Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Left out in '08 (Times rallying for Schwarzenegger to run for president)
Los Angeles Times ^ | January 14, 2007 | EDITORIAL

Posted on 01/14/2007 1:40:19 PM PST by calcowgirl

THE GOVERNOR OF the nation's largest state was reelected in a landslide in November, even though his Republican Party is a minority in California. He works with Democrats in a way that offers the rest of the country a model of much-needed bipartisanship. To kick off his second term, he has proposed the most ambitious healthcare and environmental reforms in the country, and he is also committed to a massive reconstruction of the state's infrastructure.

Yet, oddly enough, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is not on the list of potential presidential candidates in 2008.

Why? Because the founders were worried in the 18th century that our fledgling nation might go the way of Poland and be overtaken by a foreign monarchy. Hence the constitutional qualifier that only "natural-born citizens" are eligible for the presidency of the United States.

In their wisdom, however, the Constitution's authors adopted a mechanism for the nation's founding document to be amended. Amendments should be undertaken sparingly, we agree, but it's a good thing that slavery was done away with and that suffrage has been expanded.

And now that we can all rest assured that no foreign monarch is going to move into the White House, it's long past due for this nation of immigrants to amend the Constitution to allow naturalized Americans to aspire to the presidency. This is precisely the type of defining issue — what it means to be American — that the amendment process was designed to address.

Supporting Schwarzenegger for governor (we did) does not necessarily lead to supporting him for president (we don't — yet). But why should Californians have their governor sidelined from the race? And why can't voters across the country be entrusted to decide for themselves whether the governor is sufficiently "American" to earn their vote? It's insulting, really.

(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Editorial; Government; Politics/Elections; US: California
KEYWORDS: 2008; arnoldamendment; arnoldforpresident; callingallilk; constitution; election2008; foreignborn; schwarzenegger
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-64 next last
To: Uncle Hal

Not too silly, they're putting it up for consideration by the left wing to consider changing it, don't you think? They have the most to gain by illegals, they're children are naturalized and it's a great democratic block of voters for them.

'forty acres and a mule...and you're going to vote like your friends' still a working plan.


21 posted on 01/14/2007 2:14:23 PM PST by Beowulf9
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: Gay State Conservative
Naturalized citizens shouldn't be able to be President. Nothing will ever change my attitude on that issue.

I'm with you!

22 posted on 01/14/2007 2:24:57 PM PST by calcowgirl ("Liberalism is just Communism sold by the drink." P. J. O'Rourke)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: calcowgirl

NO! The United States of America's Constitution SHOULD never be CHANGED to allow a naturalized citizen to run for or be the President of the United States of America.


23 posted on 01/14/2007 2:25:56 PM PST by JOE43270 (JV43270 God Bless America and ALL WHO HAVE and WILL DEFEND HER.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Post-Neolithic
The Senators and Representatives from California that don't like our Constitution can always move to another country.

Mexiforniastan IS another country. And, it grows more each day as Commissar Arnold allows more illegals in.

24 posted on 01/14/2007 2:26:47 PM PST by RetiredArmy (Dimocrats stand for everything I hate, despise and wish to see destroyed, including dimocrats!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: Sofa King

Not one man - many, many, many men and women.

There are tens of thousand of naturalized Americans serving in the Armed Forces right now. Why shouldn't one of them be able to aspire to the Presidency some day?

To put it another way: why should Cindy Sheehan be eligible to be President, but not some Second Lieutenant originally from the Ukraine who wins the Silver Star for gallantry under fire?

And, of course, for any foreign-born person to be elected as President, they'd have to be a super-patriot anyways, in order to overcome suspicions about them.

For that matter why should I (foreign born, not yet naturalized, but someday hope to be) be prevented from runnng in, oh 2040 or so?


25 posted on 01/14/2007 2:28:31 PM PST by furquhart (Time for a New Crusade - Deus lo Volt!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: calcowgirl

Although I generally don't recommend it, I support restricting freedom of the press and the stupid editorials of the LATimes. Just them, and occasionally the NYSlimes and WACompost. And a few others...The constitution should be amended to put a muzzle on them.


26 posted on 01/14/2007 2:28:50 PM PST by Drango (A liberal's compassion is limited only by the size of someone else's wallet.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: calcowgirl
No thank you , at least not as a rep . We don't need his ideas in the rep party , try the demo party that is where are the tree hugging liberals are. thank you , but no thank you
27 posted on 01/14/2007 2:30:14 PM PST by betsyross1776
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: cripplecreek

Why the heck shouldn't Granholm be allowed to run, for that matter?

I mean, she came to the United States when she was, what, two or something?

Why should, to pick one obvious example, Henry Kissinger been left out of the line of Presidential succession as a result?

The solution is to put together a "Citizenship Amendment." Something like:

Article XX

1. Only those children born to a parent who is either a citizen of the United States or otherwise legally residing therein shall be entitled to citizenship on account of birth.

2. All citizens of the United States shall be eligible for any office under this constitution.


28 posted on 01/14/2007 2:32:50 PM PST by furquhart (Time for a New Crusade - Deus lo Volt!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: calcowgirl

There are two things that drive the democrats nuts about the Constitution.
The Electoral College
And this "born in USA for President"
Well rather than grumble about it. Ammend it!
Course they won't do that because the founders in thier wisdom made that very hard to do.
The founding fathers were smarter than the whole modern Democratic party combined!


29 posted on 01/14/2007 2:34:09 PM PST by lexington minuteman 1775
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: furquhart
If you want to be an American Citizen then you should believe in the US Constitution, if you do not, then there really is no reason to become one.

Our Fore-fathers wrote the provision against non-natural-born Americans becoming President for a very good reason.

30 posted on 01/14/2007 2:35:09 PM PST by Post-Neolithic (Money only makes Communists rich Communists)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: calcowgirl

I stand by the Constitution on this matter, for it is an issue of Prudence.

I certainly don't want charismatic demagogues like Hugo Chavez to move here, get themselves a moonbat NY Senate seat, and run for President with the media fawning over them once they've been here long enough.


31 posted on 01/14/2007 2:35:51 PM PST by JHBowden (President Giuliani in 2008! Law and Order. Solid Judges. Free Markets. Killing Terrorists.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: JHBowden

If it was up to the "Anyone should be able to become the President Of The United States" crowd, Hitler could have moved here when he was young and held that office, Imagine what our country would be like today.


32 posted on 01/14/2007 2:38:17 PM PST by Post-Neolithic (Money only makes Communists rich Communists)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 31 | View Replies]

To: Post-Neolithic

The Constitution has already been amended twenty-eight times.

It's an archaic provision, designed for the purpose that the Times outlined. I mean, hell, it was written at that very time in such a way as not to exclude Alexander Hamilton from the Presidency.


33 posted on 01/14/2007 2:39:55 PM PST by furquhart (Time for a New Crusade - Deus lo Volt!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 30 | View Replies]

To: Post-Neolithic

Duh - a Hitler who lived for decades in America either would have been:

a) Unelectable.

Or:

b) An entirely different person.


34 posted on 01/14/2007 2:41:05 PM PST by furquhart (Time for a New Crusade - Deus lo Volt!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 32 | View Replies]

To: furquhart

Grandstand can be President (PM) in Canada and you can run for office in your natural born country.


35 posted on 01/14/2007 2:41:19 PM PST by Beagle8U
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 28 | View Replies]

To: calcowgirl

Since when is California "the nation's largest state"?


36 posted on 01/14/2007 2:42:36 PM PST by Jedidah
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: goldstategop

I do not believe even the Dem'crats could move swiftly enough to change the Constitution so that Arnold could run for the Presidency in 2008.

Of course, a brief could be filed with the Ninth Circus, to have the entire Constitution declared unconstitutional. A little clause like requiring the President must be a natural-boorn citizen, shouldn't have much effect on their reasoning.


37 posted on 01/14/2007 2:44:50 PM PST by alloysteel (Character is a private trait. Reputation is the public aspect that is revealed.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Beagle8U

My natural born country is Canada too, as it happens.

Using Mapquest, I was born, oh, ten miles from the border. On a straight line, I'd guess, oh, five or so.

Can anyone think of any rational reason why Jesus Suraez, born to illegal parents five miles across the border, should have a more valid claim than someone born five miles on the other side, who spent their entire life immursed in American culture, spent a good chunk of their school years defending the United States, and then, eventually, left their home and family behind in another country to come to the United States, largely for ideological reasons?


38 posted on 01/14/2007 2:45:30 PM PST by furquhart (Time for a New Crusade - Deus lo Volt!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 35 | View Replies]

To: Sherman Logan
The procedural hurdles put in place for an amendment are such that one can only pass if an overwhelming majority support it. I'm not worried.

Grin, yeah... Given the ah "speed" at which our elected so-called leaders operate, I'd guess Arnold will be dead and buried before they could get the amendment through - with the obligatory 237 spending riders etc.

39 posted on 01/14/2007 2:49:57 PM PST by CodeMasterPhilzar
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 11 | View Replies]

To: calcowgirl

Sad to saybut if he could run, most Republicans WOULD vote for the Socialist Moron, only because he is a Republican.


40 posted on 01/14/2007 2:52:31 PM PST by stockpirate (John Kerry & FBI files ==> http://www.freerepublic.com/~stockpirate/)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-64 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson