zozz262858 128627 pm 06-08-2109 ane Congressman Brian Bilbray 2348 Rayburn House Office Building Phone: 202.225.0508 Fax: 202.225.2558 To: From: d¢Ffyety Post Date: o/8/04 Fax: (160) 499 -Gaq7 Re: Obama's cHtianghie Number of Pages (including cover): { 4 Comments:2022282868 1256:34 pm. 06-06-2009 ane Congressional Research Service TRANSMITTAL June 5, 2009 To: ‘The Honorable Brian P. Bilbray “Attention: Jeffrey Post Constituent: William Lolli From: Jerry W. Mansfield as Information Research Specialist ‘Knowledge Services Group ‘Tel: 7.0106 Subject: Qualifications of Barack Obama to Be President of the United States Per your constituent request, we are enclosing several articles that address concerns about the birth certificate of President Obama, his place of birth, and how questions surrounding it were ultimately resolved. Also included are a lengthy piece prepared by the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, (hip://www factcheck org] and an article that points out that the Internet includes falselioods and they can live forever. ‘We hope you find this information helpful. Please contact me if I can be of further assistance. ‘Congressional Research Service 7.3700zonz282888 125643 pm, 08-08-2000 sine “BUCUNEUL ¥ KW ProQuest Databases selected: Muliple databases. Officials verify birth certificate of Obama ‘Star-Bulletin Sta, News Services, Honolulu Star - Bulletin. Honolulu, Hawall: Nov 1, 2008. Full Toxt (220 words) Copyright Honoluy Star-Bulletin Nov 1, 2008 ‘The state health director said yesterday she has personally seen and verified Sen. Barack Obama's original birth certificate in an effort to address numerous requasts for the document, ‘Obama, who 's running against Sen. John McCain for president, posted on his Web site the birth certificate showing Honolula 23 his birthplace. ‘State Jaw prohibits the release of a birt certificate except to a person seeking his of her own certificate and the person's ‘spouse, parent and legal guardian. But heaith officials have been receiving numerous e-mail and phone requests for the document, according to Janice Okubo, ‘Heath Department spokeswoman. Health Director Chiyome Fukino said she and the vital statistics registrar viewed and verified Obama's bith certificate, “No state official, including Gov. Linda Lingle, has ever instructed that this vital record be handled in a manner difterent from any other vital record in the possession of the State of Hawai,” Fukino said. Crkics nave questioned whether Obama is a U.S. citizen and have filed lawsuits around the country challenging it. Those suits hhave been dismissed, including one in Ohio yasterday. In Hawaii, Andy Martin, an Obame opponent, fled a lawsuit earlier this month seeking copy of the bith certificate. The Hawaii Supreme Court on Oct. 22 denied his request to see the document Credit: By Star-Bulletin Staff and News Services Indexing (document details) Author(s): Star-Bulletin Stat, News Services Document types: News ‘Section: news Publication ttle: Honolulu Star-Bulletin. Honolulu, Hawai: Nov 1, 2008, Source type: Newspaper ProGuest document ID: 1587240071 Taxt Word Count 20 Document URL: ‘ttpvproquest um). com/padweb7did=158724007 Asid=28F mi=B8el entig=457148ROT=3084VName=PQ0_ Copyright © 2009 ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. Library of Congress. rg a ll huitp://proquest.umi,com/pqdweb?index=1 5&sid=2&srchmode=1 &vinst=PROD&fmt=3&startpag... 5/28/20092072282658 125658 pm. 06.08.2009 ane ocument View ProQuest Databases selected, Mutiple databases EDITORIAL: Obama birth certificate gets a pass from the Supreme Court ‘Anonymous. MeClatchy - Tribune Business News. Washington: Dec 9, 2008. Abstract (Summary) Leo C. Donottio of New Brunswick, N.J., originally had asked Nina Micheli Wells, the New Jersey secretary of state, to postpone the Nov. ¢ election on the grounds that neither Mr. Obama, the Democratic candidate fer president, nor his Republican opponent, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, was a “naturai-bom’ citizen of the United States, 03 the criteria spelted ‘out inthe U.S. Constitution put it Full Text (480 words) 9 see more of the St, Lovis Post-Dispatch, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to hitp:/vww. sttoday.com. Copyright (<) £2008, St. Louis Post-Dispatch Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 600-374-7085 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6068, or wnte to The Permissions Group inc., 1247 Miwaukee Ave, Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. ‘Dec. 9M would be nice to think that Supreme Court order No. 08407 would lay to rest the Internat-driven conspiracy theories ‘about the circumstances of Barack Obama's birth. Nice, but not realistic. {in Order Na. 084407, issued Monday morning, he court decided to not take up the case of Donofiio v. Wells, rejecting it without comment as it does with al but about 100 ofthe 7,000 petitions it considers ach yaar. Thus, the Elactoral College wil bbe able to meet next Monday as scheduled to formally elect Mr. Obama as president without walling for the court to issu an ‘pinion about whether Mi. Obama is @ United States citizen, 'n one way, i's heartening: Donofrio v. Wells means that no matter how wacky or specious a ckizen’s case may be, he has @ ‘ight to ask the highest cour in the land to hear i. I's even more heartening, however, thatthe justices rejected the opportunity to hear the case. It means that grown-ups stil are {in charge. that law trumps emotion and that, despite the best efforts of the creduious fringe, the rest of us sil ve in the roality. bbased word. ‘Leo C. Donoftio of New Brunswick, N.J., originally had asked Nina Mitchell Wells, the New Jersey secretary of state, to postpone the Nov. 4 election on the grounds that neither Mr. Obama, the Democratic candidate for president, nor his, Republican opponent. Sen. John McCain of Arizona, was a “natural-bom* citzen of the United States, as the erteria spelled ut in the U.S. Constitution put it. (Mr. Obama was bom i Hawail in 1961, and Mr. McCain was born in the Panama Canal Zone. Mr. Donottia claims that ‘because Mr, Obama's father was a ctizen of Kenya, a British colony in 1961, Mr. Obama was “a British citizen at bith.” ‘Ms. Walls declined to stop the election: the New Jersey Supreme Court upheld her decision, On Monday, the Supreme Court declined to take up Mr. Donofrio's request for a stay. That should satle things, right? Not so fast. Philip J. Berg of Lafayette Hil, Pa., whose federal fraud sult against Mr. Obama ‘was thrown out of court in Pennsyivania, has asked the Supreme Court to hear his appeal. He claims the president-elect ‘actually was bom in Kenya; that he may, in fact, be a citizen of Indonesia; that his Hawaiian birth certificate Is fraudulent. All of those claims have been debunked by state officials, documents and fact-based media examinations, but true conspiracy ‘crusaders are undaunted: Well, of course they debunk it they/re part ofthe conspiracy! In the old days, such crusaders had only typewriters (usually with red-and-black ribbons) and the postal service to spread their message, Today, there are websites, blogs and pendering talk show hosts looking to pump up ratings by any means necessary, ‘attp://proquest. umi.com/pqdweb?index=9 &sid=24 srchmode=28-vinst-PROD&fmt=3é&startpage... 5/27/20092072252558 125720pm. 06-08-2009 bie FactCheck.org: Born in the U.S.A. Page | of 6 Born in the U.S.A. August 21, 2008 Updated: November 1, 2008 The truth about Obama's birth certifica Summary {n June, the Obama campaign released a digitally scanned image of his birth certificate to quell speculative charges that he might not be a natural-born citizen. But the image prompted more blog-based skepticism about the document's authenticity. And recently, author Jerome Corsi, whose book attacks Obama, said in a TV interview that the birth certificate the campaign has is “fake.” We beg to differ. FactCheck.org staffers have now seen, touched, examined and photographed the original birth certificate. We conclude that it meets all of the requirements from the State Department for proving U.S. citizenship. Claims that the document lacks a raised seal or a signature are false. We have posted high- resolution photographs of the document as "supporting documents” to this article. Our conclusion: Obama was born in the U.S.A. just as he has always said. Update, Nov. 1: The director of Hawaii's Department of Health confirmed Oct. 31 that Obama was born in Honolulu. Analysis Update Nov. 1: The Associated Press quoted Chiyome Fukino as saying that bott ‘she and the registrar of vital statistics, Alvin Onaka, have personally verified that the health department holds Obama's original birth certificate. Fukino also was quoted by several other news organizations. The Honolulu Advertiser quoted Fukino as saying the agency had been bombarded by requests, and that the registrar of statistics had even been called in at home in the middle of the night. Honolulu Advertiser, Nov. I 2008: "This has gotten ridiculous,” state health director Dr. Chiyome Fukino said yesterday. "There are plenty of ather, important things to focus on, like the economy, taxes, energy." ... Will this be enough to quiet the doubters? "I hope so.” Fukino said. "We need ta get some work done.” Fukino said she has “personally seen and verified that the Hawaii State Department of Health has Sen. Obama's original birth certificate on record in accordance with state policies and procedures.” Since we first wrote about Obama's birth certificate on June 16, speculation on his citizenship has continued apace. Some claim that Obama posted a fake birth certificate to his Web page. That charge leaped from the blogosphere to the mainstream media earlier this week when Jerome Corsi, author of a book attacking Obama, repeated the claim in an Aug. 15 interview with Steve Doocy or Fox News. hup://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/print_born_in the_usa.htmt 6/3/2009 Aunrenvery Puble Policy Center ofthe Wuaversity of Peiusulvans a.2022282558 125739pm. 06-08-2009 ene FactCheck.org: Bom in the U.S.A Page 2 of 6 Corsi: Well, what would be really helpful is if Senator Obama would release primary documents like his birth certificate. The campaign has a false, fake birth certificate posted on their website. How is anybody supposed to really piece together his life? Doocy: What do you mean they have a "false birth certificate” on their Web site? Corsi: The original birth certificate of Obama has never been released, and the campaign refuses to release it Doocy: Well, couldn't it just be a State of Hawaii-produced duplicate? Corsi: No, its a — there's been good analysis of it on the Internet, and it's been shown to have watermarks from Photoshop. It's a fake document that's on the Web site right now, and the original birth certificate the campaign refuses to produce, Corsi isn't the only skeptic claiming that the document is a forgery. Among the most frequent objections we saw on forums, blogs and e-mails are: * The birth certificate doesn't have a raised seal. « It isn't signed. «+ No creases from folding are evident in the scanned version. + In the zoomed-in view, there's a strange halo around the letters. + The certificate number is blacked out. * The date bleeding through from the back seems to say "2007," but the document wasn't released until 2008, + The document is a "certification of birth,” not a "certificate of birth.” Recently FactCheck representatives got a chance to spend some time with the birth certificate, and we can attest to the fact that itis real and three-dimensional and resides at the Obama headquarters in Chicago. We can assure readers that the certificate does bear a raised seal, and that it's stamped on the back by Hawaii state registrar Alvin T. Onaka (who uses a signature stamp rather than signing individual birth certificates). We even brought home a few photographs. http://www. factcheck.org/clections-2008/print_born_in_the_usa htm! 6/3/20092022282558 128753 pm. 06-08-2008 me FactCheck.org: Page 3 of 6 The Obama birth certificate, held by FactCheck writer Joe Miler hitp://www factcheck.org/elections-2008/print_born_in_the_usa,html 6/3/20092027262568 126025pm 06-08-2009 ane FaetCheck org: Born in the U.S.A. Page 4 of 6 The raised sea! ‘Blowup of text ‘You can click on the photos to get full-size versions, which haven't been edited in any way, except that some have been rotated 90 degrees for viewing purposes. The certificate has all the elements the State Department requires for proving citizenship to obtain a U.S. passport: “your full name, the full name of your parent (8), date and piace of birth, sex, date the birth record was filed, and the seal or other certification of the official custodian of such records." The names, date and place of birth, and filing date are all evident on the scanned version, and you can ‘see the seal above. ‘The document is a “certification of birth," also known as a short-form birth certificate. The long form is drawn up by the hospital and includes additional information such as birth weight and parents’ hometowns. The short form is printed by the state and draws from a database with fewer details. The Hawaii Department of Health's birth record request form does not give the option to request a photocopy of your long-form birth certificate, but their short form has enough information to be acceptable to the State Department. We tried to ask the Hawaii DOH why they only offer the short form, among other questions, but they have not given a response, The scan released by the campaign shows halos around the black text, making it look (to some) as though the text might have been pasted on top of an image of ‘security paper. But the document itself has no such halos, nor do the close-up photos we took of it. We conciude that the halo seen in the image produced by the campaign is a digital artifact from the scanning process. We asked the Obama campaign about the date stamp and the blacked-out certificate number. The certificate is stamped June 2007, because that's when Hawaii officials produced it for the campaign, which requested that document and “all the records we could get our hands on” according to spokesperson Shauna Daly. The campaign didn't release its copy until 2008, after speculation began to appear on the Internet questioning Obama's citizenship. The campaign then rushed to release the document, and the rush is responsible for the blacked-out certificate number. Says Shauna: "[We] couldn't get someone on the phone in Hawaii to tell us whether the number represented some secret information, and we erred on the side of blacking it out. Since then we've found out it's pretty ifrelevant for the outside world." The document we looked at did have a certificate number; it is 151 1961 - 010641 bttp:/Awww. factcheck.org/elections-2008/print_born_in_the_usa.htm! 6/3/2009omas2568 oveoazpm 06-08-2000 on2 FaetCheck org: Bom in the U.S.A. Page 5 of 6 DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AWAN USA ‘Blowup of certificate number ‘Some of the conspiracy theories that have circulated about Obama are quite imaginative. One conservative blogger suggested that the campaign might have obtained a valid Hawaii birth certificate, soaked it in solvent, then reprinted it with Obama's information. Of course, this anonymous blogger didn’t have access to the actual document and presents this as just one possible "scenario" without any evidence that such a thing actually happened or is even feasible. We also note that so far none of those questioning the authenticity of the document have produced a shred of evidence that the information on it is incorrect. Instead, some speculate that somehow, maybe, he was born in another country and doesn't meet the Constitution's requirement that the President be a “natural-born citizen.” We think our colleagues at PolitiFact.com, who also dug into some of these loopy theories put it pretty well: “It is possible that Obama conspired his way to the precipice of the world’s biggest job, involving a vast network of people and government agencies over decades of lies. Anything's possible. But step back and look at the overwhelming evidence to the contrary and your sense of what's reasonable has to take aver.” In fact, the conspiracy would need to be even deeper than our colleagues realized. In late July, a researcher looking to dig up dirt on Obama instead found a birth announcement that had been published in the Honolulu Advertiser on Sunday, Aug. 13, 1961: PW? Kalapu St, Ewa Deach, davghter, Auz. 5. Ar, and Airs. Barack H, Obama, 6385 Kalantanacie Hwy., sen, Aug. 4 far. and Atrs, Norman Aving, 2135} Ant Aniku ‘St, "son, Aug, 4, Me and files. Andrew A. Obama's birth announcement Ewa, 28] The announcement was posted by a pro-Hillary Clinton blogger who grudgingly concluded that Obama "likely" was born Aug. 4, 1961 in Honolulu. Of course, it's distantly possible that Obama's grandparents may have planted bhutp://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/print_born_in_the_usa.html 6/3/2009072252558 01:00:48pm. 06-08-2008 ron2 FattCheck.org: Bom in the U.S.A. Page 6 of 6 the announcement just in case their grandson needed to prove his U.S. citizenship in order to run for president someday. We suggest that those who choose to go down that path should first equip themselves with a high-quality tinfoil hat. The evidence is clear: Barack Obama was born in the U.S.A. Update, August 26: We received responses to some of our questions from the Hawaii Department of Health. They couldn't tell us anything about their security paper, but they did answer another frequently-raised question: why is Obama's father's race listed as “African”? Kurt Tsue at the DOH told us that father’s race and mother's race are supplied by the parents, and that “we accept what the parents self identify themselves to be." We consider it reasonable to believe that Barack Obama, Sr., would have thought of and reported himself as “African.” It's certainly not the slam dunk some readers have made it out to be. When we asked about the security borders, which look different from some other examples of Hawaii certifications of live birth, Kurt said "The borders are generated each time a certified copy is printed. A citation located on the bottom left hand comer of the certificate indicates which date the form was revised.” He also confirmed that the information in the short form birth certificate is sufficient to Prove citizenship for “all reasonable purposes.” ~by Jess Henig, with Joe Miller Sources United States Department of State. ” Accessed 20 Aug. 2008. ton for a U.2. Passport. State of Hawaii Department of Health. "Roques= if fed Copy of birch Record." Accessed 70 Aug, 2008. Hollyfieid, Amy. "obana's » Rertificate: Pinal Chapt Politifact.com. 27 Jun. 2008. The Associated Press. "State 31 Oct 2008 ‘CopyI@N© 2008 - 2000, Annenberg Pubic Policy Carter of the Unvesty of Peneyivan FctCnecs.or' sa, not the Annenberg Centr respon fortis materia. hutp://www. factcheck.org/elections-2008/print_born_in_the_usa html 6/3/20092022252558 010106, 06-08-2008 nna “7” yocument view ProQuest Databases selected: Multible databases. Internet drives Barack Obama birth-certificate battle: Web allows opinions to “live forever," expert says Tim Jones, McClatchy - Tribune Business News. Washington: Dec 8, 2008 Abstract (Summary) Fiva weeks alter the Stale of Hawaii vouched for the authenticty of President-olect Barack Obama's bith certificate, the controversy over allegations that Obama is not eligible to take office next month has reached the Supreme Court, whlch is ‘expected to announce Monday whether it will consider the matier. The lawyers who, in at least six states including New jersey and Connecticut, have argued Obama is not a natura-born citizen and cannot be president include one whe supported {Hilary Clntor's presidertal bid, one who has thundered for decades against the legaity ofthe federal government collecting, {come tax, and one who argues that Sen. John McCain, by virtue of his birth 72 years ago in the Panama Canal Zone, woud ‘be banned from moving ino the Oval Office, had he won last month's election. Full Text (944 words) To s90 more of the Chicago Tribune, or to subscribe to the newspoper, go fo Ittp/umw chicagotnbune.com. Copyright(c) 2008, Chicago Tribune Distributed by McCiatehy-Trtoune Information Services. For reprints, erat , call 600-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to Tho Permissions Group inc., 1247 Miwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, iL 60025, USA Dec. 8~This is a story that wont go away. Five weeks after the State of Hawai vouched for the authenticity of President-elect Barack Obama's birth certiicale, the controversy over allegations that Obama is not eligible to take office next month has reached the Supreme Court, which is. ‘expected to announce Monday whether it wid consider the matter. ‘The fight is unusual because it tives outside the so-called mainstream media, far beyond the oak-paneled offices of $700-an- hour lawyers and a world away from the 35 individuals whose surnames are preceded by Representative or Senator. This is @ diferent army at work, in an environment increasingly infuenced by the Internet. “Its only being mentioned by a relative few, by the real die-hard, ant-Obama crowd.” said Michael Harrison, editor and Publishor of Talkers magazine, the rade bible ofthe tak-radio industry. ‘On mainstream talk radio, is nota big deal right now. think its run its course.” “But,” Harrison added, "we live in a ime that, because of the Intomet, all points of view can live forever.” ust as there is « spit on the legitimacy of the legal claims, there is also a spit within the media on the merits of the story, fs it {he fast gasp of opposition trom opponents of Obama who have a found community of ke-minded believers on the Intervet, or 's there a legal question to be resolved? The court will answer the latter question this week ‘The campaign challenging the logitmacy of Obama's 1961 birth certificate or the legal of his taking office is chronicied by 8 popular, poltically ightearing site that was the 26th most~sited news and media Web site during November, accorcing to Hitwise, which monitors Net traffic. {i this [Obama taking office) happens, the question of eligibility forthe highest office in the land will no longer even be a matter for concer,” wrote Joseph Farah, founder and ector of WorldNetDaily, “Precedent will have been established. Asnoid Schwarzenegger wil suddenly be eligible to run for the office in 2012," Farah wrote, referring to the Austrian-bom Calilonia governor and fim star. ‘An Obama spokesman declined to comment for this story {http://proquest.umicom/pqdweb?index=10&sid=2&srchmode=1&vinst=PROD&fimt=3&startpag... 5/28/20092022252558 010125pm, 06-08 2000 ana AEE CUINIED Vv eW ‘The lawyers who, n at least st states including New Jorsey and Connecticut, have argued Obama is nat a naturalbom etizen ‘and cannot be prasident inciude one who supported Hilary Claton's presidental bid, one who hes thundored for decaces against the agaly of the federal government collecting income tax. and one who argues that Sen, John McCain, by see of his birh 72 years ago in the Panama Canal Zone, would be banned from moving into the Oval Offce, had he won las neencats ‘lection Loo Donotrio is a New Jersey lawyer who ined to get Obama and McCain stricken from the New Jersey ballot in November. Donofiio's case was presented Friday to justices of the Supreme Court Another cate challenging Obarna’s eighilly. Mis one {rom Pennsylvania, has nol yet been presented to the ful court for Its consiceration, My question is on a pure consttutonal ground,” said Donofrio. [Obama] is a clizen of the United States. | just dont believe he's @ nalural-bom cizen,* [This is the thrust ofthe attack, picked up by people such as Bob Schulz, an upstate New York engineer who bought two full- age ads in the Tribune this month that called Obama "a usurpér" wha “would be entitled to no allegiance, obeckenes or ‘support from the People.” {ong history of petiioning the goverment for redress of grievances for voiations af the consttuton and the law.” ssid Sens, Ifthe Supreme Court decides not to consider the case, Donotio said there ‘wont be any beating on the drums saying there ‘wasn't any justice." ‘But that will not be the end of the matter, Farah vowed, {tt plegue Obama throughout his presidency. If be a nagging issue and a sore on his administration, much like Monica Heaney was on { President Bi) Clinton,” Farah said “Its not going to go away and twit drive @ wedge In an atready avided public." oan nay underscore a landscape change inthe media, where the intemetis playing a bigger role in setting the agenda, in 72004; the so-called swift boat campsign against Sen, John Kery, the Democratic presidential cominee. began on the interpet, In fact. the co-author of “Unit lor Command: Swift Boal Veterans Spaak Out Against John Kerry" Jarome Corey, alse wrete “Obama Nation," a book critical of Obama, published earter this year Grandan Nyhan, a pollcal scientist at Quke Unwersity, sald the intemet's role in forming pubic opinion is gaining strength WreTeNetDaly, for Instance, has one of the faster-growing audiences onthe Internet, up O2 percent inthe past year, according to Hitwise. Dhan co-wrote a study this year thal said journals’ attempts to correct misinformation is unlikely to sway public perceptions because many people want ta believe the misperception, Negple often have a strong bias fr bekeving the evidence they want a believe and disbelieving what they don't belevo,* Nyhan sald, “There is loss of @ sense that we all hve a common set of facts we can agree on. There's a polarization, arg we ‘can't even agree on the basic factual assumptions to have 2 dabato.” tmjones@tribune.com Cregit: Chicago Tribune Indexing (document detalts) Internet, Federal government, Presidents Tim Jones News ‘McCiatchy - Tribune Business News. Washington: Dec 8, 2008. Wire Feed ProQuest document 1D: 1608363591 Inttp://proquest.umi, ‘com/pqdweb?index=10&sid=2&srchmode~1&vinst=PRODAcfmt=34startpag..._ 5/28/2009