Our Internationally Adopted Children can be Anything They Want Except…. President
With the Democratic campaign in Denver all over our TV screens, I can’t help but feel a little gloomy, and here is why: an adopted child not born in the United States can never be president.
If you are unfamiliar with this law, here is an excerpt from Article II of our constitution:
Clause 5: No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.”
How do you feel about this? Why does a person have to be born in the U.S. to be considered competent to be the leader of this country? Does a child who was brought home within a few months or years of their birth lack the commitment,skills and dedication needed to lead the U.S.?
Perhaps there is unnecessary concern that there would be a conflict of interest, after all, our internationally adopted children were born in a foreign country. But a country built on immigrants, many who have always kept strong ties to their ancestors’ homelands, can surely understand that this is an unfound concern. Our children can most certainly be as loyal and patriotic to the U.S. as any child born here.
To date there have been unsuccessful efforts to change this law. In 2005, two amendments to the Constitution of the United States were proposed, but not passed:
1. One law required 20 years of citizenship for a naturalized American to be eligible to hold the Office of President.
2. The other law required 35 years of citizenship for naturalized Americans to be eligible to be President and Vice President.
I propose that it is time to support changing this law. Remember, adoptive parents are a number to be reckoned with; since 1990, over 247,000 children have been adopted through intercountry adoption. We have a voice – we can make a difference. Let’s ensure that our adopted children have the opportunity to hold the highest elected office in the country.
Image Credit: Flickr
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Natasha Has Always Found This Disappointing
Natasha ran into this factoid when she was 6 years old. She was highly disappointed that everyone in her first grade class could dream of being President of the United States... but she can’t.
She actually brought this up last week. She is 11 years old now and has been following the presidential campaigns with me. She was highly excited about Hillary's campaign and really wanted a woman president. But she is OK with Obama.
Anyway... we were talking about the presidential candidates and she spontaneously brought up that she cannot be president. I don't think she actually wants to be president. She just wants the possibility.
AngelaW
The ones that you love the most are usually the ones that hurt you the most. - Unknown
Of course Natasha wants the
Of course Natasha wants the possibility - no one likes to have barriers placed in front of them for no good reason except something as ridiculous as being born in a different country.
I vote Natasha.
Lisa S.