State bill to force candidates to prove eligibility!
AUSTIN, Texas (PNN) - August 3, 2009 - Six Texas congressmen are in the middle of a summertime political tempest sweeping the nation's capital over legislation to require future presidential candidates to show birth certificates to prove they are natural born citizens of the United States and therefore eligible to serve as president.
The effort by the lawmakers, including Houston-area Reps. Ted Poe (R-Humble) and John Culberson (R-Houston), stems from a movement mounted by growing numbers of lawyers, educators and academicians, high-ranking military officers, even government officials, who legitimately question whether Barack Obama is constitutionally eligible to be President of the United States.
The Constitution stipulates that “no person except a natural born citizen” shall be eligible to serve as president. The Presidential Eligibility Act proposed in March by Rep. Bill Posey (R-Fla.) would require campaign committees to submit a copy of the candidate's birth certificate to the Federal Election Commission with other documentation as necessary to prove eligibility.
Poe, a former prosecutor and criminal court judge, says, “To ensure that we eliminate future debates and adhere to the Constitution, we simply should do what Little Leagues all across our country do and require that birth certificates be provided at the time of registration.”
Culberson says any candidate seeking federal elective office “should be required to prove that (he or she meets) the requirements laid out in our Constitution.”
Other former candidates have faced similar questions, including Republican presidential nominee John McCain, who was born in the Panama Canal Zone in 1936.
The effort by the lawmakers, including Houston-area Reps. Ted Poe (R-Humble) and John Culberson (R-Houston), stems from a movement mounted by growing numbers of lawyers, educators and academicians, high-ranking military officers, even government officials, who legitimately question whether Barack Obama is constitutionally eligible to be President of the United States.
The Constitution stipulates that “no person except a natural born citizen” shall be eligible to serve as president. The Presidential Eligibility Act proposed in March by Rep. Bill Posey (R-Fla.) would require campaign committees to submit a copy of the candidate's birth certificate to the Federal Election Commission with other documentation as necessary to prove eligibility.
Poe, a former prosecutor and criminal court judge, says, “To ensure that we eliminate future debates and adhere to the Constitution, we simply should do what Little Leagues all across our country do and require that birth certificates be provided at the time of registration.”
Culberson says any candidate seeking federal elective office “should be required to prove that (he or she meets) the requirements laid out in our Constitution.”
Other former candidates have faced similar questions, including Republican presidential nominee John McCain, who was born in the Panama Canal Zone in 1936.
