Ted Cruz is Eligible to be President

Many have been deceived by Mr. Trump’s false allegations that Ted Cruz is not eligible to be President because he is not a “natural born Citizen.” Mr. Trump has even suggested that Mr. Cruz is an originalist except when it does not suit him, as in the case of being a natural-born citizen. Don’t be deceived by these falsehoods.

Article 2, Section 1, Clause 5 if the United States Constitution clearly states, “No Person except a natural born Citizen, …, shall be eligible to the Office of President.” But, as it does with so many other things, the Constitution does not define what a “natural born Citizen” is. It left it up to the Congress to pass laws and to define a natural born citizen.

The Constitution states that the Congress shall have power “To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.” Article 1, Section 8, Clause 18.

The Constitution goes on further to state, “This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; …, shall be the supreme Law of the Land;”.

It is clear from the text of the Constitution, that Congress has the authority to define the meaning of “natural born Citizen.”

The fact that the Founding Fathers believed that Congress had the authority to define what a “natural born Citizen” was, is seen in the first nationalization statute enacted by the First Congress.

In March 1790, the First Congress of the United States passed the first naturalization law. In it, Congress declared that “the children of citizens of the United States, that may be born beyond the sea, or out of the limits of the United States, shall be considered as natural born citizens.” 1 Stat. 104, Ch. 3, § 1 (1790).

So who were these members of Congress who defined natural born Citizens to include those children of citizens of the United States who are born outside the territorial limits of the US? None other than many of the Founding Fathers who were present at the Constitutional Convention and adopted that specific wording, to include James Madison, known as the Father of the Constitution; and it was signed into law by none other than George Washington, the President of the United States at the time and the former President of the Constitutional Convention!

Just a few years later, in 1795, Congress changed the naturalization act and removed the term “natural born” for children of US citizens when those children were born outside the territory of the United States. Again, many members of Congress at the time had been members of the Constitutional Convention and the new law was signed by George Washington as President of the United States. These acts by the Founding Fathers support the conclusion that Congress has the authority to determine the qualifications necessary to be considered a “natural born citizen” and that they considered, for at least the first few years under the Constitution, that persons born outside of the United States to US citizen parents, were natural born citizens.

Congress has declared that Mr. Cruz is a citizen of the United States at birth, and thus a natural born citizen. (If one wishes to make a distinction between “born” and “natural born” a whole new can of worms can be opened, based on the wild imaginations of fancy of many liberal pundits. For example, is someone born by C-Section not to be considered “natural born” because birth by C-Section is not the “natural” way to give birth to a child?) Congress currently defines a person as a citizen at birth if that person has one parent “who, prior to the birth of such person, was physically present in the United States or its outlying possessions for a period or periods totaling not less than five years, at least two of which were after attaining the age of fourteen years;” 8 USC § 1401(g). Mr. Cruz’s mother met those requirements when he was born. Therefore, Mr. Cruz satisfies the requirement of being a natural born citizen and thus is eligible to be President of the United States.

It has been the understanding of scholars for decades, if not since the Founding Era, that someone born outside of the United States, but to an American parent, is a natural born citizen of the United States and thus eligible to be President. George Romney, father of Mitt Romney, was born in Mexico to American parents and ran for President in 1968. John McCain who was born in Panama to American parents ran for President in 2008.

Mr. Cruz is eligible to be President of the United States. Whether you agree with his politics or not, your decision on who to vote for should not be based on the false argument that he is not eligible for the office. Do not fall for Mr. Trump’s trumped up allegations.

This entry was posted in Constitution. Bookmark the permalink.