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To: Texas Fossil; Spaulding
This was understood clearly at the time of the founders to prevent "divided loyalty" of a President, which they knew could threaten the nation. It was understood that a "natural born" citizen was born of citizen parents (plural not singular).

No, it wasn't.

"Natural born" had a clear, defined and specific meaning, which was known to everybody. At least, everybody with a legal education - which included 2/3rds of those who signed the Constitution.

Neither you nor anybody else can produce one single reference connected with the Framers in any way, that says a natural born citizen required two citizen parents.

On the other hand, there are literally dozens of quotes from early America, a good many of them from very authoritative sources - such as our most authoritative legal experts, and/or people who knew the Framers directly - which say that "natural born citizen" meant, or Presidential eligibility required, that a person be "born a citizen," or "born in the United States."

133 posted on 05/10/2013 9:46:12 PM PDT by Jeff Winston
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To: Jeff Winston

The Supreme Court exclusively defined NBC in Minor as “all children born in the country to parents who were its citizens.” This is the nation’s highest judicial authority. No other SCOTUS rulings has differed from this definition and no lower court trumps the SCOTUS.


134 posted on 05/10/2013 10:50:06 PM PDT by edge919
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To: Jeff Winston
Here is a good discussion of the deliberation of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 (of which I have a copy of Madison's notes)

http://faculty.maxwell.syr.edu/jyinger/Citizenship/history.htm

Madison did not record any debate on this clause. Instead, on August 31, the Convention referred various issues, including presidential qualifications and the method of electing the President, to a Committee of Eleven, which had one member from each state.(31) This committee presented its report on September 4, 1787.(32) The words “natural born citizen” first appeared in this report. Indeed, these words appeared in a form that is identical to the final version in the Constitution: “No person except a natural born citizen ... shall be eligible to the office of President.” The record of the Constitutional Convention provides no explanation for the introduction of the words “natural born.” On September 7, “The section requiring that the President should be a natural-born citizen &c, & have been resident for fourteen years, & be thirty five years of age, was agreed to nem. con.”(33)

There is a reasoned discussion of how a letter by John Jay might have have influence on the final wording.

--

In that discussion it refers to The Naturalization Act of 1790 which states in part:

https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/United_States_Statutes_at_Large/Volume_1/1st_Congress/2nd_Session/Chapter_3

And the children of citizens of the United States, that may be born beyond sea,Also, children of citizens born beyond sea, &c. or out of the limits of the United States, shall be considered as natural born citizens: Provided, That the right of citizenship shall not descend to persons whose fathers have never been resident in the United States:Exceptions. Provided also, That no person heretofore proscribed by any state, shall be admitted a citizen as aforesaid, except by an act of the legislature of the state in which such person was proscribed.

This act of 1790 was replaced by the act of 1795 and the wording of "natural born citizen" was removed. This tells me that those in government at that time understood clearly the meaning of the phrase and it's significance in insuring undivided loyalty.

151 posted on 05/11/2013 9:31:44 AM PDT by Texas Fossil
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