What Defines Eligibility?
by Bob Serrao www.intodaysenglish.com

Is the presidential candidate “natural born”?

 “No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President.” Article II, Section 1. 

I am about to launch a longstanding, much-debated issue…touching only the high points of my understanding to this point. Stay with me, because these two descriptive adjectives demand some attention and much importance.

Definitely, natural born has nothing to do with human gestation or birth process: Caesarean, breach or normal delivery. I will set out to show that this more restrictive qualification has everything to do with being born of citizen parents.

Though the Constitution does not define natural born, obviously, the Framers of the Constitution knew its meaning very well. They used it only once in Article II, Section 1, borrowing the term from an international treatise known as the Law of Nations (Vattel) referred to in Article I, Section 8. It added a specific, necessary, distinctive and more restrictive qualification for any presidential candidate. Wisely, they gave Congress enumerated powers to enforce any violations against the Law of Nations, including this one.

Remember, the U. S. presidency is the most powerful position with which WE THE PEOPLE can vest a person. So, a candidate has to be 1) at least 35 years old, 2) a resident of the United States at least 14 years, 3) natural born (born of citizen parents) or, 4) a citizen at the time the Constitution was adopted, (not an inhabitant or a foreigner or anyone in the process of being naturalized).

Well, then, how does natural born stand apart from native born or naturalized citizenship? Generally speaking, there are two distinct claims to U.S. citizenship: 1) native born (jus soli, the place of birth determines citizenship); and, 2) naturalized, (lex soli, by law) a declaration of citizenship by meeting certain requirements. If natural born meant native born or naturalized, then why use it? Undoubtedly, natural born has a specialized meaning and application to this high office.

For obvious reasons, launching the new U.S. Republic in 1787, the Framers would have Congress scrutinize every presidential candidate, beginning with the natural born test. They understood that the colonies were populated by common folk and nobility from many other nations, predominantly from England from which they declared independence 11 years earlier. God forbid that the presidency (Commander In Chief) would fall into the hands of one still loyal to England’s Crown! Also, Indians were born on reservations with tribal allegiances. Slaves were inhabitants from various countries and not considered citizens, though having limited or denied rights. Residents were also enemy aliens and foreign diplomats. So, natural born was added to eliminate all chances for ambitious foreigners to be drawn to the office, and by treason be alleged to another country, personality or ideology. Divided loyalty could threaten national security. This was their prime concern and insisted on a natural born citizen.

The clue to understanding is Framers always deferred to the a priori Laws of Nature (in The Declaration) above the Law of Nations. The Laws of Nature to which they were avidly devoted are ordained by “nature’s God” and supersede any manmade laws. These were “self-evident” laws, needing no explanation, revealing simple, natural truths that anyone could understand. Among them—“…that all men are created equal and gifted by  their Creator with certain inseparable rights…the right to life, the right to live in freedom and the right to pursue a chance to succeed.” It also seemed natural to them that only offspring of citizen parents would qualify to presidential candidacy.

Noah Webster defines natural as “to be born or produced; pertaining to nature.” American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828.

So, parental citizenship determines if one is natural born. It involves parentage; not the mother as much but the father, by necessity. It requires the citizenship of the natural birth father, especially. If the candidate’s parents were not citizens, then they just might influence their child-candidate to another national loyalty…one of their own nationality…to the worst interests of the United States. Parental citizenship is the very heart of the meaning of natural born.

Emer de Vattel (1714-67), a Swiss legal expert, contributed significantly to the foundation of international law and politics by his book The Law of Nations from which Ben Franklin and George Washington drew political perspectives. Vattel writes “The natives, or natural born citizens are those born in the country, of parents who are citizens. I say, that, in order to be of the country, it is necessary that a person be born of a father who is a citizen; for, if he is born there of a foreigner, it will be only the place of his birth, and not his country.”
http://www.birthers.org/USC/Vattel.html   http://www.constitution.org/vattel/vattel_01.htm

Originally, being natural born was required only of the presidential candidate. However, now, by virtue of Amendment 12 (1804), it is also required of the vice-presidential candidate.

“No person except one born to citizen parents of the United States {natural born}, or one who is a citizen at the adoption of this Constitution shall be eligible to the Office of President.”

WE THE PEOPLE, The Declaration and Constitution In Today’s English, Serrao, 2010.

Fuzzy Economics
Letter to the editor

The duplicity of Mission Viejo Councilman Frank Ury is astounding! See this Mission Viejo Dispatch article: http://missionviejodispatch.com/budget/nadadores-want-15-million-pools-at-potocki/comment-page-1/#comment-67968

Ury’s contention that our bond rating was a ringing endorsement for our city hall budget/reserve drains boggles the mind!

Once again, as the Mission Viejo Dispatch points out, it is the total community and its wealth that underpins the bond rating, fortunately, not city hall’s fiscal management.

Perhaps Mr. Ury should take advantage of attending Saddleback College at night, starting out with the Basics of Accounting and Economics 101.

As to the varying requests for the use of the Potocki Center (above-noted article), it appears that only ONE organization came to the table with ANY money: Outta Bounds.

Guess who I would choose ?

Joe Holtzman
Mission Viejo

Washington Update
Congressman Gary Miller

June 24, 2011—This Week in Congress:

 Maximizing Domestic Energy Production – On Wed., June 22, the House approved H.R. 2021, the Jobs and Energy Permitting Act of 2011, by a vote of 253-166. The legislation would eliminate needless permitting delays that have stalled important energy production opportunities off the coast of Alaska. Through several technical corrections to the Clean Air Act, the bill would eliminate uncertainty and confusion under the Act that has delayed – sometimes for years – oil exploration in the Alaskan Outer Continental Shelf and other offshore areas. The bill also eliminates the permitting back-and-forth that occurs between the Environmental Protection Agency and its Environmental Appeals Board. Rather than having exploration air permits repeatedly approved and rescinded by the agency and its review board, the EPA will be required to take final action within six months of receiving a permit application. All appeals will go to the D.C. Circuit Court for resolution because of the national implications of oil production on the Outer Continental Shelf and the need for consistency in decision-making.

 Encouraging Entrepreneurship and Growth: On Thurs., June 23, the House approved H.R. 1249, the America Invents Act, by a vote of 304-117. The bill would implement a first-inventor-to-file standard for patent approval, create a post-grant review system to weed out bad patents, and help the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) address its backlog of patent applications. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that enacting the bill would reduce net direct spending by $725 million and revenues by $8 million over the 2011-2021 period. Most changes in direct spending would result from providing the PTO with the authority to collect and spend certain user fees. In total, the bill’s changes would decrease budget deficits by $717 million over the 2011-2021 period.

 FAA Reauthorization: On Friday, the House approved H.R. 2279, a short-term extension of Federal Aviation Administration programs, through July 22, 2011. On Feb. 27, 2011, the Senate approved S. 232, a full FAA authorization bill by a vote of 87-8. The House approved an alternative version, H.R. 658, the FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act of 2011, by a vote of 223-196 on April 1, 2011. A conference committee is expected to report a final agreement soon for House and Senate consideration. H.R. 658 would reauthorize FAA operations and programs for four years, including the remainder of FY 2011 through FY 2014. In addition, the bill makes a number of policy changes, including a repeal of a National Mediation Board (NMB) rule allowing airline employees to unionize without a majority vote of an airline’s employees. CBO estimates that the bill would decrease direct spending by $4 billion and increase revenue by $34 million over the FY 2011 through FY 2016 period.

 Limiting U.S. involvement in Libya — Also on Friday, the House disapproved H.R. 2278, by a vote of 180-238. The resolution would have prohibited funds appropriated or otherwise available to the Department of Defense (DoD) from being obligated or expended for U.S. Armed Forces support of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Operation Unified Protector with respect to Libya. However, exceptions to the funds limitation would have been for the following activities: search and rescue (SAR); intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR); aerial refueling; operational planning; and non-combat missions.

 Libya Authorization — Additionally on Friday, the House disapproved H.J.Res. 68, by a vote of 123-295. This resolution would have authorized the President to continue limited use of the U.S. Armed Forces in Libya, in support of U.S. national security policy interests, as part of the NATO mission to enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 (2011).

Other Items of Note
 Cong. Miller Introduces Environmental Review Cooperation Act: Under federal law, highway projects that receive federal funding must comply with environmental standards set by the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA). The current process adds unnecessary delays to worthy highway construction projects and wastes taxpayer dollars. Cong. Miller has introduced The Environmental Review Cooperation Act to allow states that have environmental review standards that are equal to or exceed federal requirements to apply their own environmental laws to highway projects and bypass the NEPA process. This proposal will speed up development of important projects and save taxpayer dollars without compromising current environmental protections

 District Work Period: The House of Representatives has adjourned for a district work period. The House will be back in session on Wed., July 6.

Excessive Government Regulations
 To put Americans back to work, we must remove the yoke of red tape around the neck of our nation’s job creators.
 The fact is that federal regulations stifle innovation and investment in our economy by increasing the cost of doing business.
 Federal regulations serve as a de facto tax on employers, forcing them to divert resources that could otherwise be used to expand their businesses to comply with government mandates.
 With the U.S. economy struggling, and families hard-pressed to make ends meet, the costs of regulations on our economy have never been more significant.
 According to a recent study, 43 major regulations were enacted in Fiscal Year 2010 alone, at a total economic cost of $26.5 billion.
 The costs of excessive regulations are particularly burdensome on our nation’s small businesses.
 The Small Business Administration reports that the average small business with fewer than 20 employees faces a cost each year directly attributed to federal regulations of over $10,000 per worker they employ.
 Just imagine the positive impact on job creation nationwide if small businesses had these funds available to them to expand their business, invest in new products and services, or hire new employees.
 Over the past two years the Obama Administration has promulgated 121 major regulations, with many more still under consideration.
 Furthermore, his $2.6 trillion government overhaul of our nation’s health care system has alone added 6,123 pages of new federal regulations since it was enacted nine months ago, while 243 new rulemakings are expected from the Democrats’ Dodd-Frank financial bill.
 Real, sustainable job growth comes from the private sector, not government spending and interference.
 It is time for Washington to get out of the way and tear down these obstacles to job creation.

Spending and the National Debt
 On Wednesday, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a report showing just how dire our nation’s looming debt crisis is unless action is taken to stop out-of-control federal spending.
 The CBO projects that government spending as a share of the economy will increase by nearly 70 percent between now and 2035 – up dramatically from the historical average of 20 percent.
 As a result of massive unchecked federal spending – driven primarily by entitlement programs – the U.S. debt could amount to 190 percent of the nation’s economy by 2035.
 The CBO projection also affirms the failure of Obamacare to curb the cost of health care. The agency projects that mandatory federal spending on health care will increase by 86 percent by 2035.
 To get our economy back on track and give the private sector the confidence it needs to create new jobs, Congress must act now to cut excess federal spending and implement meaningful budget reforms that will get our debt under control.
 House Republicans have negotiated in good faith with the Vice President in meetings to identify spending cuts that exceed the amount of the Obama Administration’s request for a debt limit increase.
 Democrats insist that any deal must include tax increases – which are not supported by the American people and will not receive support in the House.
 This week, key Senate Democrats called for even more government spending as a part of the negotiations.
 This country does not need another failed trillion-dollar stimulus plan. No nation can spend, tax, or borrow its way to job creation and economic prosperity.
 To create jobs and put our nation’s fiscal house back in order, we must not enable the Administration to continue to borrow trillions of dollars for our children and grandchildren to repay without implementing measures that will prevent future government overspending, including sending to the states a balanced budget amendment.
 We are not in this situation because taxes are too low. The problem is Washington’s addiction to spending.
 The solution for reviving our economy is straightforward: cut wasteful spending to help the economy grow.

Non-government Events

Following is a sampling of events and activities that are not funded by taxpayers or promoted by the Nanny State. Please support private enterprise.

R.O.C.K. (Reaching Out for Christ to Kids) Summer Kick-off Bash for middle school and high school, free, Wed., June 29, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. For information: Mount of Olives, 24851 Chrisanta Drive, Mission Viejo, (949) 929-7624, http://www.rocktheoc.com, http://www.moochurch.org/events.aspx?parentnavigationid=6090

Movies, Edwards Kaleidoscope Stadium 10 in Mission Viejo, 27741 Crown Valley Pkwy, (949) 582-4020, get show times, watch movie trailers, see what's coming soon at
http://www.moviefone.com/theater/edwards-kaleidoscope-stadium-10/32/showtimes

“Bouquets and Boutonnieres,” floral arrangements class, Wed., July 6, 9:00 a.m., Sherman Gardens, 2647 E. Coast Highway, Newport Beach, (949) 673-2261, http://slgardens.org

45th Annual Sawdust Art Festival, through Aug. 28, 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., 935 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, (949) 494-3030, http://www.sawdustartfestival.org, and Art-A-Fair, through Aug. 28, 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Sun. – Thurs. and 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 777 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, (949) 494-4514, http://www.art-a-fair.com

Shakespeare Festival performances, July 8 – July 31, in San Juan Capistrano, “Shakespeare, Inc.” on the Playhouse Main Stage, for dates, times and tickets go to http://caminorealplayhouse.tix.com/Schedule.asp?EventCode=367073,367074,367077,367075,367076,367079. “Taming of the Shrew” under the stars at Historic Town Center Park in San Juan Capistrano, for dates, times and ticket information go to http://caminorealplayhouse.tix.com/Schedule.asp?EventCode=367080,367081,367082,367083,367084,367085 . Camino Real Playhouse, 31776 El Camino Real, San Juan Capistrano, (949) 489-8082, http://www.caminorealplayhouse.org/shakespeare2.php

Fitz and the Tantrums Concert, Lake Mission Viejo, Sat., July 9, 7:00 p.m. Must be a member or guest of a member to attend. Concert hotline (949) 770-1313, ext. 311, http://www.lakemissionviejo.org

Pretend City University’s Summer Bridge Program, running now through August, science, visual and performing arts, language, P.E. and extracurricular, Pretend City Children’s Museum, 29 Hubble, Irvine, (949) 428-3900, http://www.pretendcity.org

Art Exhibit, 16 German Artists, through Aug. 19, open M-F, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Soka University, Founders Hall Art Gallery, 2nd Floor, 1 University Drive, Aliso Viejo, (949) 480-4000, http://www.info@soka.edu

Art Exhibit, “Scrimshaw: the Art and Craft of the American Whaler,” through Sept. 30, Bowers Museum, 2002 N. Main Street, Santa Ana, (714) 567-3600, http://www.bowers.org/index.php/art/exhibitions_listing/current

Art Exhibit, “Noguchi: California Legacy,” through Oct. 2, 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. daily, Laguna Art Museum, 307 Cliff Drive, Laguna Beach, (949) 494-8971, http://www.lagunaartmuseum.org

Michaels, 25310 Marguerite Parkway, (949) 770-5001, schedule of art and crafts classes can be found at http://www.michaels.com/Store-Events/store-events,default,pg.html

Saddleback Lanes bowling alley, events throughout the week. Saddleback Lanes has been in business since 1974; great gathering place with special discounts for groups, 25402 Marguerite Pkwy, Mission Viejo, (949) 586-5300, http://www.saddlebacklanes.net

Farmers Market, San Juan Capistrano, Wednesdays from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., Historic Town Center Park, (949) 493-4700.

Farmers Market, Laguna Hills, Fridays from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., Laguna Hills Mall, (714) 573-0374.

Political and Government Events Calendar

Orange County Board of Supervisors, Tues., June 28, 9:30 a.m., Board Hearing Room, First Floor, 333 W. Santa Ana Blvd., Santa Ana, (714) 834-3100. http://www.ocgov.com/ocgov/Government/Board%20of%20Supervisors

Saddleback Valley Unified School District board meeting to approve the budget, Tues., June 28, 6:15 p.m., 25631 Peter Hartman Way, Mission Viejo,(949) 586-1234, http://www.svusd.k12.ca.us

June Networking Event Featuring Walter Myers III, Atlas PAC, Wed., June 29, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Mesa (corner of Bristol and Baker in The Camp), 725 Baker Street, Costa Mesa, RSVP to rsvp@atlaspac.org

Capistrano Unified School District Board of Trustees, regular meeting and public hearing: District Budget for the 2011-2012 Fiscal Year, Wed., June 29, 7:00 p.m., CUSD administration center, 33122 Valle Road, San Juan Capistrano, agenda and supporting documentation will be published on the website 72 hours prior to meeting, (949) 234-9200, http://capousd.ca.schoolloop.com

Orange County Young Republicans June Mixer, Thurs., June 30, 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., Landmark Steakhouse, 3520 E. Coast Highway, Newport Beach, http://ocgopaction.ning.com/events/ocyr-june-mixer

“Meet Ann Coulter,” live broadcast and book signing, Thurs., June 30, 7:00 p.m., Coulter will co-host KABC Radio’s The John Philips Show live from the Nixon Library’s White House East Room, Tickets $32 ($28 for members) include an autographed copy of “Demonic.” The Richard Nixon Foundation, 18001 Yorba Linda Blvd., Yorba Linda, (714) 993-5075. http://events.nixonfoundation.org/2011/06/12/june-30-meet-ann-coulter

“Meet Margaret Hoover,” great-granddaughter of America’s 31st president, at the Richard Nixon Library, Thurs., July 28, 7:00 p.m. lecture and book signing, “American Individualism,” (714) 364-1161, anne@nixonfoundation.org

The Buzz

A Mission Viejo resident found religion in a wooden chair, as reported in the June 24 OC Register. Chipped paint on an Adirondack-style rocker formed a blotch on the wood, which the chair’s owner likens to an image of Jesus Christ. Wanting to share the miraculous find, the owner listed it on eBay for $25,000.

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Given City Hall’s obsession with drawing residents into taxpayer-funded silliness, why don’t city employees follow the chair owner’s lead? Invite residents to find images in the cracked-up asphalt of their streets. They could take a picture of themselves lying in the street next to the image and send it to City Hall. Referring to ex-city manager Dan Joseph’s quote, “we’re getting out of the religion business” (when he tried to remove the Nativity Scene from the Four Corners), the range of iconography should include the winter solstice, tree worship and a catchall category, “whatever.” To some people, the cracks might look like crosses. Many streets look more like Jackson Pollack masterpieces, with tar drizzled over an extensive network of cracks.

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Greg Woodard’s hatchet-throwing associate often lifts material from this site and posts it as his own on another blog. Woodard is a newly minted politician with the support of “developer world” and a Lake Forest activist. Woodard would like someone – anyone – to believe he’s a legitimate officeholder after receiving an appointment to the OC Republican Central Committee. One of Woodard’s claims on the other blog includes a whopper about his tenure with the California Republican Assembly. With no understanding of CRA, Woodard sided with the culprits who transferred members from one unit to another without their knowledge.

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Woodard is posturing as a candidate for the 2012 city council election. He’s on record with his blog posts showing he’s ignorant about the city. His positions against Mission Viejo’s Measure D were based on blatant lies, and he lied about his CRA membership. If Mission Viejo voters think a liar makes a good representative, look no further than incumbent Frank Ury for the 2012 city election.

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Longtime Mission Viejo residents notice the city’s demographics are changing. Families that bought the community’s first homes are moving on, and single-family homes are being rented by unrelated individuals or multiple families under one roof. Gang activity is evident in formerly secure areas along Los Alisos Blvd. and Crown Valley Pkwy, and city headlines report armed robberies and other violent crimes. The character of neighborhoods has been undermined by various city councils approving apartments and bringing in more high-density housing each time a developer shows up with cash for their reelection campaigns.

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Donald Trump says “You’re fired!” to interns who aren’t quick on their feet, but it took him a month to say “You’re forged.” Trump went silent after he claimed credit for pressuring Barack Obama to release a new version of his birth certificate on April 27. After Trump’s slow response to the obvious birth certificate forgery, he should fire himself. Read the update about Obama’s ongoing birth certificate hoax: http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=303181

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Many Americans who voted for Obama are awakening to the “change” they bought in the 2008 presidential election. A message is showing up on highway signs around the country: “So now we know … CHANGE = more debt, more taxes, more welfare, more regulation, more government, more wasteful spending, more corruption. Thanks, Mr. President.”

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ACT for America will meet on Mon., July 12. Doors open at 7:00 p.m., and the general chapter meeting begins at 7:30. Guest speaker will be Rich Tuttle, who will present “How to help law enforcement prevent terrorism in our communities.” The group meets at the community center in Mission Viejo.

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Mission Viejo residents are reacting strongly against the city’s mess at Oso and Marguerite Pkwy, which includes a road-widening project that’s gone on forever. The bloated city staff lacks real work and real projects to keep them busy. Thus, every project increases dramatically in scope, expense and length of time to complete. The council majority is oblivious to the waste, particularly with costly “decorative” junk in every imaginable place.

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To demonstrate the confusion of the city’s bureaucrats, Keith Rattay was quoted during the disastrous Crown Valley Pkwy widening project, which took more than three years to complete. Rattay referred to the arterial as a “vehicular-oriented street.” What other purpose does he think streets have? Despite acknowledging Crown Valley Pkwy is a “vehicular-oriented street,” he proceeded to build a poster gallery down the middle with distractions and traffic hazards. Rattay’s background is landscape architecture – he’s a plant guy. The person who for years made excuses about Mission Viejo’s snarled traffic – alternately saying the same traffic signals couldn’t be synchronized and they had already been synchronized – has a degree in sociology. When the city’s highest-level employees are unqualified for the job, no one should be surprised with the outcome.

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A resident emailed: “I’ve been looking at the oversize pots near Oso and Marguerite. They do not reflect the Mission Viejo Company’s Mediterranean concept for Mission Viejo. The new pots look like oversize Mexican bean jars. The fire station near Oso has the same brown jars, and I’d like to know who paid for them. The pots are also along Oso and in front of Ralphs on La Paz. It looks like the city used extortion on Ralphs, as it did to force Sonic Drive-In to buy a $10,000 rusty car, to get city permits. Which city official went on a pot-buying binge in Tijuana with our checkbook?”