“Why then did the Framers of the Constitution reject Alexander Hamiliton’s proposed presidential eligibility language of “born a Citizen” for John Jay’s stricter “natural born Citizen”?”
I’ve seen this posted form time to time and unfortunately it is not historically accurate.
On June 18, 1787, Alexander Hamilton submitted to the Convention a draft plan for a Constitution. It did not have a clause about “born a citizen”. It did have a executive position call a Governour, who would serve a life term.
“IV. The supreme Executive authority of the United States to be vested in a Governour to be elected to serve during good behaviour” June 18, 1787, Notes on the Debates in the Federal Convention by James Madison.
http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/debates_618.asp
Towards the end of the Convention, Hamilton gave Madison a copy of a draft constitution that contained the Presidential eligibility clause,
“Copy of a paper Communicated to J. M. by Col. Hamilton, about the close of the Convention in Philada. 1787, which he said delineated the Constitution which he would have wished to be proposed by the Convention: He had stated the principles of it in the course of the deliberations.”
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“Article IX”
“§. I. No person shall be eligible to the office of President of the United States unless he be now a Citizen of one of the States, or hereafter be born a Citizen of the United States.” Max Farrand, The Record of the Federal Convention of 1787.
The Framers never saw Hamilton’s draft constitution.
Not exactly correct. From your source:
The document that has just been discussed is to be distinguished from the following which was not submitted to the Convention and has no further value than attaches to the personal opinions of Hamilton 1
Copy of a paper Communicated to JM (James Madison) by Col Hamilton about the close of the Convention in Philada 1787 which he said delineated the Constitution which he would have wished to be proposed by the Convention: He had stated the principles of it in the course of the deliberations.
The first paragraph states the draft was not "submitted" to the Convention. The second paragraph goes on to say:
"He had stated the principles of it in the course of the deliberations."
Seems like a contradiction to me. At a minimum, Hamilton and Madison were aware of the proposed Article II eligibility language in Hamilton's draft, and this source seems to indicate Hamilton's draft was discussed during the deliberations of the Convention.
We do know that Hamilton's Article II language of merely "born a Citizen" was ultimately rejected in favor of the stricter natural born Citizen as communicated to Gen. Washington by John Jay in his letter dated 25 Jul 1787:
"Permit me to hint, whether it would be wise and seasonable to provide a strong check to the admission of Foreigners into the administration of our national Government; and to declare expressly that the Commander in Chief of the American army shall not be given to nor devolve on, any but a natural born Citizen. "