Hawaii reasserts Obama natural born citizen

State officials say they've checked and confirmed the birth records

The Associated Press

HONOLULU - State officials in Hawaii on Monday said they have once again checked and confirmed that President Barack Obama was born in Hawaii and is a natural-born American citizen, and therefore meets a key constitutional requirement for being president.

Health Director Dr. Chiyome Fukino said she hoped to end lingering rumors about Obama's birthplace.

"I ... have seen the original vital records maintained on file by the Hawaii State Department of Health verifying Barack Hussein Obama was born in Hawaii and is a natural-born American citizen," she said in a brief statement. "I have nothing further to add to this statement or my original statement issued in October 2008 over eight months ago."

So-called "birthers" — who claim Obama is ineligible to be president because, they argue, he was actually born outside the United States — have grown more vocal recently on blogs and television news shows.

Renewed attention

Fukino issued a similar press release Oct. 31, but was prompted to speak out again because of the renewed attention on Obama's beginnings. Hawaii's Health Department has been flooded in recent weeks with questions from individuals and several national TV news networks asking for proof that Obama was indeed born in Hawaii.

"They just keep asking over and over and over again," Health Department spokeswoman Janice Okubo said.

The Constitution states that a person must be a "natural-born citizen" to be eligible for the presidency. Birthers contend that Obama's birth certificate is a fake, and many say he was actually born in Kenya, his father's homeland. They've challenged his citizenship in court.

One widely circulated YouTube clip of a town hall meeting showed a Republican congressman getting booed for saying Obama is a citizen. Talk show host Rush Limbaugh and CNN's Lou Dobbs have also raised the issue, and 10 Republican members of Congress co-sponsored a bill that would require future presidential candidates to provide a copy of their original birth certificate.

House resolution

However, it appears Congress has moved on and has accepted Obama's island birthplace. The U.S. House on Monday unanimously approved a resolution recognizing and celebrating the 50th anniversary of Hawaii becoming the 50th state. A clause was included that reads: "Whereas the 44th President of the United States, Barack Obama, was born in Hawaii on August 4, 1961."

State law bars the release of a certified birth certificate to anyone who does not have a tangible interest.

However, Obama's birth certificate along with birth notices from the two Honolulu newspapers were brought forward even before he took office. But that's done nothing to shake the belief by many Obama critics that the president was born abroad.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press


Comment: One would think this would satisfy even the most skeptical. However, I don't believe the lunatic fringe will give up their hopeless attempt to prove otherwise.

Art

It does no good to ask that question on this board. If you have no faith in the Republicans in Congress perhaps you should e-mail your questions to the Republican governor of Hawaii.

Commentator Chris Matthews has shown a certified copy of Obama's birth certificate on his show many times. He keeps asking the skeptics what more proof do they want when officials in Hawaii state that he has a bonafide birth certificate on file.

Obviously, the skeptics will not accept any proof whatsoever. They like to keep the pot boiling and do anything they can think of to hurt Obama. It's too bad they don't realize it's having the exact opposite effect. It's making the skeptics look foolish.

Art

HucKaBee says if there was something to find Hillary's people would have . Orielly has he is sattisfied with what he saw . But from wat I have read what the copy is is of the Birth Certificate LIte form , which must be much like what I just looked at for myself , It lists what is on the birth cert. city , co. , date and when recorded . I at one time had one showing my parents ages upon my birth ( I think even their D O B's ) , And their city of birth . Clearly to Different types of Documentation .

And of course nothing else in our PREZ life is out for looking @ either .

bigartie wrote:

Commentator Chris Matthews has shown a certified copy of Obama's birth certificate on his show many times. He keeps asking the skeptics what more proof do they want when officials in Hawaii state that he has a bonafide birth certificate on file.

Obviously, the skeptics will not accept any proof whatsoever. They like to keep the pot boiling and do anything they can think of to hurt Obama. It's too bad they don't realize it's having the exact opposite effect. It's making the skeptics look foolish.

Art

Chris Mathews!!!! What a joke!

The real one is what we want to see, not a made up copy.

A call was put out for the P Canal born Sen. proof of citiZenship That did not take two years .