Yes, really.
Despite dire warnings from an administrative law judge in the Georgia Secretary of State‘s office, Obama’s attorneys refused to even put in an appearance at the hearing to decide whether Barack Obama is eligible to run for president under the Constitution’s natural born citizen clause. Facing a contempt citation, they refused to lend the attention that an appearance by the president’s lawyer would give to such a circus trial.
Beautiful photo of an empty chair, by Jim Strong, copyright 2006 — go buy a print from him (click the picture), and have him autograph it. That empty chair’s cousin made better arguments in a Georgia courtroom that did Orly Taitz or any other birther.
Pleading their case before a judge mad at Obama, with no defense put up by Obama’s lawyers at all, the birthers still lost. Their case does not cross the threshold of credibility a case needs to be taken seriously, the judge ruled. Obama is a natural born citizen, Obama is perfectly eligible for the presidency due to his Hawaiian birth, and the birthers should fold their tents and go back to their figurative plows or knitting.
The birthers lost to a defense argued (badly) by an empty chair.
If your livelihood depends on their going back to their plows and needles, you’re in trouble.
Were you surprised? Birthers have lost every one of these suits. Birthers still don’t give up.
Here, read the decision at SCRIBD: Barack Obama is who he says he is.
Judge Michael Malihi was not pleased with Obama’s lawyers for their failure to show. That tactic force the judge to actually look at the evidence presented and rule that what was presented by the birthers not only does not make the case that Obama is not a natural born citizen, but that the evidence does not even make a prima facie case that further arguments are needed — the evidence sheds no light, it’s “not probative.”
Technically the ruling is advisory to the Georgia Secretary of State; no one expects the SOS to go completely off the rails, barking down the halls of the capitol building to graze the lawn, and decide contrary to the recommendation from Judge Malihi.
Several birthers allowed themselves to get excited that their string of bad luck and courtroom smackdowns might be changing. They have been disappointed.
The world works, and law again proves its value.
More, Resources:
- Generally, see Oh For Goodness Sake on all issues dealing with presidential eligibility and Obama’s birth certificate; but be sure to see this one, and this one, and this one
- See the article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
- How bad a defeat was it for the birthers? Before the decision came down, based on their view that the judge had joined their ranks based on his expressed irritation at the Obama lawyers failing to make an appearance, some birther-sympathetic blogs like American Freedom called for the judge to be canonized. That view changed dramatically once the decision was announced: “Thanks a lot Georgia, for shredding our Constitution.” They ain’t taking it kindly, well, nor in a sportsmanlike manner.
Tip of the old scrub brush to reader Whatever4, who alerted us to the decision and gave us the link to Scribd.
Millard Fillmore's Bathtub 
George Romney was born in Mexico, I think, to two U.S. citizens living in Mexico at the time. He was a Mormon, and I’ll wager there was plenty of adequate documentation since they tend to be quite careful about that stuff. There were brief questions about citizenship when George ran for president, but nothing serious then. After all, in 1964 the Republican nominee had been Barry Goldwater, who was born outside of the U.S., in the Arizona Territory.
Of course, George Romney was also white, and a captain of industry in Detroit, and had already been governor of Michigan and had worked with big labor unions and big business — so who would have challenged his citizenship?
The George Romney story is one of the reasons the birthers lose to empty chairs. The precedents all run against them, from George Romney, through Barry Goldwater, through Vice President Curtis, through President Van Buren — all the way back to the women’s vote case overturned by the 19th Amendment, Minor v. Hapersett.
America is inclusive, and that has been our secret for success for more than 250 years.
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Mitt Romney’s Mexican father, hmmmmm…….Are the simple minded “BIRTHERS”, going to ask Romney for his birth certificate? We all know this was never about a birth certificate, if it was then these same people would be asking Romney for his. It’s about small minded people who hate African Americans and do not have the brains to review a President’s policy so they make something up. So sad, so sad.
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[…] Take this, for instance. […]
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Republicans do seem to love living in their own little fantasy world that has no relationship to the real world….
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Send the birthers back to Europe. I as a native American demand this.
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[…] Birthers lose to an empty chair (timpanogos.wordpress.com) […]
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But, since they all feel entitled to their own facts (with Orly Taitz leading the way), this will change nothing. And so it goes on, and on, and on.
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