While looking at upcoming hearings in Congress for next week, this caught my eye:

On Tuesday, April 24 at 10:00, the Senate Committee on Judiciary meeting takes up a number of bills, one of which is a resolution introduced April 10th, S.Res. 511, recognizing that John Sidney McCain, III, is a natural born citizen.

The resolution was introduced by Senator McCaskill (R-MO), and has 5 co-sponsors. McCaskill is a Democrat, and the co-sponsors may also surprise you:

• Sen Clinton, Hillary Rodham [NY]
• Sen Coburn, Tom [OK]
• Sen Leahy, Patrick J. [VT]
• Sen Obama, Barack [IL]
• Sen Webb, Jim [VA]

The text of the bill is as follows:

Recognizing that John Sidney McCain, III, is a natural born citizen.

Whereas the Constitution of the United States requires that, to be eligible for the Office of the President, a person must be a `natural born Citizen’ of the United States;

Whereas the term `natural born Citizen’, as that term appears in Article II, Section 1, is not defined in the Constitution of the United States;

Whereas there is no evidence of the intention of the Framers or any Congress to limit the constitutional rights of children born to Americans serving in the military nor to prevent those children from serving as their country’s President;

Whereas such limitations would be inconsistent with the purpose and intent of the `natural born Citizen’ clause of the Constitution of the United States, as evidenced by the First Congress’s own statute defining the term `natural born Citizen’;

Whereas the well-being of all citizens of the United States is preserved and enhanced by the men and women who are assigned to serve our country outside of our national borders;

Whereas previous presidential candidates were born outside of the United States of America and were understood to be eligible to be President; and

Whereas John Sidney McCain, III, was born to American citizens on an American military base in the Panama Canal Zone in 1936: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That John Sidney McCain, III, is a `natural born Citizen’ under Article II, Section 1, of the Constitution of the United States.

Is this all just political posturing? Even if the Senate did pass such a resolution “recognizing” McCain (or anyone else) as a “natural-born citizen,” what force would it have if there was a legal challenge to McCain’s candidacy in the courts? I would think it would have no legal force, but then, I’m not a lawyer.

Jonathan Turley, however, is a lawyer, and he has a number of blog entries on this issue that you may find fascinating. You can read some of his commentary and replies here, here, here, here, here, and here.

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