Democrats to boycott effort to remove Barack Obama from Georgia ballot
Democrats, including the attorney representing President Barack Obama, have made a last-minute decision to boycott the Thursday hearing to consider a “birther” effort to remove Obama from the March 6 presidential primary ballot.
“They can tilt at windmills on their own,” said state Democratic spokesman Eric Gray on Wednesday night.
Last week, in a surprise ruling, a Georgia state administrative judge declined to quash a subpoena directing Obama to attend a hearing Thursday at the Fulton County courthouse on a challenge to strike him from the Georgia ballot this fall on claims he is not a natural born U.S. citizen. Read more background here from my AJC colleague Bill Rankin.
Among tomorrow’s no-shows will be Michael Jablonski, the Atlanta attorney serving as counsel to Obama. He’s written a letter to Secretary of State Brian Kemp, a Republican, asking him to intervene and bring the circus to a halt.
Among those pressing the action is state Rep. Mark Hatfield, R-Waycross. But many ranking Republicans are doing their best to keep their distance.
Here’s the statement just released by Mike Berlon, chairman of the state Democratic party:
“Several lawsuits were recently filed against President Obama questioning whether he is an American citizen in an attempt to remove him from the Georgia primary ballot. Despite the fact that these issues have been thoroughly litigated, a hearing has been scheduled in these cases for Thursday, January 26, 2012. The Democratic Party of Georgia is not a party to any of these lawsuits.
“This afternoon we received a letter from counsel for the President directed to the Georgia Secretary of State asking him to intervene in these lawsuits and bring them to a halt, because it is well established that there is no issue here – a fact validated time and again by courts in this country.
“In the letter, counsel also indicated that they had no interest in continuing to appear or participate further in the litigation and have suspended their involvement.
“We respect the President’s position and urge the Secretary of State to bring this matter to a conclusion. We also believe that each political party has the absolute legal right to determine who should appear on their primary and general election ballots according to their own rules without interference from outside parties.
“In light of these developments the Democratic Party of Georgia has no plans to continue to be involved in these baseless cases. Furthermore the Democratic Party of Georgia will cooperate with the President and his campaign in any way requested to make sure that his name appears on the primary and general election ballots for 2012.”
- By Jim Galloway, Political Insider
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552 comments Add your comment
A Native of Georgian
January 26th, 2012
6:15 am
A high tech attempt at lynching. This is what happens when you really have gutless and immoral intentions.
American
January 26th, 2012
6:15 am
I see the hypocrites have come out to play. I just read an article (Foreign newspaper) about the foolish American people and how we again are back where we were four years ago. PRESIDENT OBAMA is an AMERICAN get it through your slave mentality heads (which means you have a Jim Crowe complex or maybe Jim Jones fetish want some Kool-Aid). But I will not argue the obvious because of this quote “NEVER Argue with an IDIOT, They’ll DRAG YOU DOWN to THEIR LEVEL and BEAT YOU WITH EXPERIENCE”. I don’t know the author of this quote but they must have had the State of Georgia on their mind… To the rest of the world we all look like idiots to allow this to happen again to a sitting President… But remember it’s not because of his race? Peace
blove
January 26th, 2012
6:34 am
you guys this is what is wrong with us today, we focus on stupid stuff if was to check some of you back ground i will find a lot of things but i will be wasting my time there is bigger issue need to be look at his mother should have known where he was born and grandparents get something else to do with your self have of you parents was not born here so come on let do some other thing please it is over.
old man
January 26th, 2012
6:42 am
Why are all of these people saying Obama has a duty to appear in court like anyone else, either personally or through a lawyer? Does he? If an Article III federal court subpoena says so, maybe, but I doubt even that. It’s the federal supremacy clause. It’s separation of powers. Do you people really want your president to have to respond to every nut-case lawyer who issues a subpoena, or every nut-case administrative law judge who will not strike one down?
And if you say birthism, at this point in time, is no longer racism, well, it is a rare racist who openly admits to being a racist. It’s like OJ saying he didn’t do it. Birthism today is racism, through and through, to the core.
clanmack
January 26th, 2012
6:44 am
“Natural-born” undoubtedly precludes anyone born by C-section. Let’s sic the birther dogs on all those who are not “natural-born.” This is so absurd as to be humorous, except that it is tying up courts that have more important issues to decide. It is a free country and everyone has a right to humiliate themselves. I just hope the judges who didn’t quash this are elected and the voters in their districts wake up and smell the coffee. There is always hope.
GA Republicrat
January 26th, 2012
6:53 am
Really! Is that’s all the republican party has to offer: Newt Gingrich and “not a natural born citizen”? A washed up political hack and a suit that’s already been litigated to death? Too bad. You lose again!
Edward Ruffin
January 26th, 2012
6:57 am
And where does all the above comments leave us?………………..we still don’t know for sure if Obama is eligible to be president.
TheLoneWatchman
January 26th, 2012
6:57 am
During the 2008 campaign, candidate Obama’s own website attempted to refute the Clinton campaign’s charge of his ineligibilty with the admission that at birth Barack Obama inherited his father’s status as a CUKC, ie, Citizen of the UK & Colonies, ie, a British subject. No one born a British subject is eligible to serve as POTUS (period).
THE SMART ONE
January 26th, 2012
7:18 am
Soooooo when the ruling goes in Obama favor, what will you haters yell then…oh I know…you start screaming “the judge got it wrong” …..let’s ask Donald Trump what he thinks. The reality of the matter is……is doesn’t matter what you or I THINK…its what can be factual proven. Stop with over analysis of the birth certificate! NEWS FLASH: when you decide to run for president of the u.s. you have to submit forms that include legal documention of identity. There is enough federal agencies that investigates EVERY person and the documents submitted to make sure they are authentic. If Obama wasn’t a natural born citizen then he would already be under investigation by the FBI for fraud(remember the president recieves a yearly salary from tax payers) and theft by deception. Now how many of you know about the tenacity of the FBI…they have the means,money and man power to investigate ANYONE! Oooooooooooh I get it, the system that’s been in place for electing presidents of the u.s. worked for the last 40 something plus presidents but failed when a sharp Harvard lawyer found a loophole and won the bid for president……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………REALLY!! All of you who entertains this notion of Obama not being a natural born citizen needs to make an appointment at the nearest mental hospital…..and while your at it………………….get a ladder and get over it!!!
RCM
January 26th, 2012
7:20 am
Its OK, he or his attorneys need not participate, just remove his name from the ballot. States have the rights to determine who is eligible and clearly they feel he is NOT . If he chooses not to prove why he should then prohibit his name from being entered and move on. Stop catering to this lawless Communist
Road Scholar
January 26th, 2012
7:21 am
For all you birthers…did your mamas drop you on your head when you were young? Many times? Repeatedly?
You don’t think that the Repub Party has already examined this? If he didn’t have his legal papers as a citizen, do you think the Repubs would just roll over? Get a life and stop wasting our courts time and money. And the Repubs want tort reform ( for you birthers that means they want to change our legal system to avoid frivolous lawsuits). Here is their “poster child”!
RCM
January 26th, 2012
7:23 am
It’ll be a blast reading the commentary TOMORROW after the judge has his say today……..
American
January 26th, 2012
7:26 am
You can’t fix stupid
mx
January 26th, 2012
7:28 am
thugs defend thugs to the very end, no matter what
old man
January 26th, 2012
7:47 am
I’ve done some surfing this morning.
It is plain that this network of nuts is really intent on subpoenaing Obama all over the country.
Can we set up a place in Africa, or South America, and call it “Birthania,” and just send all of these nuts there to colonize? We can make sure it is all white, so they will be comfortable.
There is no way Kemp or Deal are dumb enough to sustain anything this judge does. If they take Obama off the ballot, and a federal judge steps in and says he is back on the ballot, that would be interesting. I’m trying to remember–which side wins those federal-state confrontations?
Dems can only hope that Kemp and Deal ARE that stupid. This would completely galvanize support for Obama.
old man
January 26th, 2012
7:50 am
racists defend racists to the very end, no matter what
Georiga Idiots
January 26th, 2012
7:50 am
I swear Georgia and all the other states that have this JOKE of a lawsuit going should be ashamed of themselves. All of the other issues we have going on in this state, “your” elected officials choose to make this an issue. They never want to deal with what is really going on with the “people” just something to get them in the news…this is across the country as well.
old man
January 26th, 2012
7:51 am
Donald Trump for President of Birthania!
ken
January 26th, 2012
7:54 am
And yet another republican embarrassment to the State of Georgia. The republican party continually is trying to take away our rights. Now another activist judge costing the State money we don’t have to waste on this frivolous act. I will vote for President Obama regardless of what this nut does.
CiscoStreetlove
January 26th, 2012
8:00 am
Well, mx, I’ll gladly commit a crime, as soon as you step to my face. Say “boy” to me. Set it up b**ch, and I’ll beat you down anytime.
Rod
January 26th, 2012
8:01 am
Real News- President Obama was not born in 1964 you idiot!!
Rod
January 26th, 2012
8:01 am
Enter your comments here
old man
January 26th, 2012
8:02 am
Is there as black denier or birther anywhere?
Mick
January 26th, 2012
8:10 am
The SCOTUS case of Minor v. Happersett (1874) reinforced and set the precedent for the definition of natural born Citizen:
“The Constitution does not, in words, say who shall be natural-born citizens. Resort must be had elsewhere to ascertain that. At common-law, with the nomenclature of which the framers of the Constitution were familiar, it was never doubted that all children born in a country of parents who were its citizens became themselves, upon their birth, citizens also. These were natives, or natural-born citizens, as distinguished from aliens or foreigners.”
Obama, a Constitutional scholar, obviously knows he is ineligible, and that’s what makes him even more reprehensible.
old man
January 26th, 2012
8:10 am
Scenario 1: Kemp takes Obama off the ballot, a federal judge says to put him back on, and Kemp refuses.
Scenario 2: Arrest warrant is issued for Obama for failure to respond to subpoena. Obama then flies to Georgia in Air Force One for a political appearance. (If I was Obama, that is exactly what I would do, the day after the warrant was issued.) So, what is the State of Georgia going to do–arrest Obama when he gets off Air Force One? (”Excuse me Mr. Secret Service Man, I need to put these handcuffs on the President.”)
What a complete circus. Get over it GOP–A BLACK MAN IS PRESIDENT. GET OVER IT OR GO MOVE SOMEWHERE AND START YOUR OWN ALL-WHITE COUNTRY. THE PRESIDENT IS BLACK. THE PRESIDENT IS BLACK.
Pepp
January 26th, 2012
8:16 am
“Among those pressing the action is state Rep. Mark Hatfield, R-Waycross. But many ranking Republicans are doing their best to keep their distance.”
Of course they are! They know this extremist thought driven by nothing but sheer hate and intolerance. And you wonder why people make such fun of the South. Mark Hatfield, and all those like him, get over your hate for President Obama. Frankly, get over your intolerance in general. And I’m sure you call yourself a Christian. You are full of hate and you are full of sh&%!
Mick
January 26th, 2012
8:17 am
Obama has NEVER claimed to be a natural born Citizen, at his campaign websites, paid for by Obama for America, he claimed to be a “native citizen” and an ” American- born citizen”— all lawyerly wordsmithing. . As a Constitutional scholar, Obama surely knows the correct Constitutional term. He has hidden behind the Birth Certicate controversy for three years, and now the true constitutional question is coming to light. Since the purpose of the natural born Citizen requiremnet was the prevention of foreign influence, how can a natural born Citizen of the US be born a British subject, of a British subject father? He Can’t , and Obama is NOT Eligible.
Mick
January 26th, 2012
8:18 am
Pepp,
So it’s racist to oust Obama because he was born British?
Real talk
January 26th, 2012
8:21 am
For the record it obviously was no set standard for African-Americans in 1964. I was born in 64 and my birth certificate doesn’t say negro Or áfrican american. I never actually looked at it til I applied for passport. Do a little research and doesn’t begin with “N”.
Mick
January 26th, 2012
8:21 am
It’s really funny to see all the flumoxed Obama fans (you only represent about 20% of the population) flailing away with their Alinskyan insults and no legal argument as to the facts. Obama was born British, of a British subject father, so he can never be eligible.
Gm
January 26th, 2012
8:23 am
Obama just gave orders to our Navy Seal to rescue another American being held hostage and the mission was accomplished. It is sad Obama has to fight terrorist abroad and in Georgia.
I wonder would these same bigot would go after a black football player playing at UGA who was born in Hawiaii? thanks Georgia, between Newt and this you are why the rest of the regions think you sleep with your cousins and biblle thumping hypocrites.
Don't Need Georgia to Win
January 26th, 2012
8:23 am
Go ahead and remove him from the ballot. He wasn’t going to win GA anyway and really don’t need GA to win the presidents races. However if they do decide to remove Obama from the ballot, I am only going to write him in anyway.
Madison
January 26th, 2012
8:28 am
Mark Hatfield. A member of a cadre of nouveau politicians who have determined to mire the once Great State of Georgia in the pig lots of public opinion. As a seventh generation Georgian, I am so sad.
Pepp
January 26th, 2012
8:30 am
Mick,
I don’t recall using the word “racist” in my post. I know the definition of racism.That’s your word and based on what I’ve seen in Georgia politics over the last 20 years (as a causcasian, I might add) it’s probably your mindset.
Gm
January 26th, 2012
8:31 am
I Hope Obama would come to Georgia maybe he put some attention on all the poor whites living in trailers up in the rural areas of Georgia, since Newt was their representative for all these years claiming he cares about Americans.
DILLIGAF
January 26th, 2012
8:35 am
All of you Yankee losers that are complaining about the state of Georgia can take your whiny, d-bag selves back to the great Northeast.
It’s you morons that have deteriorated this great state by relocating here.
ABC
January 26th, 2012
8:35 am
So proud to live in a backwards, redneck, hick state like Georgia. Yee haw!
Slip
January 26th, 2012
8:40 am
Res Judicata. Been there, done that. The ruling on the field has been upheld. The guy’s been in office 3 years. Do these folks know no shame?
I have read the Motion to Quash and the State Administrative Hearings Deputy Chief Judge Michael M. Malihi must not have read it because he ruled they provided no authority for their position. The Motion is beyond complete.
Hamilton
January 26th, 2012
8:44 am
One would think that their colleagues would whisper to these yahoos that if there was any merit to this jump down the rabbit hole, people who AREN’t dumb as a bag of hammers would have stopped him before he was elected the first time.
Pepp
January 26th, 2012
8:45 am
Mick,
Prove that he was born British. PROVE IT!
Mick
January 26th, 2012
8:46 am
Sure Pepp, I’m Amazed at the propensity to flat out lie by the Obama Nation! Here’s what you said:
“Frankly, get over your intolerance in general. And I’m sure you call yourself a Christian. You are full of hate and you are full of sh&%!”
I gues you thought I was “intolerant” of the British! Your hero is not eligible, and he knows it.
Diego Hernandez
January 26th, 2012
8:47 am
Just a reality check people, there’s this thing called a background check. Before you can proceed in becoming the Commander in Chief, you need to pass all requirements. Do you really think the United States will allowing loop holes, and all other countries are laughing at us. I mean it’s bad enough that we’re the 3rd most hated country in the World due to G-Bushes administration. What he did to this country will take at least 10 years to clean up. Why didn’t anyone question his birth certificate… why weren’t questions raised like these one… I would focus on priorities and cleaning this state up first before I put time and effort into this “birth certificate” issue. We’re the poorest state, teachers that are test cheating, teachers that get DUI and still have jobs, let alone crime and violence.. Priorities people… PRIORITIES..
Mick
January 26th, 2012
8:49 am
When I prove it then what?
British Nationality Act of 1948 (Part II, Section 5): Subject to the provisions of this section, a person born after the commencement of this Act shall be a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies by descent if his father is a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies at the time of the birth.
On August 4, 1961, when Barack Obama, Jr. was born, Kenya was still a British Colony. His father, Barack Obama, Sr., was a Kenyan native and, therefore, a British subject and citizen, making Barack Obama, Jr., a British citizen, as well, and ineligible to become President of the United States of America.
Hamilton
January 26th, 2012
8:50 am
The facts. Born in Hawaii (documented) to a foreign father and US citizen mother. There is no credible argument that he is not a citizen qualified under the US Constitution to be President. And guess what all you Micks? He is.
Mick
January 26th, 2012
8:52 am
Nonsense Diego. There is no “background check” done on the President. Besides, the whole political establishment knows he is ineligible, Right and Left. They are beholden to the World Central Bankers, and have installed in illegal President in order to break down the sovereignty of We the People.
Hamilton
January 26th, 2012
8:52 am
British law doesn’t supercede US law. Even if he meets the requirements of British citizenship, he also meets the requirements to be POTUS. Not a single shred of authority that prevents it.
Real American
January 26th, 2012
8:53 am
LMAO @ birthers
Proud Repub
January 26th, 2012
8:53 am
The GOP needs to let this go. They are simply making themselves look like fools, not only here, but to the rest of the world also.
Mike
January 26th, 2012
8:54 am
All you idiots who say this case is valid need to understand that this issue has already been settled. More than once in courts all across this nation. I’m embarrassed to be a Georgian because of back-woods stupidity repeated time and again by our legislators.
Hamilton
January 26th, 2012
8:54 am
Okay. There’s no arguing with conspiracy theorists. I’m out.