[Mariebl]

According to the law in effect at the time of BO's birth, his mother at the time was not old enough for her child born abroad to qualify at birth as an American citizen.

To what extent, if at all, is the Constitution bound by laws passed much later, by Congress? Not much, I'd think. Specially a law, like this, that does not make sense at all. (What possible reason would there be for saying that the child of a mother who was a native-born citizen, with no ties to any other country, and who had never resided in another country, would not be a citizen simply because the mother was young.)

[justiceseeker93]

What possible reason would there be for saying that the child of a mother who was a native-born citizen, with no ties to any other country, would not be a citizen simply because the mother was young[?]

Not simply because the mother was young, but because the father was an alien and the child was born abroad. I suppose that the Congress that passed this law thought a very young American mother who went abroad with an alien father to have a child was not suffieciently connected to the US to have her child be an American by birth. However, that same law made provision for such a child to be naturalized conveniently. Apparently, Obama's mother didn't take advantage of that opportunity (not that it would have made BO constitutionally eligible to be president).