The Elg decision also talks about the treaty between Norway/Sweden and the United States, in which it says, “nothing is said in the treaty which in such a case would destroy the right of election which appropriately belongs to the child on attaining majority. If the abrogation of that right had been in contemplation, it would naturally have been the subject of a provision suitably explicit. Rights of citizenship are not to be destroyed by an ambiguity.” This would suggest that if the other country did NOT allow a child to claim dual citizenship, the U.S. would be unable to do anything about it. In regard to Indonesia, there’s no ambiguity about its citizenship. They do not allow dual citizenship.
And if you go back to my previous post, I mentioned, “The key part is whether Obama was at some point considered (by himself or others) and ACTED as a sole citizen of Indonesia ...” This idea is echoed in the Elg decision, “such child upon arriving of age, or within a reasonable time thereafter, must make election between the citizenship which is his by birth and the citizenship which is his by parentage.” Putting aside that Obama was apparently a British subject at birth and not clearly a U.S. citizen, the question remains, did he elect to remain a citizen of Indonesia, even after returning to Hawaii to live with his grandparents and upon going to college?? Did he ever legally elect to be a U.S. citizen??
“Did he ever legally elect to be a U.S. citizen??”
Under US law, by default he would remain a US citizen. We can pretty well say he hasn’t held a policy level position in a foreign government, and he hasn’t taken up arms in attack on the US, and he hasn’t been found guilty of treason in a US court...so unless he traveled overseas as an adult AND while overseas went to a consulate and swore an oath renouncing his US citizenship, then he is still a US citizen.
“Putting aside that Obama was apparently a British subject at birth and not clearly a U.S. citizen...”
If he was born in the USA, then he clearly is a US citizen. Period. I’ve actually never even seen a birther deny that before. NBC...some deny it, although I think the legal argument very poor - as does the US Supreme Court, since it refuses to take the cases - but at least SOME case can be made there. But there is no doubt whatsoever that if he was born in the US, he was born a US citizen.