Who Can Be President Of The United States Of America?

[Lou Minotti]

because my garden doesnt prune itself

That...is freaking hysterical.....

[Vee]

I don't know when the US constitution was codified and ratified but I do know the first few US Presidents weren't American born.

I've made an issue of the 14th amendment before for all US Citizens to have equal rights.

Anyone who is a US Citizen has the right to be president if they want. Otherwise everything is built on a false premise and the US is lying to itself anyway

[tinybear]

I agree. I find those who are against this basic principle of equality thoroughly unconvincing.

[Scribbler1]

Then you are saying there should be NO restrictions or qualifiers for the presidency? Would your only requirement be citizenship and a pulse? How about age? We have a few 18 year-olds on this forum who are sharper than a lot of middle aged people I know. They can vote so by your logic they absolutely MUST have the right to be president too.

Be careful what you wish for...

[tinybear]

Quote by: Scribbler1 Then you are saying there should be NO restrictions or qualifiers for the presidency? Would your only requirement be citizenship and a pulse? How about age? We have a few 18 year-olds on this forum who are sharper than a lot of middle aged people I know. They can vote so by your logic they absolutely MUST have the right to be president too. Be careful what you wish for...

Oh, don't be absurd, will you?

[Scribbler1]

Well, then why all the fuss about being natural born? Strictly following the equality argument the fact that you can vote should make you elegible to run for prez. You can join in deciding who runs the country, you can fight for your country, you can marry, start a business and do ANYTHING an older American can do so why can't you LEAD your country?
That is equality, ain't it?

[Nono]

Any restrictions pertaining to age, place of birth, etc. will exclude some people unfit for office and exclude others who would be great. That's the nature of arbitrary rules. I'm not sure most 17-year-olds are mature enough to reponsibly drive a car, but then a lot of 50-year-olds aren't either.

I figure if you're entitled to vote, you should be entitled to stand for office. Period. No matter how big a twit you may be.

Hey tinybear, you going for a thousand posts in your first month? Not bad.

[gr8fuldaniel]

Quote by: Vee I don't know when the US constitution was codified and ratified but I do know the first few US Presidents weren't American born.

George Washington was born in Vermont in 1732. I guess that nullifies the rest of your post.

[tinybear]

Not necessarily. I see you jump to conclusions very easily.

[Feefer]

They didnt want others coming over and runnig for president because there is the possiblity that if a british man came over, he would do it all britans way.

[gr8fuldaniel]

Our current warlord is proof we need MORE restrictions on presidential candidates, not less. Honesty was an unwritten prerequisite. Since honesty has been vetoed, maybe its time to write it in. In the past the media called for resignation of liars. Those days are postponed or dead.
Felons(see snippet below)[, Mentally retarded and Genetic defects should be disqualified from presidential consideration.
Below is a clip from a letter to the pentagon from Buzzflash

Department of Defense The Pentagon Washington, D.C. 20301-1900 To whom it may concern: Recently, I was made aware of allegations concerning several violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) by George W. Bush during the Vietnam War. The alleged acts include being Absent Without Leave (UCMJ Article 86) for a period of more than a year from his National Guard assignments in Texas and Alabama. According to the UCMJ, a person who is AWOL for more than 30 days with evidence of no intent to return to duty is guilty of Desertion. (UCMJ Article 85) To understand the gravity of this offense, one need only read the section 4.9.5 e. of Article 85, which states that the maximum punishment for desertion in a time of war (3), is, "Death or such other punishment as a court-martial may direct". As far as I am aware, George W. Bush has never received any punishment for these alleged crimes, nor has he ever been charged.

Why does one guy get shot and another promoted to the top job in the nation. You want to talk about equal rights for everyone. HAH.

[Vee]

I read it somewhere (NYT probably) , I don't know jack about american presidents and I don't particularly want to.

[tinybear]

Here you go:

http://odur.let.rug.nl/~usa/P/

[Scribbler1]

Great link. Thanx tiny. Kind of like Readers Digest for presidential info. Condensed, compact and readily available.