Proposed law would require proof
of future White House candidates

Posted: July 03, 2009
By Bob Unruh
© 2009 WorldNetDaily

U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, a Tennessee Republican, has become the sixth co-sponsor of a proposal by Rep. Bill Posey, R-Fla., that would require documentation of eligibility from presidential candidates.

She has joined Reps. John Campbell, R-Calif.; John R. Carter, R-Texas; John Culberson, R-Texas; Bob Goodlatte, R-Va.; and Randy Neugebauer, R-Texas, in support Posey's H.R. 1503 plan.

The bill's provisions are simple:

"To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to require the principal campaign committee of a candidate for election to the office of President to include with the committee's statement of organization a copy of the candidate's birth certificate, together with such other documentation as may be necessary to establish that the candidate meets the qualifications for eligibility to the Office of President under the Constitution."

It also provides:

"Congress finds that under section 1 of article II of the Constitution of the United States, in order to be eligible to serve as President, an individual must be a natural born citizen of the United States who has attained the age of 35 years and has been a resident within the United States for at least 14 years."

The sponsors' goal is to have the bill become effective for the 2012 presidential election, and it now is pending in a committee of the U.S. House of Representatives.

participant at a forum on a political website noted "average citizens have to have a copy of our birth certificate just to apply for a passport, but the president of the United States doesn't have to show theirs??? This doesn't make sense at all."

Besides the support that is growing in the U.S. House, Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., says he's in favor of both state and federal demands that future presidential candidates have a formal procedure to document their qualifications.

"The bill requires any federal candidates' campaign committee filing with the Federal Election Commission to produce a copy of the candidate's birth certificate," Coburn wrote. "If the bill makes it to the Senate, I will likely support it."

Is there such a thing as an ethical member of Congress? Find out in Sen. Tom Coburn's "Breach of Trust: How Washington Turns Outsiders into Insiders"

WND earlier reported when Posey talked about his idea on a radio program..

"The last election is over," Posey said in the interview. "I don't think that outcome is going to change. Personally, I think it's futile to go there, but looking toward the future I think it would be reckless if we do not do everything we could to eliminate problems like that in the future. And that's why I filed the bill."

His comments came on the Andrea Shea King Show.

"I don't think a Supreme Court would remove a president from office if they heard the case. But ... we should make a good faith effort to make sure that things in the future are as they should be," he said.

The question that prompted the legislative effort now also is being raised on billboards nationwide.

permanent link