Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion

Mr. Jacobson, surely you realize there is more to the natural born citizenship issue than just the Hawaii birth certificate. There are a great many of us "birthers" who are not conspiracy theorists, but are concerned citizens, attorneys and Constitutional scholars, who feel that although Obama may be a US citizen, the fact that his father was a Kenyan citizen and British subject, which gave Obama Jr. British citizenship at his birth (even according to Obama's own Fight the Smears campaign website)---this "dual citizenship" precludes "natural born" citizenship as required by the Constitution.

I refer you to Mr. Mario Apuzzo's blog for further scholarly reading on the subject. Since you are a Professor of Law, I assume you will find this interesting: http://puzo1.blogspot.com/

By the way, Mr. Apuzzo and his lead plaintiff, Charles Kerchner, were the ones responsible for this latest ad in the Washington Times National Weekly, which seems to have created quite a stir: http://www.scribd.com/doc/23299370/Obama-s-Lack-of-Constitutional-Eligibility-The-3-Enablers-20091130-Issue-Wash-Times-Natl-Wkly-pg-9

I also refer you to another attorney's blog, who has focused on requesting states' attorney generals to investigate the lack of eligibility verification of the candidates and possible election fraud: http://jbjd.wordpress.com/

I wish that any reporter would have "fact-checked" Obama with the same vehemence as they did Sarah Palin. Then perhaps we wouldn't find ourselves today continually trying to fight the damage the Democrats have been wreaking. Their credibility would have been greatly undermined--well before the election.

I have often stated that this issue of the eligibility of the President is really a far more pressing issue than even the Health Care Reform, because of its symbolism. We can argue the Constitutionality of much of the legislation being passed or considered by this Congress, or even of the actions and appointments of this administration, but if the very legitimacy and Constitutionality of the highest office of the land is in question, and any attempts to investigate or question or ask the courts for an interpretation of the Constitutional phrase are merely dismissed as "right wing conspiracy theories", then we are in a very sad state indeed.

When I see an article like Ellen Goodman's recent "An Old-Fashioned Fact Checker" where she dismisses birthers, Beck, death panels, jail time for not buying health insurance, etc., as having been fact-checked and proven wrong, I have to question her motives. For example, the "jail time" issue is real. I fact-checked that one myself. I challenge anyone to show that the "birther" issue has been "fact-checked" by anyone in the media. And sorry, but an online birth certificate examined by two employees of Factcheck.org (Jess Henig, whose credentials are an M.A. in English Literature, and Joe Miller, with a Ph. D. in Political Philosophy) and no one else, and the fact that still to this day, no one can tell us exactly where in Hawaii "to put the plaque" commemorating the birthplace of our 44th President, doesn't count as fact-checking. Neither does saying that all the "birther" cases have been thrown out of courts on the merits. Because to this day, not one single one has. No one has proven a thing.

Robert Bauer of Perkins Coie -- top lawyer for Obama, Obama's presidential campaign, the Democratic National Committee and Obama's Organizing for America -- is the same Washington, D.C., lawyer defending Obama in lawsuits challenging his eligibility to be president. Perkins has been paid over $1million to date for its services. And now Robert Bauer is White House counsel. Interesting?

That does make some weird kind of sense.

Right, a baby's birth certificate is a fair trade for proof that the president of the United States does/does not meet the Constitutional requirements to hold his office.

Maybe we could get a pre-K class to donate a week's crayon drawings in exchange for the raw station data that the East Anglia CRU used in their global warming models.

I'd pay good money to see that, yes I would. Pass the popcorn.

I have said all along that if the Clinton Machine couldn't find anything on it, there was nothing to find, but it does continue to astound me that the man sealed all his records.

It was probably just to hide his very mediocre IQ/college records and scores, but still, I can see how it does give ammunition to conspiracy theorists.

So...

It's okay for our Treasury Secretary to not pay his taxes for several years. He can still be Treasury Secretary, in charge of the IRS.

Like it's okay if our President isn't Constitutionally eligible.

Its only the Law. The original Constitution is only 4 pages long. Article 2 is only a about a page long. Following simple provisions like this aren't important anymore.

Nobody cares.

Like lying isn't a bad thing, as long as nobody finds out. And breaking the law doesn't matter, especially if no one seems to care. It depends on what the definition of "is" is anyway.

Some laws are more important than others. Popular opinion decides which ones those are. Lady Justice is no longer blind, she's just hip and part of the "in crowd".

Let's just keep trying to stick some more bandaids on the 2000 page Health Care Reform. Make sure our Senators keep fighting for our own state's and communities earmarks, so we get our fair share. That's what's important.

Got it.

If actions speak louder than words, then alarms should have been howling in fire stations around the nation the minute the President sealed his records. He effectively killed off openess in government when his own was in infancy.

Quite Rightly is quite right about the ridiculous juxtaposition of Trig and Obama and the birth certficate debacle. Further, the location of Trig's birth certificate is generally known. Alaskans don't have time to mess with an issue like that. They are too busy trying to wrest a living from an unforgiving climate.

"I have said all along that if the Clinton Machine couldn't find anything on it, there was nothing to find, but it does continue to astound me that the man sealed all his records."

Interesting point, Miss Tammy. I'm no RW conspiracy "birther" but... I believe the "Clinton Machine" knows full well about Obama's ineligibility. And they have as much as said so.... when Hillary alerted "he can't win" back in 2008.

She thought McCain would have taken up the gauntlet....

The DNC (or the Obama machine) is holding something over the Clinton's heads. I don't know what. But something.... awful.

Everyone else, including Johnny Mac, is just too danged afraid of being called "Racist." Or maybe they all just fear for the racial strife any kind of Obama revelation could incite??

All of these hidden records that no one will call out are beyond mind-boggling. Fact is... we know very little about the man who we now call President. We can't see his college records, for Christ's sake. What's with that?

SYD

As we contemplate the “smoking gun” that is Climategate I find it strange that Professor Jacobson can be so dismissive of the suspicions which BHO’s refusal to publish his full birth information arouses in reasonable people, especially as this is just one of many lacunae in his record, exempli gratia, the records of his time at Occidental, Columbia and Harvard, the passport he used when visiting Pakistan, etc. (see below)

The “cranks” and “kooks” of AWG “denialism” don’t look at all cranky nor the slightest bit kooky as it is now apparent that their wildest accusations concerning Algoreism turn out to be plain statements of fact: data has been drastically manipulated, a conspiracy existed to suppress the truth, the climate alarmists’ codes are contaminated, the science is not settled in the slightest, the peer-review system was corrupted to its core, the “deniers” were smeared and hounded and “quarantined” by the catastrophists to protect their activist agenda….

The lesson: simply because something seems grotesque, unprecedented, bizarre and unbelievable – as Birtherism appears to be – does not mean it is not true! Proof is required. Disdain, contempt and mockery sans proof will not answer anymore.

Here is the sorry tale of the President's obfuscation:

Obama/Dunham marriage license — Not released
Vault Birth Certificate (Long Form) — Not released
Obama/Dunham divorce — Released (by independent investigators)
Soetoro/Dunham marriage license — Not released
Soetoro adoption records — Not released
Indonesian School records — Not released
Punahou School records — Not released
Soetoro/Dunham divorce — Released (by independent investigators)
Soetero/Obama name change documentation – Not released
Selective Service Registration — Released — authenticity questioned
Occidental College records — Not released
Passport records — Not released
Columbia College records — Not released
Columbia thesis — “Soviet Nuclear Disarmament” — Not released
Harvard College records — Not released
Harvard Law Review articles — None
Illinois Bar Records — Not released
Baptism certificate — None
Medical records — Not released
Law practice client list — Not released
University of Chicago scholarly articles — None
Annenberg Challenge Board Minutes — None
Illinois State Senate records — None
Illinois State Senate schedule — Lost

I can only repeat the silliness/seriousness of the Ramos revelation about Senator Max Baucus D-Mt by quoting myself in a recent blogpost. In another part of the forest I had read that the whole Climate change debacle had threatened the very validity of science and the scientific method. Senator Baucus has come out as being on the fence against change - the BIG change in health care in the Senate Bill (the public health care portion). So here is what I think about that bill Senator Baucus:

Many think that science itself will be the victim (quite a change) of this climate change debacle. Nonsense. Overreaction. Call my press agent. I have that scientific je ne sais quoi that has made me prepared to go to the top of the US Capitol building and drop a ball and a copy of the Senate Health Reform Bill off the dome to see which lands first.

Legions of thinking people - loyal citizens called Conservative stand with you in your questioning Senator Baucus. But I hope you will join me in dropping that damnable piece of looney legislation from the capital dome. As Churchill said: Never, never, never give up. We Conservatives never do. I fully understand your on-the-fence status. I myself am an independent with Conservative leanings that become straight up when it comes to the ruse of Health Care Reform 2009.

Since Sarah Palin is considered (by the DNC) to be a know-nothing, unintelligent hick, why all the press and blog space about her... her book tour, her family, and her child's birth certificate?

Of course the mere mention of 'Palin' in an article guarantees huge increases in page hits, which is a business decision.

I had 7 children, no one ever asked to see their birth certificate without a good reason such as joining the military or getting a passport.

I feel terribly slighted. [/sarc]

Stray Dawg, haling as I do from the great state of Arkansas, I can ASSURE you that the Clintons would not have left it to anyone else to destroy their main opponent, least of all McCain, whom Hillary knows to be as much of a gentleman as can be had in Washington these days.

Another thing that has crossed my mind is that perhaps no one in the Clinton camp thought to even question Obama's birth certificate, but surely this all started up during the primaries? I didn't pay much attention to all this during the campaign.

The similarities are uncanny:

“The science is settled, but we won’t release the raw data for independent verification. Anyone who disagree’s is a denier!”

“The issue is settled, but we won’t release the raw data for independent verification. Anyone who disagree’s is a birther!”

Is Trig running for President?

Conservatarian. Trig running for POTUS? Not a chance.

Now, if were a arguably Black community organizer (whatever that is) from Chicago with no track record, able to read from a teleprompter with no discernable record of accomplishment--then there would be a good chance.