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Why should it even matter if Obama was born in the U.S.? (Cafeteria Constitutionalism?)
Foreign Policy ^ | July 16, 2009 | Joshua Keating

Posted on 07/16/2009 8:01:10 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

The weirdly persistant belief held by many Americans that President Barack Obama is not a natural-born citizen of the United States has been back in the news lately thanks to Major Stefan Cook, the "birther" soldier who was granted has requested conscientious objector status because he refused to fight for a president he believes is illegitimate. There's also a bill gathering some support in the House that would change election law to require candidates to prove their citizenship.

The birther phenomenon is predictable form of paranoia given the president's unusually exotic (for a president, anyway) background. But isn't the larger scandal that the anachronistic natural-born citizenship requirement in Article II of the constitution still even exists?

Let's imagine that Barack Obama had been born in Indonesia or Kenya or anywhere else for that matter, and hadn't become a citizen until moving to Hawaii to live with his grandparents. Is there one good reason why that would make him less fit to be president?

Put another way, is there one good reason why foreign-born governors Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jennifer Granholm can't legally run for president but Mark Sanford and Sarah Palin can?

Naturalized citizens like Henry Kissinger, Zbigniew Brzezinski, and Madeline Albright have been allowed into the highest positions in the U.S. national security establishment without anyone questioning their loyalty. Why shouldn't voters be allowed to decide whether a foreign-born candidate is American enough to be president?

(Excerpt) Read more at blog.foreignpolicy.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Extended News; Government; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: article2section1; bho44; bhobirthcertificate; birthcertificate; citizenship; colb; eligibility; hawaii; indonesia; ineligible; kenya; naturalborn; naturalborncitizen; obama; stefancook; usurper; wolverines
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To: keats5
If this generation forgot why we once demanded loyal natural born presidents, they are about to relearn that lesson the hard way.

Great statement, I'm saving it!

61 posted on 07/16/2009 8:47:38 PM PDT by Krodg
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Is there one good reason why that would make him less fit to be president?

yeah...the Constitution of the United States says so!

62 posted on 07/16/2009 8:49:26 PM PDT by LiteKeeper (When do the impeachment proceedings begin?)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Naturalized citizens ...have been allowed into the highest positions in the U.S. national security establishment without anyone questioning their loyalty.

Wrong! Many people question whether someone who has been a citizen of another country, like Kissenger has, should be trusted with our national secrets. If someone has changed loyalty once, they may do so again. That makes them a security risk. How old is this writer?

63 posted on 07/16/2009 8:49:39 PM PDT by Jemian (PAM of JT ~~ Support Major Cook! I AM JIM THOMPSON!)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I know there are many FReepers who choose to believe that all is normal ‘round the USA lately. I know you are waiting for the next election to ‘set things straight’, or ‘take the country back’.

There was a reason why the older generation and previous generations did not care for communists.

Why do so many of you shy away from the word? The USSR is gone but do communists still walk the earth? I think they do.

The aim is to DESTROY the USA, not merely to change it.

This article is OLD NEWS to someone like me who grew up around the victims of communism. They HAVE TO destroy cohesion and just one part of that is US sovereignty.

They have NO respect for your Founding Fathers. In fact, they detest them.

They DO NOT hold freedom as sacred, as have all great Americans. In fact, they view your individual freedom (your mind) as a clear and present danger to their grand agenda.

You had better beef-up on your knowledge of freedom vs. communism.

They are here and they intend to DESTROY the USA and not merely make life easier for the poor and sick.

This is so much more serious than most of you on this forum realize, judging by posts here.


64 posted on 07/16/2009 8:50:11 PM PDT by Boucheau
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To: Boucheau
Up until the last couple weeks, I hadn't been watching TV or keeping up with politics for a while (busy with other things, and no tv around) but now I can't believe the stuff that is going on in this country, and what's worse - that clueless people are WELCOMING it. It's like they are fine with just throwing out the constitution, and allowing the subversives in government to destroy us from within.

I'm almost glad I don't live in the US anymore... it's a sad sight to see, and I feel like there's not much I can do about it except try to bring awareness to what is going on.

65 posted on 07/16/2009 8:53:38 PM PDT by incindiary
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To: Boucheau; All
And if you don't know what Venona is, run, don't walk, to your local bookstore and order a copy of this book.

The Venona Secrets, Exposing Soviet Espionage and America's Traitors

You'll learn why McCarthy was right and why liberals can never, ever be trusted with our national security.

66 posted on 07/16/2009 8:59:57 PM PDT by BuckeyeTexan (Integrity, Character, Leadership, and Loyalty matter - Be an example, no matter the cost.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
I'm not sure what I think of this birther thing. It seems to me that his mother's citizenship probably confers natural born status on him, regardless of birth place; unless perhaps he gave it up by becoming an Indonesian citizen (which may explain the tight lid on college records). It think the birth certificate thing is perhaps an attempt to cover up something embarrassing (paternity), not disqualifying.

It is interesting however to see a piece saying "what difference does it make?" rather than "you guys are nuts".

The problem with things like this is they are never as delicious in reality as they seem to possibly be. I mean, why would he hide all the stuff? It must be real juicy, right? Just like the Whitewater billing records in the White House closet. The more you speculate about the existence of a bombshell, the less likely it seems that you will get the satisfaction of seeing one materialize. Whatever he's concealing will likely end up being forever concealed, or not that big of deal. I have no evidence of that, it's just the way things like this tend to work out.

67 posted on 07/16/2009 9:00:34 PM PDT by Minn (Here is a realistic picture of the prophet: ----> ([: {()
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

If you think a provision of the Constitution makes no sense, then start a campaign for an AMENDMENT.

In the meantime, whether or not the Constitutional qualifications for President make sense or not, anyone who becomes President by LYING about his qualifications is a LIAR who cannot take the oath of office without PERJURING himself. And a perjurer does NOT make a good President.


68 posted on 07/16/2009 9:03:37 PM PDT by Arthur McGowan
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To: Sherman Logan
B.S. It is in the constitution, and that settles it. Every country has native born traitors, such as the ones who think having a foreigner as president is ok. The US constitution is the best document ever created for the citizens of a country; the entire constitution.

Left wingers like yourself admire our enemies; such as cuba, iran, syria, venezuela, etc; but even those genocide countries will never allow a foreigner to be their president.

69 posted on 07/16/2009 9:05:20 PM PDT by gedeon3
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To: incindiary

“I feel like there’s not much I can do...”

I know you are in another country but this feeling/attitude is epidemic in the USA right now.

IF WE DO NOTHING ELSE, WE HAVE TO FIGHT THESE FEELINGS SO THAT WE CAN ACT AGAINST THE LEFT.

These feelings were put there by the hard-left.

You see, the left is so far beyond what the every day American is thinking about.

The left is after your very heart, mind, and soul.

They understand, after centuries of study and experimenting on millions of live humans, that if they can remove/weaken your survival instincts that THEY OWN YOU 100%.

They will put you in a position where you have NO OTHER CHOICE BUT TO AQUIESCE(give in and follow them).

If they can overwhelm/confuse, demoralize, steal your language (PC, neuro-linguistics), and make you desperate (economy) then you are like silly-putty in their hands BECAUSE, BY THEN, NOT ONLY WOULD YOU HAVE LOST A FIRM GRASP OF EXACTLY WHAT YOU FIGHTING FOR, YOU WOULD HAVE FORGOTTEN HOW TO FIGHT AT ALL.

I see it in so many Americans right now. I can see the knots in their stomachs over all that is happening. Yet, that can’t seem to find their legs and resist.

Why?

This is but the fruit of the left’s labor.

The vampire bat’s saliva is an analgesic allowing it to feed on you while you sleep.


70 posted on 07/16/2009 9:08:29 PM PDT by Boucheau
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To: Principled

the constitution says who can be president, and it is a simple matter— you are eligible or you are not eligible. How this prick got by the baggage check beats the hell out of me, but if he is not eligible to be president, he is not eligible for anything that goes with it. I’d like to see him either establish his eligibility or walk humbly out the White House gates with a shit-eating grin on his face, his wife, kids and mother-in-law by his side, and his communist friends there to meet him, along, of course, with his ghost writer, and his publisher, so he can continue to live in luxury and entertain the liberal dorks who put him up to this. That would make Joe Biden president, which would entertain the rest of us and insure that a Republican would succeed him not only this next time, but forever, unless, of course, the electorate contains a majority of dorkheads. a contingency that can not be ruled out.


71 posted on 07/16/2009 9:09:08 PM PDT by mathurine
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

He would lose in 2012 and it will shut up those wishey republicans like John Gibson who said drop it.


72 posted on 07/16/2009 9:09:10 PM PDT by Brimack34 (I hate people that hate Palin)
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To: workerbee

Why not just throw out the Constitution and declare 0 president for life? Whoopeee! Would that not be just peachy, you moron, Mr. Keating?


73 posted on 07/16/2009 9:12:41 PM PDT by pankot
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To: Minn

As I understand what I’ve read, his mother wasn’t old enough to confer natural born citizenship on him by herself, as the rules stood at the time. His supposed father, Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., was a Kenyan, and therefore a British subject. Also, if he was naturalized as an Indonesian when adopted by Mr. Soertero, his stepfather, then he lost whatever natural born citizenship he might otherwise have had. Mr. Obama travelled to Pakistan at a time when U.S. citizens weren’t allowed into that country. How did he get in? Did he use a Kenyan or Indonesian passport? It just keeps piling up. Senator McCain, who was born at a military installation in the Canal Zone in Panama, revealed his birth certificate. Where is Mr. Obama’s?


74 posted on 07/16/2009 9:14:50 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet (I am Jim Thompson!!)
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To: Ikemeister

The Honduran military followed the orders of the legislature and supreme court. Not a good outcome in America today!


75 posted on 07/16/2009 9:16:18 PM PDT by When do we get liberated? (They must think we are stupid. They want to be green, I want to be gault.)
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To: workerbee

> inherent honesty and fair play

The military takes oaths to protect the Constitution from all enemies, foreign and domestic, do they not?


76 posted on 07/16/2009 9:21:39 PM PDT by ROTB (Love your enemies, in the name and faith of Christ.)
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To: Boucheau
I agree, but bringing awareness to something important IS doing something, it's not just sitting around apathetically or not caring. I do multi-media work, and the next thing I want to do is a video on Obama. It may not get seen by a big audience, but using the web (our last beacon of free speech) to bring awareness is something I can do.

Film/video/web is a powerful tool to reach people, so I don't feel that I'm one of the apathetic blind sheep out there, i'm just doing my part in my way.

77 posted on 07/16/2009 9:22:39 PM PDT by incindiary
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

“Senator McCain, who was born at a military installation in the Canal Zone in Panama, revealed his birth certificate.” Um, not exactly. McCain’s BC shows he was born in the civilian hospital in Colon, Panama.


78 posted on 07/16/2009 9:26:07 PM PDT by MHGinTN (Believing they cannot be deceived, they cannot be convinced when they are deceived.)
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To: pankot
"Why not just throw out the Constitution..." Fear that it's about on its last lap now.

Any attack on US soil likely will be more severe than 9/11. This will be the perfect pretence to usher in marshal law, suspend civil liberties and delay elections. Witness the response of our POTUS and leaders of Congress who support the ousted President of Nicaragua even though he attempted to bypass their constitution.

79 posted on 07/16/2009 9:27:30 PM PDT by masadaman
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To: keats5

If Obama’s parents were Terrorists from Saudi Arabia,... it would be fine if Obama became President as long as he was born here. This is beyond absurd.


80 posted on 07/16/2009 9:31:59 PM PDT by MacSuibhne
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