As Trump’s chances of winning the Republican nomination on the first round grow ever slimmer, My Guy’s (Cruz’s) chances are looking better and better. With Rubio out of the picture, Cruz has been trouncing Trump. The Not Trump movement may actually pull it off.
Unfortunately, My Guy does not meet the constitutional requirement (Article II) of being a “natural born Citizen” of the USA to be President. Of course, that shouldn’t be a problem unless Trump’s lawyers make it one.
Seven years ago, I pointed out that Obama is not a “natural born Citizen” either and the requirement was not enforced upon him so I think My Guy will get a pass too.
I have to admit that seven years ago I was mistaken as to the meaning of “natural born Citizen” believing, mistakenly, that the founders adopted the English practice of assigning nationality based on the allegiance of the father. I now know better.
To assist with finding the correct legal terms, Ben Franklin brought to the constitutional congress a copy of the book Law Of Nations by Emer de Vattel which says, in Section 212: “Natural born citizens, are those born in the country, of parents who are citizens.” That’s it. Two citizen parents at the time of birth (jus sanguinis in Latin, “of the blood”), in the country of the parents’ citizenship (jus soli in Latin, “of the land”).
For constitutional purposes, that means born in the USA to parents who are both U.S. citizens.
In a letter written in 1775 by Ben Franklin to Charles Dumas (Dumas had provided three copies of Law of Nations to Franklin) Ben thanked him and told him, “…the circumstances of a rising state make it necessary frequently to consult the law of nations. Accordingly that copy, which I kept, has been continually in the hands of the members of our Congress, now sitting…” The letter is in the National Archives.
The Term “natural born Citizen” is used only once in the Constitution, as opposed to “citizen” used in numerous places. In fact, in the entirety of U.S. Law, “natural born Citizen” appears in only one place — as a requirement to hold the position of President Of The United States.
There is good reason to believe that, in the context of the Constitution, the term’s meaning is that from Law Of Nations, with which the Founders were certainly familiar.
Certainly, “natural born” has some meaning setting natural born citizens apart from other citizens, but you’d never know it given the way the requirement is ignored.
Were Obama’s eligibility to be president ever challenged in court, it wouldn’t get far as it could lead to a genuine constitutional crisis. So the courts will continue ignoring those parts of the Constitution they find inconvenient.