Arizona lawmakers: Candidates must prove U.S. birth

Bill would require candidate for president or vice president to submit a birth certificate to get on ballot

Published January 28, 2011 8:20PM (EST)

A chamber of the Arizona Legislature has reintroduced legislation aimed at making President Barack Obama prove his US nationality by birth.

The measure in the Arizona House would prohibit placing presidential and vice-presidential candidates on the state's ballot unless they submit a long-form birth certificate that includes the date and place of birth, the names of the hospital and the attending physician and signatures of the witnesses in attendance, according to the New York Daily News. 

Obama submitted a Certificate of Live Birth during the 2008 campaign, a legally recognized document, but Birthers are calling for the submission of his long-form birth certificate to prove he was born in the United States.  

Hawaii officials have repeatedly confirmed Obama's birth there, but Birthers contend Obama was actually born in Kenya, his father's homeland.

The state House narrowly passed a version of the bill in 2010 but it died in the Senate without a vote. This year's bill has not yet been assigned to a committee for a possible hearing. It has 41-co-sponsors, up from 40 last year.


By AP/Salon

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