Hmmm
Senator John McCain, in addition to being a liar, panderer, cheat and moral vacuum, apparently has a problem with eligibility.
Hailing, as he does, from the great state of Panama Canal Zone, there is some genuine concern as to whether or not McCain can legally run for president. The law, for reasons that apparently remain obscure, states that only “natural-born” citizens of the US may become president. To me, the phrase “natural-born” is vague in the extreme. Does it mean that only Americans born on US soil can become president, or does it mean that only citizens who have received a “natural birth” may become president? Is it foreigners who are being kept from achieving the highest office in the land, or babies delivered by caesarian section? Were the founding fathers concerned about Hessians taking over the white house, or McDuff, from his mother’s womb untimely ripp’d?
The media likes McCain, for some reason, and I’m guessing he will be allowed to run for president because there’s enough gray area in the law to make people say “well, the Panama Canal Zone, on a US military base, it’s practically the same thing, why are you splitting hairs?”
My theory: the GOP has already wadded up this election and hung it out to dry, they know McCain doesn’t stand a snowball’s chance, and they’re using his quasi-legal candidacy to create precedent for Schwarzeneggar to run in 2012. You read it here first.
He can run, he just can’t win. Although, with the current Supreme Court, I doubt that they would prevent him from taking office if elected (or even if not, ahem).
Eh, He’ll deal with the law later…
He’ll run in Ohio, deal with any legal challenges to qualifying to be on the ballot there later; eschew federal matching funds, deal with FEC challenges later; and he’ll fun in the general, deal w/the “natural born” legal problem later…heh, and Ted Olsen his lawyer on it? Ugh, here we go again.
It’s a total non-issue. There are two ways to be a “natural-born” US citizen: one is to be born on US soil, and the other one is for your parents to be US citizens anywhere in the world. This definition of “natural-born” dates back to the very first Congress. McCain’s parents were a military family living on a US military base, and there’s no way he wouldn’t be considered a “natural-born” US citizen.
What makes me think this meme is being circulated by disgruntled Romney and Huckabee supporters, grasping at any straw that would rid them of this dud of a candidate?
As far as I’m concerned, if David Byrne can’t be president, John McCain can’t either.
Hell, Byrne can’t even vote – he’s never become a US citizen, though he came here when he was like 9 or something.
Well, they have both told themselves “this is not my beautiful wife”…
I was thinking of Schwarzeneggar running when I heard about this story a couple of days ago. It’s funny because The Simpsons actually thought of it first.
You know our country is F#@$#% up when cartoons start to predict the future.
From wiki:
The requirements for citizenship and the very definition thereof have changed since the Constitution was ratified in 1788. Congress first extended citizenship to children born to U.S. parents overseas on March 26, 1790, under the first naturalization law: “And the children of citizens of the United States that may be born beyond sea, or outside the limits of the United States, shall be considered as natural born citizens.”
This is off topic but I didn’t know where to post it. I just re-watched Hot Fuzz and fell in love with the movie all over again. I was wondering what you, as a screenwriter, thought of the Edgar Wright/Simon Pegg movies like the aforementioned action movie homage and Shaun of the Dead. The thing that’s struck me and now I’m pretty obsessed with is the fact that not a single prop or line is throwaway. Everything is paralleled in the second half from the first half but it’s a mirror twin. Things that you think are just minor one note jokes actually get called back and makes it funnier. I also think they’re rather brilliant in their plotting.
So anyway, how about your professional opinion?
I enjoyed Shaun quite a bit, although I haven’t seen it since it came out. I thought it did a great job of being both very funny and very scary, and it was great to see a zombie movie with a happy, even sweet, ending.
Hot Fuzz got by me and I haven’t yet corrected that error.
Doesn’t this sound a little the end of the presidential storyline last season’s Frisky Dingo?
The only seemingly similar situations that spring to mind are secretaries of state that were cut out of the emergency succession plan, Henry Kissinger and Madeline Albright, but they were naturalized citizens, where McCain has never been anything other than an American citizen.
It seems unlikely this will be a problem for McCain, but it would be incredibly funny if this wound up being the reason Huckabee wound up being the GOP nominee.
Anything that makes Huckabee the GOP candidate is fine by me.
No way the Republicans are setting up Schwarzenegger for the prize. The Governator is far to the left of the average non-East or West cost Democrat.
McCain’s candidacy is perfectly legitimate, if not ideal.
The weird thing about a Schwarzeneggar candidacy (not this time around, but 2012) is that the GOP would stand a real chance of reclaiming their status as a centrist party instead of a bunch of far-right radicals stealing everyone’s money.
Wow, you really hate Republicans.
Schwarzenegger could only be called a centrist in California or certain parts of New England. Everywhere else, a lefty.
I’ve thought that for the length of the Arnold’s political career; but then, he’s so full of steroids hewill die in office and
I’ve thought that for all the years the gubenator’s been in office.
What do you think of Ralph Nader and Matt Gonzales’ everso late entry into the fray?????
That’s some feminist, who calls other women frigid bitches when they don’t behave as she thinks they should.