Kansas Birther Case Ends After Joe Montgomery Withdraws Objection to Obama On Ballot

[phantom power]

Seeing Montgomery immediately sent to the woodshed by public opinion (and the White House's fantastic response) makes me feel like the tide *might* be turning back toward sanity in this country. Although it still disturbs me that it was even a hypothetical possibility that this could have been taken seriously. As Digby has said before, the GOP base largely considers Democratic leadership illegitimate, and this kind of shit is how that plays out. It's not funny.

A Kansas man who filed an objection with the state to President Barack Obama appearing on the state's ballot, is withdrawing his objection.

Joe Montgomery's decision, which he communicated in an email to the secretary of state's office Friday afternoon, ends a process that caused the all-Republican Kansas Objections Board to vote unanimously Thursday to seek further information before making a decision on whether Obama could be on the ballot.

Montgomery told The Huffington Post Friday afternoon that public reaction to the complaint led him to decide against continuing. He declined to say exactly what was said in the calls and emails he received, but indicated that people who knew him both personally and professionally were also contacted about the complaint.

"I didn't file this objection with the desire to involve anyone else. This is me expressing myself on a personal political level," he said. "I would appreciate it if people would not call anyone associated with me, whether a personal or professional association."

Montgomery, who works at Kansas State University, filed the objection Monday, claiming Obama was not a "natural born citizen" because his father was a citizen of the United Kingdom and Kenya, and that U.S. citizenship is conferred "primarily" through the father. He also said that Obama has not shown "valid, certified documentary evidence" of being born in the United States.

Montgomery wanted to start a dialogue with his objection, he said. "I have not been successful in that objective," he told HuffPost. "Not in achieving a constructive dialogue."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/14/kansas-birther-case-obama-joe-montgomery_n_1884936.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003

[Skidmore]

1. I don't get why these people persist in ignoring the citizenship of his mother.

An American woman does not lose her citizenship when she marries a foreigner.

[phantom power]

2. Because they aren't engaging in a forward chain of reasoning

They are beginning with a feeling, which is: "I don't think Obama is a legitimate president, because (1) he's a Democrat and (2) he's a black Democrat", and they are latching onto any pseudo-reason available to retroactively justify their feelings.

[retread]

5. It has nothing to do with his citizenship. They need to change their dog whistle, this one

is audible to everyone!

[Loudly]

3. Good choice. Thanks Joe.

Your job is probably funded by programs which Romney Ryan oppose anyway.

http://www.ksdp.org/

[broiles]

4. Then neither is Romney whose father was born in Mexico.

By the way when did George become a US citizen?

[monmouth]

6. I think this was a joke, not sure, but earlier it was stated that the ptb threatened to take away

the State's electoral votes if POTUS was removed from their ballot. Again, not sure if it's true, but loved the thought.

[jberryhill]

7. The Obama thugs got to him

Now the birthers have another turncoat who betrayed them.

[msanthrope]

9. Orly Taitz is asking people in Kansas to call her, per her website.

Help is on the way.

[asjr]

8. I hope he doesn't teach at the university.

[kestrel91316]

10. It's not over. The Kansas Objections Board still has the case. They are ALL

Republicans. They will rule against Obama.

Just you watch.

[phantom power]

12. I wouldn't bet against you, sad to say

[kestrel91316]

16. But it's an instant win in Obama's favor when he sues over it.

Remember, he's not only got his certified birth record - he's got pull with the HI vital records officials who will be happy to testify as to the validity of the record any day, any time, any place, lol.

[liberalhistorian]

11. Unfortunately, his withdrawal is not the end of this

lunatic case; read the entire article. The Board still plans to meet on Monday to "further discuss" the case and to discuss and get to the bottom of this "unprecedented withdrawal" and whatever other fucking lunatic bullshit they can throw at Obama. They aren't dropping this just because the complainant withdrew.

The guy's "argument" is that Obama cannot be eligible for office under the constitution because both parents weren't born in the U.S., his father wasn't a citizen and, as he says, "in this country, citizenship is primarily through the father." Now, where the fuck he's getting this bullshit from I don't know, but it sure as fuck isn't from the constitution, which says absolutely nothing whatsoever about the parents of any potential presidential candidate, only the candidate him/herself.

Notice how they didn't start any of this parental citizenship bullshit until AFTER Obama's press conference producing his B.C. THEN, instead of hearing about how he wasn't born here, a lot of the birther nutballs started in on the citizenship of his parents and that the constitution requires both parent to have been born in the country. It's typical of conspiratoids, knock down their argument with logic, facts and reason, and they'll pay no attention, they'll simply come up with yet another angle on their bullshit arguments.

What's especially frightening is that the republican members of the board, the SOS, the AG, etc., are attorneys who should goddamn well know better about what the constitutional requirements actually are and that this idiot's arguments are complete nutball bullshit. In fact, of course they know better, they're just glomming onto it as a way to accomplish their purpose, get Obama off the ballot in Kansas or at least divert attention from the real issues and put stumbling blocks in the path of his campaign. What their arrogant power-hungry tiny little minds apparently cannot grasp, however, is how utterly and completely stupid this is making them and their state look to everyone else.

And they're apparently uninterested in the fact that Rmoney's father was born in Mexico, not the USA, which would, under their logic, make him also ineligible for office. But he's a rich white guy, so who cares?

[phantom power]

13. yes, well I'm sure they'll continue to research his concerns. it's quite concerning....

[liberalhistorian]

14. Oh, I'm not at all "concerned."

I'm actually laughing at this bullshit. It's those who live in Kansas with these so-called "leaders" who should be "concerned."

[UTUSN]

15. How does "constructive dialogue" proceed from a cockeyed premise?!1 n/t