William Hughes

“If we would learn what the human race really is...we need only observe it at election time.” - Mark Twain

Maybe, it’s the Joe Lieberman effect! He’s in, he’s out, he’s back in the Democratic Party fold again. It is all so confusing. So is the fact that the Philadelphia Phillies, finally, won the World Series this year and the massive financial meltdown by the banksters on Wall Street! Who can know for sure? Here’s what the record shows: Alan Keyes, a perennial candidate for public office in a number of states, including Maryland, has recently filed a law suit in Sacramento, CA. It seeks to stop that state from casting its “electoral votes” for Prez-Elect Barack Obama, until he proves that he is a “natural born” citizen of the U.S. Sounds like a sore loser to me. Mr. Keyes, as a Republican, ran against the Prez-Elect for the U.S. Senate seat in Illinois, in 2004. Sen. Obama gave him a good thumping by getting over 63 percent of the vote. Is Mr. Keyes looking to get some sweet revenge by filing this case?

The evidence is compelling that the Prez-Elect was born in the Kapi’olani Medical Center for Women and Children, in Honolulu, Hawaii, on Aug. 4, 1961. Hawaii was a state at that time. Sen. Obama’s mother, Ann Dunham, who died in 1995, was an American by birth. She hailed from Wichita, Kansas. His dad, Barack Obama, Sr., was from Kenya. His parents divorced in 1964. In 1967, the Prez-Elect then moved to Indonesia with his stepfather, Lolo Soetoro and his mother. In 1971, he returned to Hawaii, to live with his grandparents, Madelyn and Stanley Dunham, who for all practical purposes, raised him. Obama’s father died in 1982. (1)

Thanks to a neutral web site, FactCheck.org., for shining some light on the birth certificate controversy. (2) It has made a copy of Sen. Obama’s birth certificate, (Certification of Live Birth), that is in the possession of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), and reproduced it on line. FactCheck also produced an item from the “Honolulu Register” newspaper, dated, August 13, 1961. It shows the birth of “a son” to Mr. and Mrs. Barack H. Obama, on Aug. 4, 1961. It even gives the parents’ home address. FactCheck also underscores that the officials in Honolulu responsible for maintaining birth records at the Health Department have seen the original birth certificate and “verified” that it is a valid document. (2) Such evidence is, indeed, cumulative and very persuasive. You would think it would have silenced the critics, but it hasn’t.

Background: The original lawsuit that started this brouhaha was filed in a federal court in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in August, 2008. It charged that Sen. Obama wasn’t eligible to be president, since he was “born in Kenya.” The U.S. Constitution mandates that only a “natural born citizen” of this country is qualified for that office, (Art. 2, Sec. 1). The defendants named in that case were Sen. Obama and the National Democratic Committee (DNC), among others. The trial judge, on Oct. 25, 2008, dismissed the suit saying that the plaintiff, Philip H. Berg, didn’t have “standing to sue.” Mr. Berg immediately appealed the judge’s decision to the Supreme Court, where his Petition for a Writ of Certiorari was recently denied by Justice David Souter, on Nov. 3, 2008. (3)

I think any Plaintiff, Mr. Keyes or Mr. Berg, is going to have a long, legal road to travel in this kind of case based on what I’ve read. As I write, however, the legal action over it has reportedly attracted millions of hits to various internet sites. You would think that the fastest way to finally resolve any doubts was for the DNC to produce to the court a certified copy of Sen. Obama’s original birth certificate, under affidavit, and under seal, from Hawaii. Did the DNC do that? No, it didn’t. It filed a motion to get the federal case tossed out, without it having been decided on the merits. Its strategy worked, but is that result good for the Prez-Elect?

Mr. Berg, the plaintiff in the Philadelphia litigation, is a former Deputy Attorney General for Pennsylvania. (3) The birth certificate dispute will now bounce along in the court system, both state and federal. Suits have been filed in twelve other state and federal courts by various plaintiffs throughout the country. More importantly, this matter will also drag on in the Court of Public Opinion. Shouldn’t this issue be laid to rest before the inauguration, set for Jan. 20, 2009?

If the DNC had produced a copy of the certified birth certificate, the Philadelphia federal court case would have become a legal “slam dunk.” (Pardon my use of that expression, ex-CIA Boss, George Tenet!) The DNC’s failure to do so has heated up the Internet and has some folks screaming wild things, such as: Obama’s name should be taken off the ballot in all fifty states!

What exactly are the critics claiming? They are alleging that the “Certification of Live Birth” posted on the Web, now on two different sites, is a fake, and not the real McCoy. (3) (4) (5)

On the “Certification of Live Birth” posted on Sen. Obama’s site, (6) and FactCheck, (2), Obama’s father’s race is shown as “African.” African isn’t a race. Obama’s mother is listed as “Caucasian,” since she was of the White race. The “African” designation for Obama’s father made that certificate questionable in the eyes of some naysayers. (4) (5) But, FactCheck’s explanation makes more sense. It says that the Department of Health officials by tradition have left it up to the parents of a newborn child to “identify” their respective races. (2)

Others on the Net are claiming, that the online document produced on Sen. Obama’s site is a creature of “Photoshop!” They use the term: “photoshopped.” They also insist that a “Certification of Live Birth” isn’t an “official” birth certificate. (4) (5) Many of the questions raised by these critics have been answered, in detail, by FactCheck. (2)

FactCheck underscores that a “Certification of Live Birth,” is the “short form” used by the state of Hawaii’s Health Department. It added: “The long form is drawn up by the hospital and includes additional information such as birth weight and parents’ hometowns...Hawaii...does not give the option to request a photocopy of your long-form birth certificate, but their short form has enough information [in it] to be acceptable to the [U.S.] State Department.” (2)

The crux of the matter, however, is the authenticity of the original birth certificate of Sen. Obama, which sooner or later, must be submitted either to a court of law and/or in the Court of Public Opinion. Sen. Obama online “Certification of Live Birth” hasn’t, unfortunately, resolved the dispute, it has only intensified it.

This brouhaha can be over in a New York minute. The longer the DNC delays coming up with Sen. Obama’s original “Birth Certificate,” the more questions are going to be raised. One web site, which is supportive of the Philadelphia lawsuit, has over one million, four hundred thousand hits. Go check it out for yourselves. (4) Mr. Berg claims millions of hit on his site. (3)

Sen. Obama is on track to be the 44th president of the U.S. Mr. Berg wants to see a certified copy of his “original” birth certificate. I think the facts shows that the Prez-Elect is “eligible.” Isn’t it in his best interest to set the record straight?

Suggested compromise: The DNC should submit to a judge, in one of the pending cases, preferably in the federal system--a State-of-Hawaii approved, legally sanctioned copy of the “original” long form birth certificate of Sen. Obama. The judge should then answer this question: “Is this birth certificate valid or not?” I believe the answer will be a resounding “Yes!” Case closed! (7)

Notes:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama#Early_life_and_career
2. http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/born_in_the_usa.html
3. http://www.obamacrimes.com/
4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyspCRmJv7w
5. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIsQJNTvlUE&feature=related and http://lamecherry.blogspot.com/2008/08/proof-barack-obama-birth-certificate-is.html
6. http://fightthesmears.com/articles/5/birthcertificate
7. At press time, a case out of New Jersey, that questions “Barack Obama’s citizenship,” has been scheduled for a “conference” at the U.S. Supreme Court. See, http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=81484

©2008, William Hughes, All Rights Reserved.

William Hughes’ videos can be found at: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=liamh2. His latest book, “Saying ‘No’ to the War Party,” is available on Amazon. Email Contact: liamhughes@comcast.net.