Do you really think that the policy determination of a Secretary of State trumps a federal court ruling? Each presidential administration and each Secretary of State can make a different determination.
Furthermore, if plaintiffs in state or federal eligibility lawsuits did not cite Secretary of State Thomas Bayard’s determination, judges are under no obligation to rule on its relevance.
“””Do you really think that the policy determination of a Secretary of State trumps a federal court ruling?”””
When the federal court ruling specifically contradicts KNOWN historic fact? Yes. Why call something ‘well settled’ when there are multiple historic instances contradicting the assumption.
Bayard wasn’t the only U.S. Secretary of State who determined that those born in the U.S. to an alien father weren’t even U.S. citizens at all; their nationality was that of their fathers’.