The U.S. Senate's Got McCain's Natural-Born Back
John McCain doesn't have the interesting gender or diversity points that Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have, but he does have some immigrant cred. He was not born in one of the United States of America, and there are "at least three pending cases... challenging McCain's right to be sworn in as president."
The Senate is willing to consider him a "natural born citizen" -- but the senators' opinion doesn't really matter. From the Washington Post:
The Senate has unanimously declared John McCain a natural-born citizen, eligible to be president of the United States.That is the good news for the presumptive Republican nominee, who was born nearly 72 years ago in a military hospital in the Panama Canal Zone, then under U.S. jurisdiction. The bad news is that the nonbinding Senate resolution passed Wednesday night is simply an opinion that has little bearing on an arcane constitutional debate that has preoccupied legal scholars for many weeks.
That's right. This decision may not be up to some lawyers turned politicians. It may go to the legal big boys. SCOTUS, baby.
Sarah H. Duggin, an associate law professor at Catholic University who has studied the "natural born" issue in detail, said the question is "not so simple." While she said McCain would probably prevail in a determined legal challenge to his eligibility to be president, she added that the matter can be fully resolved only by a constitutional amendment or a Supreme Court decision.
This is not the first time this debate has made news. Back in February, we reported on articles in the New York Times and WSJ Law Blog.
We conducted a poll then asking whether you agreed with the statement, "John McCain is a 'natural-born citizen' entitled to serve as president." Since we're certain that all ATL readers are highly-educated legal scholars and thorough researchers, the 65 percent of you who agreed with the statement must be right. We'll let SCOTUS know stat.
McCain's Birth Abroad Stirs Legal Debate [Washington Post]
Earlier: John McCain: A 'Natural-Born Citizen'?
(27) Comments
Legal arguments aside, it would be pretty foolish if a child born on a U.S. military base to American parents serving their country could be held ineligible for the Presidency.
This whole debate played out about a month ago in several major publications. It's old news.
yes, and Lat posted about it then. the Senate resolution is new, jackass.
i bet he knows latin, you know, since he was born in latin america.
Erm. I bet this doesn't become a problem until he is already elected president. Then SCOTUS takes a bite at it and, as expected, says "Political issues of this character are not the province of the judiciary to resolve. Despite the clear constitutional language, both the people of the United States and the Senate have spoken. Since we are without power to appoint a president in lieu of John McCain, we dismiss this challenge as we can provide no remedy."
Well, that's not Con. law, but I bet it's what the court does. Who has standing to challenge his capacity to run for president? I would expect only Hillary or Obama, and ONLY after they have lost.
That's Dan.
Laurence Tribe and Ted Olson: "McCain's a natural-born citizen."
TTT law prof: "It's not that simple."
I know which said I'm on.
12:47--yeah, we TTTers know which "said" you are on, too.
Re: "old news," tell that to the Washington Post, which wrote it up just recently.
The subsequent development that brought this back into the news is the passing of the Senate resolution last week.
ZOMG A CATHOLIC STUDENT FOUND A TYPO, HE PWNED ME, LOLZ
1:12, I think that 12:56's point was that if you are going to try and make fun of people, you might try and be sure that your attempt to "own" someone is free of errors.
Besides, you paid $150,000+ for your "education"...surely you should be able to avoid typos/misspellings/other idiocies.
What else does "natural-born" language preclude? What about kids born via artificial insemination? what about kids born via C-Section? That is not "natural" child birth. Where does the line get drawn?
Can we just pass the Schwarzenegger Amendment and fix this anachronism once and for all?
"I was elected to lead, not to read!"
why the hell is some law prof in the Vatican talking about whether Mccain can be president?
FIRST to use the word "non-justiciable." SECOND to agree that 1:12 should spell correctly before insulting TTTs.
Fine. Let's pass an amendment, but let's wait until Arnold is past his prime to do it. Maybe Granholm, too.
Why are we having this debate? Does anyone seriously think that any SCOTUS justice (even the libs on the court) will declare McCain ineligible? Even as an academic exercise, this is pointless. Its nothing more than a worthless law professor trying to get some attention.
Why are we having this debate? Does anyone seriously think that any SCOTUS justice (even the libs on the court) will declare McCain ineligible? Even as an academic exercise, this is pointless. Its nothing more than a worthless law professor trying to get some attention.
12:29 = GULC grad.
Is McCain eligible for affirmative action as a Hispanic? Would he be the first immigrant AND Hispanic president?
What makes McCain different from a real Panamanian born on the other side of the Canal Zone border, to immigrant parents from Europe (like Spain)?
Laurence Tribe and Ted Olson: "McCain's a natural-born citizen."
TTT law prof (Duggin): "It's not that simple."
She's just trying to get some buzz. Unfortunately it worked and now she'll be encouraged, as will other TTT profs, to talk it up more. Bad form, WaPo.
If anyone wants to argue that people born on U.S. territory to parents on active duty in the U.S. military can't be president good luck.
Note also that the TTT law prof in question was a Williams & Connolly partner. From Dub-C to TTT.
Because Laurence Tribe and Ted Olson just can't be wrong about this. I agree that any argument against McCain being "natural born" won't get much traction, especially because he'll never win the general election, but it's still a mater ripe for debate. Oh, wait, debate isn't what happens in the comments, just ridicule and derision.
Hey, and speaking of bias (as the O'Bama culters do so often on ATL) feel free to use any other picture of Johnny Mac, or to start using equally recockulus pictures of Hillary and Barry.
"No man born of woman . . ."
Sorry, that's Macduff.
McCain's no "natural born" -- didn't he just appear in a burning bush or something?