Status report: The eligibility issue

More than a dozen lawsuits have been filed over Barack Obama’s eligibility to assume the office of the president, many have been dismissed, while others remain pending, including a case being considered by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The cases have, in various ways, alleged Obama does not meet the “natural-born citizen” clause of the U.S. Constitution, Article 2, Section 1, which reads, “No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President.”

Where’s the proof Barack Obama was born in the U.S. or that he fulfills the “natural-born American” clause in the Constitution? If you still want to see it, sign up now!

Some of the legal challenges have alleged that Obama was not born in Hawaii, as he insists, but was born in Kenya. Obama’s American mother, those suits contend, was too young at the time of his birth to confer American citizenship to her son under the law at the time, meaning a Kenyan birth not only disqualifies Obama from being a “natural-born citizen,” it may also mean he’s not currently an American citizen at all.

Other challenges have focused on Obama’s citizenship through his father, a Kenyan subject to the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom at the time of his birth, thus making him a dual citizen. Such cases contend the framers of the Constitution excluded dual citizens from qualifying as natural-born.

Several details of Obama’s past have added twists to the question of Obama’s eligibility and citizenship, including his family’s move to Indonesia when he was a child, on what nation’s passport he traveled to Pakistan in the ’80s and conflicting reports from Obama’s family about his place of birth.

Perhaps the most perplexing detail, however, has been Obama’s own refusal to allow the public release of a signed, “vault” copy of his original birth certificate.

A partial listing and status update for several of the cases surrounding Obama’s eligibility to serve as president is below:

• Philip J. Berg, a Pennsylvania Democrat, demanded that the courts verify Obama’s original birth certificate and other documents proving his American citizenship. Berg’s latest appeal, requesting an injunction to stop the Electoral College from selecting the 44th president, was denied by Justice Souter of the U.S. Supreme Court.
• Leo Donofrio of New Jersey filed a lawsuit claiming Obama’s dual citizenship disqualified him from serving as president. His case was considered in conference by the U.S. Supreme Court but denied a full hearing.
• Cort Wrotnowski filed suit against Connecticut’s secretary of state, making a similar argument to Donofrio. His case is currently being considered in conference by the U.S. Supreme Court, with a decision on whether or not to bring it for a full hearing expected next week.
• Former presidential candidate Alan Keyes headlines a list of people filing a suit in California that asks the secretary of state to refuse to allow the state’s 55 Electoral College votes to be cast in the 2008 presidential election until Obama verifies his eligibility to hold the office. The case is pending, and lawyers are seeking the public’s support.
• Chicago attorney Andy Martin sought legal action requiring Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle to release Obama’s vital statistics record. The case was dismissed by Hawaii Circuit Court Judge Bert Ayabe.
• Lt. Col. Donald Sullivan sought a temporary restraining order to stop the Electoral College vote in North Carolina until Barack Obama’s eligibility could be confirmed, alleging doubt about Obama’s citizenship. His case was denied.
• In Ohio, David M. Neal sued to force the secretary of state to request documents from the Federal Elections Commission, the Democratic National Committee, the Ohio Democratic Party and Obama to show the presidential candidate was born in Hawaii. The case was denied.
• In Washington state, Steven Marquis sued the secretary of state seeking a determination on Obama’s citizenship. The case was denied.
• In Georgia, Rev. Tom Terry asked the state Supreme Court to authenticate Obama’s birth certificate. His request for an injuction against Georgia’s secretary of state was denied by Georgia Superior Court Judge Jerry W. Baxter.

Despite numerous setbacks in the courts and several conflicting statements on who has standing to determine a candidate’s eligibility to be elected president, the challenges continue.

Private investigator Douglas Hagmann of HomelandSecurityUS.com reported earlier this week that he found 13 cases challenging Obama’s eligibility still active or semi-active.

Last month, WND reported the worries over a “constitutional crisis” that could be looming over the issue of Obama’s citizenship.

“Should Senator Obama be discovered, after he takes office, to be ineligible for the Office of President of the United States of America and, thereby, his election declared void,” argues the Alan Keyes case pending in California, “Americans will suffer irreparable harm in that (a) usurper will be sitting as the President of the United States, and none of the treaties, laws, or executive orders signed by him will be valid or legal.”

With such high stakes potentially at risk, WND earlier launched a letter campaign to contact Electoral College members and urge them to review the controversy.

That followed a campaign that sent more than 60,000 letters by overnight delivery to the U.S. Supreme Court when one case contesting Obama’s eligibility for the Oval Office was pending.

A separate petition also is ongoing asking authorities in the election to seek proof Obama was born in the U.S. or that he fulfills the “natural-born American” clause in the Constitution.

Drew Zahn

Drew Zahn covers movies for WND as a contributing writer. A former pastor, he is the editor of seven books, including Movie-Based Illustrations for Preaching & Teaching, which sparked his ongoing love affair with film and his weekly WND column, "Popcorn and a (world)view." Drew currently serves as communications director for The Family Leader. Read more of Drew Zahn's articles here.