Rep Posey being bot attacked for introducing barry soetoro birth certificate bill

March 24, 2009

(3-22) Rep Posey’s Birth Certificate Bill to stop future barrys
(3-22) Rep Bill Posey’s (R-FL) barry soetoro birth certificate bill (text)

Here is an interesting blog entry by Rep Bill Posey (R-FL) , who sponsored a bill to require presidential candidates to provide proof of their eligibility for president - at the very least a long form birth certificate. It will be called the barry soetoro (his presumed legal name at this point) birth certificate bill. Rep Posey is, of course, being ridiculed and bot attacked. Proposing this bill is rather courageous considering he was just elected. Emphasis added.

U.S. Rep. Bill Posey blog
By Bill Posey
Legislative Update

Posted March 20, 2009

I want to take a moment to recap on my legislative efforts so far… I have been here a little over 2 months and I have 3 bills introduced with more on the way real soon….

He discusses his first two bills.

Now for my third bill…

… Last Friday I introduced a bill that requires all future presidential candidates to file a copy of their birth certificate, along with all the other necessary documentation, to show that a candidate meets the qualifications for president under the Constitution.

What does the U.S. Constitution say about this – Article II says there are three qualifications for president:
1. Must be a natural born citizen
2. Must be at least 35 years old
3. Must have been a resident of the U.S. for at least 14 years.

Why’d I do this? Well, for a number of reasons and the more and more I get called names by leftwing activists, partisan hacks and political operatives for doing it, the more and more I think I did the right thing. First, it’s easy to call people names. This week, I’ve been called some pretty nasty things. That’s fine. But none of these tolerant people actually want to discuss the issue at hand… whether or not a presidential candidate should have to file these documents with the government.

I could easily fill up a page listing all the activities an American needs to show their ID for … everything from playing youth soccer to getting a drivers license, buying cigarettes and alcohol, to opening bank accounts and even playing little league. So I was pretty surprised to find out that to run for president, despite the constitutional requirement and the media scrubbing that goes on, it’s not required for a candidate to file these documents when they submit their statement of candidacy with the FEC.

But having been charged with reforming the elections in the State of Florida after the 2000 recounts and lawsuits, I thought I could offer a solution to this question on eligibility. There’s nothing anyone can do about changing past elections… the President won. All the lawsuits in the world are not going to change that. But if what some folks are worried about – that presidential candidates don’t have to submit to the same documentation that average folks have to submit to – well, then we can change that for the next election.

A recent AOL poll found showed that 75% of the people participating agreed with me. And many have expressed surprise it is not already a requirement.

I’m willing to discuss this issue with anyone who wants to talk in a rational manner, but I WILL NOT engage in name calling, smear campaigns, or any other venomous activity. I will not. Why? Well for one thing, it’s childish. But on another level, we’re supposed to be able to have a civil debate on the issues in this country.

Anyway, I feel I need to be open with folks on this.

As always, if you’re having a problem with a government agency and need help, my staff and I are ready to assist. Please feel free to contact my local office at (772) 778-3534.

Also, please feel free to visit my website, sign up for my e-mail newsletter and take my constituent survey.

Hope all is well – Bill