Legal experts: Cruz’s Canadian birth won’t keep him out of the Oval Office

Washington Post ^ | March 12 at 12:10 PM | Robert Barnes

[SoConPubbie]

Two of the top lawyers for the Obama and Bush administrations agree on this: Sen. Ted Cruz can become president. Legally speaking, anyway.

Paul D. Clement, former solicitor general for President George W. Bush, and Neal Katyal, former acting solicitor general for President Obama, penned a piece for the Harvard Law Review tackling the question of what the Constitution means when it says that the president must be at least 35 years old, a U.S. resident for at least 14 years and a “natural born Citizen.”

“All the sources routinely used to interpret the Constitution confirm that the phrase ‘natural born Citizen’ has a specific meaning: namely, someone who was a U.S. citizen at birth with no need to go through a naturalization proceeding at some later time,” they wrote. “And Congress has made equally clear from the time of the framing of the Constitution to the current day that, subject to certain residency requirements on the parents, someone born to a U.S. citizen parent generally becomes a U.S. citizen without regard to whether the birth takes place in Canada, the Canal Zone, or the continental United States.”

Cruz was born in a Canadian hospital to a mother who was a U.S. citizen. But he’s only the latest potential presidential candidate who has had his qualifications questioned. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) was born in the Panama Canal Zone. Former Sen. Barry Goldwater (R-Ariz.) was born in Arizona before it was a state. Gov. George Romney (R-Mich.) was delivered in Mexico to U.S. residents. All were qualified to serve, . . . .

The First Congress, they noted, established that children born abroad to U.S. citizens were themselves citizens at birth “and explicitly recognized that such children were ‘natural born citizens.’

[SoConPubbie]

"If we must have an enemy at the head of Government, let it be one whom we can oppose, and for whom we are not responsible, who will not involve our party in the disgrace of his foolish and bad measures." - Alexander Hamilton "We don't intend to turn the Republican Party over to the traitors in the battle just ended. We will have no more of those candidates who are pledged to the same goals as our opposition and who seek our support. Turning the Party over to the so-called moderates wouldn’t make any sense at all." -- President Ronald Reagan "A thing moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle is always a vice." - Thomas Paine 1792 "It does not take a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men." - Samuel Adams "If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or your arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen." - Samuel Adams

[SoConPubbie]

Ted Cruz Ping!

If you want on/off this ping list, please let me know.

Please beware, this is a high-volume ping list!

CRUZ or LOSE!

CRUZ or LOSE!

[research99]

“And Congress has made equally clear from the time of the framing of the Constitution to the current day that, subject to certain residency requirements on the parents, someone born to a U.S. citizen parent

generally becomes

a U.S. citizen without regard to whether the birth takes place in Canada, the Canal Zone, or the continental United States.” Note the apparent disclaimer.

[GraceG]

Cruz’s mom was well over 18 tears old and a citizen past 18 for the 7 required years in order to pass citizenship on.

UNLIKE barry’s mommy...

[GrandJediMasterYoda]

No doubt the Treason party will scream non-stop about this if he runs, probably the RINO party as well so they can nominate some token liberal.

[C19fan]

Someone please insert the “Not This [Four Letter Curse Word] Again” guy.

[Pelham]

“No doubt the Treason party will scream non-stop about this if he runs, probably the RINO party as well so they can nominate some token liberal.”

You can bet your last dollar on that happening.

Suddenly “Birtherism” will become the default position of the media and the political elites of both parties.

And those who argue that Cruz is qualified to run for President will be ridiculed as “Birth Deniers”.

[OneWingedShark]

The real problem is that those claiming that he is qualified to be president cite congressional law — the problem with that is that congress’s powers extend to naturalization, not to [re]defining terms in the Constitution (absent amendment), so by citing congressional law they undermine their claim that he is a natural born citizen.

IOW — If congress can declare who is/isn’t NBC then they can essentially modify the Constitution’s presidential requirements.

[freedom6178]

“President Cruz”...Music to my ears.

[Drew68]

Legal experts: Cruz’s Canadian birth won’t keep him out of the Oval Office

His 8th place position in the polls will though.

Cruz needs to make some serious moves if he has ambitions to sit behind that desk. The clock is ticking and he's straggling in the backwater with 4-5% support.

[OneWingedShark]

No doubt the Treason party will scream non-stop about this if he runs, probably the RINO party as well so they can nominate some token liberal.

I do not like it — It would be far better to nominate someone who is unquestionably NBC qualified. The NBC requirement is something that the NWO-types hate, precisely because (a) it limits who they can thrust onto the throne, and [more importantly], (b) it emphasizes and distinguishes nationality — this second thing, BTW, is why it's frowned on to call 'guest workers' illegal aliens and nearly unthinkable to refer to them as the more accurate foreign invaders.

I view with great suspicion these things that try to get things done contrary to constitutional restrictions, even if it is our side. (Heck, the constitution's restrictions need to be honored especially when it is inconvenient to us — otherwise it is meaningless.)

[P-Marlowe]

Bill Clinton was at the bottom of the pack and was a virtual unknown going into 1992. Cruz is a known factor and has not yet begun to run.

[stanne]

Aren’t the dems giving up this week?

This is bad news only for the GOP

[stanne]

Bad news, eh?

[stremba]

Trouble is that the Constitution doesn’t actually define what the term “natural born citizen” means. In cases like this, laws passed by Congress and/or court decisions usually form the basis upon which such definitions are made. If Congress’ definition is faulty, then someone would sue, take the case to the SCOTUS and it would then be incumbent upon the SCOTUS to settle the definition of the term “Natural Born Citizen”. It seems pretty clear, though, that the term has historically meant a person who is a citizen of the US from birth, and has not had to become one through a naturalization process.

[SoConPubbie]

I view with great suspicion these things that try to get things done contrary to constitutional restrictions,

That's just is OneWingedShark, there ARE NO CONSTITUTIONAL RESTRIcTIONS.

Nothing in the Constitution, it's amendments, US Law, or SCOTUS ruling unambiguously defines "Natural Born" as requiring 2 US Citizens at birth or requiring birth to take place in the US.

Until there is something that does unambiguously define those issues as going against Cruz, HE IS eligible to be POTUS.

[ansel12]

Bill Clinton was at the bottom of the pack and was a virtual unknown going into 1992. Cruz is a known factor and has not yet begun to run.

I also think his pacing is doing just fine.

[molson209]

Canada is in North America = America = We all Americans ,LOL

[Cheerio]

Well DUH - it certainly didn't stop Obozo who's own grandmother said he was born in Kenya. The Kenyan newspaper bragged when he won his first election about how the son of Kenyan had made it all the way to the White Hut - goodle it. We all know the forensic experts proved without a doubt the long form BC the WH posted on the internet was a FAKE.

I dare any liberal leftist RAT to challenge Ted Cruz's potential Presidential run. After all John McCain was born outside the country (granted to American citizen parents), and the Senate voted to assure the Americans that he was a legal candidate. This birthright citizenship must be eliminated - the Constitutional Amendment was never intended to have folks traveling to the USA to drop babies - it was only to make sure the freed slaves had a full citizenship portion.

Vitter: “Birth Tourism” is Nuts, Should be Illegal (David Vitter)
2015-03-10

[taxcontrol]

The enumerated power of Congress with regards to naturalization is to define who needs or does not need naturalization. These rules were laid down by the very first congress and have been occasionally modified since then. Congress is not redefining any terms.