Posted on 12/31/2002 4:27:21 AM PST by kattracks
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The prospect of someone seeking a U.S. passport for a new-born clone exercised minds at the State Department on Monday, but the experts appeared at a loss on how they would handle it."In the hypothetical situation of a cloned baby, this would be a new situation. Therefore, at this time we would be unable to determine how U.S. laws regarding nationality would apply to this child," spokesman Philip Reeker told a daily briefing.
"That's a situation that is a case of first impression," he added, using legal jargon for something unprecedented.
The possibility of a passport arose because of reports that a 31-year-old American may have given birth abroad to a clone of herself and was heading "home" with her infant girl, Eve.
A State Department official said issues of parentage and nationality could arise with a clone, especially if the child and the woman who gave birth were not genetically related.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said last week that implanting a cloned embryo in a woman would be illegal in the United States without its approval.
Reeker said that if an American parent met certain requirements, a child born abroad would automatically become a U.S. citizen and could immediately obtain a U.S. passport. Even infants require passports to enter the United States.
Can be president if born in/on a US facility
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