Like Senator McCain, I am an American citizen born overseas to American citizens. As a result, I'm deeply and personally interested in the latest furor over whether McCain's birth in the Canal Zone disqualifies him from running for the US presidency. All my life, I've been told that because I was born in Germany I was a kind of "second class citizen," unable to even consider running for President.
Unlike McCain, whose father was in the military, my father was an American diplomat. Thus, I must admit that I'm not sure what to think about Senate bill S.2678, introduced yesterday in the US Senate by Claire McCaskill (D-MO). The bill is entitled: "A bill to clarify the law and ensure that children born to United States citizens while serving overseas in the military are eligible to become President." Of course, my question is: What about the kids of US Diplomats? What about the kids of folk that worked for Agriculture, Customs, FAA, CIA, or any of the many other US agencies? Are we somehow less worthy, less American, less good than the military kids? In fact, what about the kids born to US citizens who weren't working for the government at all? (Does the fact that one's parents worked overseas or had an unexpected birth while on vacation in the Carribean make one less of an American?)
I strongly encourage Congress to finally resolve the long standing debate over the quality of citizenship experienced by American kids born overseas. However, I feel it will be insulting and counter-productive if only the children of military families are to have their status clarified.
bob wyman
This isn't really at question. US Law makes the child of two US citizens a US citizen as long as one of them has ever resided in the USA at any time. If one citizen is a parent, then that one must have resided for 5 years in the US at least two after the age of 14.
The courts have made numerous rulings about citizenship over the years, and have defined two and only two types of citizen: naturalized and born. They have never defined natural born but have used the term interchangeably with born.
The only distinction between born in the USA and born overseas is that the 14th amendment controls born in the USA and thus no restrictions exist on it, while they do impose conditions on born citizenship overseas, for example, one parent must have resided in the US.
Until a court rules no one knows if you are eligible to be President, but there is no precedent whatever to say you aren't.
Posted by: Phil | March 18, 2009 at 02:08