Arizona House panel approves bill requiring presidential candidates to show birth certificates

[Emit]

PHOENIX (AP) — Nearly half of the Arizona Legislature wants to force President Barack Obama to show his birth certificate to state officials if he runs for re-election.

A state House committee on Tuesday approved the measure sponsored by 40 of the state's 90 legislators. It would require presidential candidates who want to appear on the ballot in Arizona to submit documents proving they meet the requirements to be president.

All 40 co-sponsors are Republicans, comprising 75 percent of the GOP caucus. Two of them have since resigned to run for Congress.

The idea was proposed by Skull Valley Republican Rep. Judy Burges. She says if people have to prove their citizenship to apply for a job or get a passport, they should have to prove it to run for president.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/sns-ap-us-president-birth-certificate,0,7211539.story

Also posted at The Huffington Post:

Arizona Goes 'Birther'? Nearly Half Of State Legislators Want To See Obama's Birth Certificate Before 2012 Run
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/24/arizona-goes-birther-near_n_474767.html

[atreides1]

1. How can this over ride the Constitutional requirement?

Any Constitutional savvy people out there?

[theoldman]

3. A state cannot override the US constitution.

Only an amendment to the constitution can change it. That is why this is a stupid idea. It would not surprise me if stupid Republicans in other states will attempt to do the same.

[Renew Deal]

4. A state can decide how to organize their elections and assign their electors

I don't know how they balance against each other in this case, but I think they can do this.

[MUAD_DIB]

7. Can they also require a writing aptitude test from Obama?

[sharesunited]

11. It does put their secretary of state in quite a bind, though, doesn't it?

Assuming it becomes state law...

If it prohibits the secretary of state from including a candidate's name on the ballot unless the requirement is complied with, then assistance from the federal courts will be required to strike this down.

[Renew Deal]

12. The NY State court put McCain on the ballot in NY in 2000 because the requirements are too

restrictive. So it's happened before.

[harkadog]

14. This has nothing to do with the Constitution

The states set up their own requirements for ballot access.

[Bill McBlueState]

6. what Constitutional requirement?

This doesn't override the requirement that one must be a natural-born citizen to run for President; it's a means of enforcing it.

I wholeheartedly encourage the Arizona legislature to pass this. It will be interesting to see what happens when the people of Arizona discover they're unable to vote for Obama.

[Winterblues]

8. Why on earth would people in Arizona be unable to vote for Obama?

Are you suggesting he is not qualified to be President. Maybe he wasn't born in the USA or something? :crazy:

[Bill McBlueState]

10. true, I don't see how that would actually come about

Presumably the Obama campaign would file whatever paperwork they need to file to get on the ballot. But keeping him off the ballot seems to be what the AZ legislature is aiming for -- I'm daring them to try.

[theoldman]

2. I agree that any person living in Arizona should show their birth certificate

when running for public office in that state. I believe this is already a requirement in most states.

[harkadog]

16. What state is it a requirement?

I have run for office three times in Illinois and never had to show any birth certificate. I am currently running in another state and I don't have to show a birth certificate.

[joeybee12]

5. Just a ploy to fire up their brain-dead base for the primaries! n/t

[FSogol]

9. +1 and increase their fund raising from the wingnuts. n/t

[Bitwit1234]

13. Just cause they do it "Doesn't make it so"

See how far that gets. I think what would be more appropriate is, for all governors of red states to take an IQ test.

[Alexander]

15. Teh stupid is strong in Arizona.

It's a place that is best viewed in the rearview mirror.

[WolverineDG]

17. I love the part where AZ gets to decide if a birth certificate from HI is valid

Hello, AZ, ever hear of "full faith & credit?"

dg

[jmowreader]

18. Just birther bullshit

There's going to be a serious Constitutional question if Arizona rejects Obama's Certificate of Live Birth, which is a legal document that can be used to prove citizenship in all cases where a birth certificate is needed. You know, "full faith and credit."

Actually...now that I think of it...I WANT a Constitutional challenge to it. Here's why: The president's COLB is a legal document produced by a state and states must accept legal documents from other states, right? So Obama presents his COLB, the Arizona board of elections rejects it, the president goes to the US Supreme Court arguing that AZ must accept it, and the US Supreme Court overturns the Arizona law on Full Faith and Credit grounds. Easy case. Next, GLSEN or PFLAG pays to move a gay couple who were legally married in Massachusetts to a state that doesn't recognize gay marriages performed in other states, then tries to do something that requires a marriage certificate. The state rejects it, the gay couple petitions the Supreme Court, and Obama v. Arizona is used as precedent to overturn every gay marriage ban in America.

And then the anti-gay people head to Laguna Niguel with a crate of live chickens and five gallons of roofing tar...