White House releases Obama's birth certificate
(CNN) - President Obama released his original birth certificate Wednesday, saying the controversy surrounding the issue had become a "sideshow."
“We do not have time for this kind of silliness. We’ve got better stuff to do," said Obama.
The surprise release follows recent and sustained remarks by businessman Donald Trump, among others, that raised doubts as to whether the president was born in the United States.
“Over the last two and half years, I have watched with amusement. I have been puzzled with the degree with which this thing just kept going,” Obama told reporters Wednesday.
Responding to the development, Trump said, "I have accomplished something nobody else has accomplished."
"I want to look at it, but I hope it’s true," he told reporters in New Hampshire. "He should have done it a long time ago. I am really honored to have played such a big role in hopefully getting rid of this issue."
Earlier Wednesday, White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer said the debate has been "really bad for the Republican Party."
The so-called "birther" debate is "good politics" but "bad for the country," said Pfeiffer.
In an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper Monday, Trump repeated his doubts and said he had been told the certificate was "missing."
A new CNN investigation revealed earlier this week what most analysts have been saying since the "birther" controversy erupted during the 2008 presidential campaign: Obama was born in Hawaii on August 4, 1961.
While the president has made light of the controversy, the question remained political red meat for some of his critics. A recent CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll showed that nearly 75% of Americans believe Obama was definitely or probably born in the United States. More than four in 10 Republicans, however, believe he probably or definitely was not born in America.
See Obama's Certification of Live Birth
The U.S. Constitution says only "natural born" citizens can become president - a vague clause that some members of the birther movement contend disqualifies Obama because, they insist, he was born outside the United States.
Skeptics contend, among other things, that Obama was born in his father's home country of Kenya.
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So Obama's father was not an U.S. citizen, therefore, Obama is not a natural born citizen and ineligible for President.
I say he must resign now. RESIGN NOW.
It's about time! He must have enjoyed the furor over this, else why would he have waited so long to release it. Hopefully we can now get on to more important things. I for one am relieved. His name is on my military retirement orders. If he was ineligible that might have invalidated that order and I would still be in the military!
I am always amused how people were not concerned about the "slide" this country was in for all of George W. Bush's reign. The recycle centers will probably see a huge influx of tin foils hats tomorrow.
Now lets get a birth certificate for Trump's hair! That thing has a life of it's own!
I agree with Sarah. There was no need, no need at all to make this an issue when there a bigger things to worry about like our soliders being killed or gas prices going up or keeping people off the streets and world hunger. IDK Some people need to stop worrying about who our president is and where they're from and start supporting who we have to get the change made.
I knew this was probably all ok. I could not imagine him getting that far without it not being ok. Why take 2 years to release it? What was the big deal? Now what about his college thesis? Mine was "Mehods of Hotel Site Selection and Economic Feasibility." For a POTUS promising transparancy why hide it? He is the president of the dems and repubs. If a significant proportion of your consistancy wants to see it, why hide it? Don't play the race card with me. He would not get a pass if he were white.
Hey Sarah, I care if the President was born in this country. I care about the rule of law and how nobody, especially an elected official, should be above it.I'll get over it when I see the certificate.
So why, exactly, did this take so long? Because it took this long for the damage to his campaign to exceed his contempt for anyone who deigned to question His Lordship.
Oh Sarah, what has happened to the intellect of our people? "Who cares if the President was born in the US"?? I do! The fact that the Constitution of the United States requires the President to be born in the US or one of its territories or military installations is pretty significant, don't you think? Having a counterfeit leader lie to his constituents is not healthy... not that I'm implying anything. 🙂
Finally! Thank you Mr. President. Was that so hard?!
The most important thing is that we Americans don't have the right to elect anyone we want to be President. Gosh forbit, a foreigner!
I saw a comment John Adams made when he heard the head of the US was going to be titled President of the US. "President!" he said. "There are Presidents of soccer teams!" Or something like that. He wanted a more elaborate title.
Too late for credibility...give me the full resourses of the N.S.A. and C.I.A. and I will produce a birth certificate showing I was born anywhere you want, any date you want.
It always amazes me how people will just adopt whatever beliefs suit their political and financial purpose, regardless of the facts. Oh and by the way, global warming is a big hoax perpetrated by the illuminati.
Why the sustained, shrowd of mystery? Why didn't the Bama produce this document two years ago? This light-weight, community organizing, Marxist must be defeated in 2010 so we can restart the engines of Capitalism and unleash the power of a free market to cure our economic ills! What I do not understand is that Marxism has a 100% failure rate historically so why to people think it will start working now in the USA?
Of course this wont shut them up, they will now call it a fake, a forgery, not the readl deal. These people have an agenda.
This oughta be rich...
That 25% of the population will still have problems with this thing. Even though they have all the proof they have been asking for, they now have nothing to talk about. Then, it will be plain to see that this is a matter of race, not national orgin. Again, I applaud John McCain for calling it just what it is; – RACIST. Don't think the world is not watching how this president has been treated. Lord, I do pity the next republican president. What now, Mr. Trump?? Apologies??
Its good this happen, but we all know that the birthers are going to fine something else to say. this thing is not over which is stupid.
It's sad to see President Obama cave to this as well. The birfers will now just move the goalposts, say this is a phony or that something is wrong the long form and nothing will have changed.
As a Tea Party member, it's nice to know that the establishment Republicans will start talking about real issues.
hope and change turned into song & dance didn't it.
Oh, I see. G.W. gets 8 years to screw up the country, but Obama is a failure if he can't fix everything in 3 years. It wouldn't have mattered if Obama or McCain had won the 2008 election. This country was in a downward slide long before the election ever took place. So Obama is in the driver's seat and gets all the heat – fair enough. But cut the guy some slack. It may take a generation to get back to where we were before G.W. (i.e. Chaney) drove us into this mess.
Let me guess, this is a forgery too?
this is the same document they released in the past. it's not a birth certificate but certificate of live birth. HUGE difference. why can't they just release the actual birth certificate if it exists and get this over with??
should have waited...did it too soon