kenya in 1961, he wouldn’t be a US citizen at all unless he was later naturalized. The law in effect in 1961 makes that very clear.

And even if the law that took effect in 1986 had been in effect in 1961 ( or had been made retroactive, which it was not ), some would argue that Barry would just have been naturalized at birth by statute, and would still not be a natural born citizen. Congress has constitutional authority over naturalization, but no clear grant of constitutional power to create natural born citizens by statute.

I’m puzzled why anyone who calls themself a conservative would appear to oppose efforts to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States.

[Lurking Libertarian]

Do you understand what “conference” means?? Obviously not all cases presented to the Judges go to conference. Conference is when all (or most of) the judges meet and discuss the eligibility of the case. To get to conference, one of the judges must accept the case to conference.

Wrong. Read Rules 15 and 16 of the Supreme Court Rules.

[trumandogz]

I was am a natural born citizen and I was born not long after Obama and outside of the United States.

I have a Birth Certificate issued by the US Embassy to prove it.

[Colorado Cowgirl]

“And if he were born in Kenya, yes he is a liar but he would still be a natural born citizen in that at the moment of his birth he became an American.” Dude, drop the crack pipe, It’s the Christmas season. Anyone born in Kenya to a Kenyan Muslim father is a Kenyan Muslim son, who at that time would qualify for a British passport, But he would not qualify as a natural born United States American citizen. Not in my lifetime.

[trumandogz]

His mother had to have residency for a certain number of years, of which, it appears she didn't.

Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Scalia, Thomas and Alito looked at that argument a few weeks ago and did not see any merit.

But then of course, I do not know you and it could be that you have a better understanding of the Constitution than the Four Strict Constructionists on the SCOTUS.

[Ecliptic]

“As for me, when a person states that George W. Bush and Dick Cheney were responsible for the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks, they lose all credibility.”

But what about the FACTS ? If your child lies, you will never listen to anything they say again?

[TonyStark]

The COLB Obama has presented would be sufficient documentation to get a SS Card, a Passport and DL. And as far as I can tell, there is no requirement that a President Elect present more documentation.

And if he were born in Kenya, yes he is a liar but he would still be a natural born citizen in that at the moment of his birth he became an American.

1) No, it isn't. Not even in Hawaii. It just shows that your mom attested to the fact you were born alive. Not where. Just somewhere, alive.

2) No, he wouldn't be. "Natural born citizen" is very precisely defined, and it is quite a bit more restrictive than just "citizen".

[devere]

“I was am a natural born citizen and I was born not long after Obama and outside of the United States. I have a Birth Certificate issued by the US Embassy to prove it.”

And how is your citizenship status relevant to Barry Obama’s rather murky citizenship status? It’s two different sets of facts. Or are Barry’s twin brother?

[trumandogz]

So it is your position that if Obama were born in Hawaii that he would in fact be a natural born citizen.

[TSgt]

[devere]

“Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Scalia, Thomas and Alito looked at that argument a few weeks ago and did not see any merit.”

I didn’t see that ruling published. Or were you present at the Supreme Court’s private conference? LOL

[trumandogz]

2) No, he wouldn't be. "Natural born citizen" is very precisely defined, and it is quite a bit more restrictive than just "citizen".

Could you please cite the place in the Constitution, Legislation or Case Law that precisely defines natural born citizen?

[Nipfan]

I don’t think that trumandogz has any real personal animosity towards Berg. Its all just a marvellous excuse to defend Obama and muddy the constitutional waters which, going in his/her each and every post (at least the ones that I’ve seen) is his/her sole purpose on this board.

[trumandogz]

Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Scalia, Thomas and Alito looked at that argument and apparently saw no reason to refer it to the Full Court.

[hoosiermama]

Not a matter of being a conservative ....May actually be Axelturfing.

See techniques describe by Sarah post 25, at link below:

http://hillbuzz.wordpress.com/2008/10/27/breaking-you-know-this-audiotape-is-bad-for-obama-really-bad-because-obamas-followers-got-dead-silent-all-of-a-sudden/#comment-12850

Including:

“The internal campaign idea is to twist, distort, humiliate and finally dispirit you.

We pay people and organize people to go to all the online sites and “play the part of a clinton or mccain supporter who just switched our support for obama” “

[stockpirate]

Welcome newbie 11-25-08

I realize you hope this issue just goes away so your leader can get his crown, but your post is not even in teh same room as what the process is.

Try reading the constitution.

To attack the Berg but not address the merits of the suit shows your weakness.

[tommy777]

http://www.blogtext.org/naturalborncitizen/

Don’t be distracted by the birth certificate and Indonesia issues. They are irrelevant to Senator Obama’s ineligibility to be President. Since Barack Obama’s father was a Citizen of Kenya and therefore subject to the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom at the time of Senator Obama’s birth, then Senator Obama was a British Citizen “at birth”, just like the Framers of the Constitution, and therefore, even if he were to produce an original birth certificate proving he were born on US soil, he still wouldn’t be eligible to be President.

The Framers of the Constitution, at the time of their birth, were also British Citizens and that’s why the Framers declared that, while they were Citizens of the United States, they themselves were not “natural born Citizens”. Hence their inclusion of the grandfather clause in Article 2, Section 1, Clause 5 of the Constitution:

No person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution shall be eligible to the Office of President;

That’s it right there. (Emphasis added.)

The Framers wanted to make themselves eligible to be President, but they didn’t want future generations to be Governed by a Commander In Chief who had split loyalty to another Country. The Framers were comfortable making an exception for themselves. They did, after all, create the Constitution. But they were not comfortable with the possibility of future generations of Presidents being born under the jurisdiction of Foreign Powers, especially Great Britain and its monarchy, who the Framers and Colonists fought so hard in the American Revolution to be free of.

The Framers declared themselves not eligible to be President as “natural born Citizens”, so they wrote the grandfather clause in for the limited exception of allowing themselves to be eligible to the Presidency in the early formative years of our infant nation.

But nobody alive today can claim eligibility to be President under the grandfather clause since nobody alive today was a citizen of the US at the time the Constitution was adopted.
The Framers distinguished between “natural born Citizens” and all other “Citizens”. And that’s why it’s important to note the 14th Amendment only confers the title of “Citizen”, not “natural born Citizen”. The Framers were Citizens, but they weren’t natural born Citizens. They put the stigma of not being natural born Citizens on themselves in the Constitution and they are the ones who wrote the Document.

Since the the Framers didn’t consider themselves to have been “natural born Citizens” due to their having been subject to British jurisdiction at their birth, then Senator Obama, having also been subject to British jurisdiction at the time of his birth, also cannot be considered a “natural born Citizen” of the United States.

[trumandogz]

Its all just a marvellous excuse to defend Obama and muddy the constitutional waters which, going in his/her each and every post (at least the ones that I’ve seen) is his/her sole purpose on this board.

Are you really sure that all of my 11,000 posts in four years have been to defend Obama?