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http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=stor...cy_1&printer=1
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Personally, I don't like the idea a bit.

quicksteal

It's a terrible idea to let foreigners be president. It could be a conflict of interest if Arnold or anyone else that wasn't born here was allowed to run the country. Of course, immigrants have rights and should be welcomed into America, but that doesn't mean that we should give them the car keys. You've just got to look back at why we put the rule in to begin with, and in this case, it still applies.

stevo

I for one don't want a foreigner running this country. They can always have a kid born in this country grow up and become president. If that's not good enough for them then TS. Plus, immigrants can hold any number of high office and legislature positions. Changing the law to let immigrants run for president is just rediculous.

zen_tom

Why is it ridiculous? If everyone was made to vote for an immigrant that might be ridiculous, but to stop people standing? What's the big deal?

aliali

I don't see what the problem is if they become citizens as long as they don't maintain any meaningful dual citizenship (not sure how Isreal fits in this).

More importantly, I think we should all band together and stop listening to M. Albright.

Redlemon

You could also make the argument that immigrants are more patriotic than people who were born here. I mean, they made the effort to uproot their whole lives and come to the USA. I was born here, and I'm still here, but that could just be considered inertia. And perhaps a bit of foreign perspective is just what the presidency needs.

fibber

You should be required to have spent 35 years in the country just like someone born here.


-fibber

joeshoe

I don't like the idea either. I'm all for immigrants, but being born here ensures a level of loyalty to the country that the office needs.

SSgtQ

I have to agree ^^^ bad idea.

splck

As a foreigner, I'd be happy if an immigrant was running your country, but can understand why some wouldn't like the idea.

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filtherton

I can't see why it would be that big of a problem as long as they had lived here for a long time. I would trust arnold more than i trust the current president.

Mojo_PeiPei

I think the amendment should be passed for solely Arnold, the terrorists of the world would surely cower at the wrath of the Ahnold.

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Paq

washington was an immigrant....

seriously, though...I can see problems with it and i can see good parts with it...

problems: conflict of interest..."Hi, mhy president has dual citizenship with korea...whom we are gonna bomb next year..."

pros: tons of immigrants have far more pride and loyalty to this country than probably 50% of the natural citizens...no proof, just wild wild guess...but still, immigrants know the alternative ways of life and obviously prefer american over that...

Honestly, though...if immigrants can join the army, fight and die for this country, they should have the opportunity to help lead this country.

on the other hand, this is only coming up so arnold can be pushed to presidential run, which kinda makes me gag a bit...not that he isn't doing a good job, just that people would be willing to amend the entire constitution to suit one current trend at one current time in the history of the nation..
still, i guess that's why we have amendments...

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guthmund

My understanding is that it would only extend the opportunity to naturalized citizens.

Based on that understanding, I have a hard time finding any argument against it valid.

They chose to come here. Chose to be a part of the system I happened to be born into. What makes my commitment more worthy than their commitment?

I would imagine dual-citizenship for any President would be questionable at best, regardless of whether he or she was born in Bonn, Ottawa or New York.

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connyosis

I really dont see why this would be a bad thing. The person in question, american or foreign must still be elected. It's going to be a well educated, well liked person in any case. Personally I wouldn't care at all if the prime minister here in Sweden is born here, Russia, South Africa or whatever. He is only going to be elected if the people like him/her, and that's good enough for me.

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doncalypso

I don't get how so many of you on this thread are all against foreigners allowed to run for the presidency when the whole topic is to allow naturalized citizens to run for office.

In case you don't understand, a naturalized citizen is someone who was born in another country but subsequently attained US citizenship legally. After all, none of the so-called "Founding Fathers" of this country were US citizens; they were all British citizens...immigrants....foreigners.

And another thing you guys fail to take into account is that if this amendment were to pass it would only allow for "foreigners" to run for president provided that they had been naturalized citizens of the United States for at least twenty-one years.
For someone to become a US citizen they must first be a legal permanent resident of the United States for five years, and then they have the option of applying for US citizenship or renewing their resident alien status after ten years. So basically, by the time a "foreigner" would hypothetically be eligible to run for office he (or she) would have been living in this country legally for twenty-six years, ladies and gentlemen.

So let's think this through logically, people.... We're not talking about just any foreigner coming to the USA and running for office on a whim here. We're talking about people who although born in another country have sworn an oath of loyalty to the United States and kept it true for at least twenty-six years, and unlike natural-born citizens who just happened to be born American, these people made a conscious and deliberate choice to give their loyalty to the USA. On the other hand you could have a person who was natural-born US citizen (either born of American parents abroad or born on US soil) grow up abroad most of his life in a foreign country he's more likely to be loyal to than the USA and come back to run for president, and nobody would give him shit for that simply because he was born American? Come on...

So in conclusion, this argument that a naturalized citizen wouldn't be loyal to the USA is complete and utter bullshit.

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Jesus Pimp

What if you were born in another country(like myself) and came to the US as a baby? Why should that person be denied the right to run for president?

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daswig

changing the constitution is a bad idea generally. The prohibition was put there for a very good reason. And we're neither a numerous nor a popular nation.

Mojo_PeiPei

Al Qaeda will put a sleeper in office.

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Giltwist

Don't be silly. A NATURAL BORN citizen of the US, John Walker, joined Al Qaeda. What's to stop them from doing that now?

Rekna

The only way I would support this is if it were passed with a clause that it would not go into effect for say 30 years. That way we all know our polititions are passing this because they believe in it and not because it suits there current needs.

martinguerre

amazing...

i don't realy feel strongly on the issue...but the whole fear that "forgieners" are evil is pretty alarming. The whole reason this came up in the first place this election cycle was b/c of Arnold.

Now, i don't exactly love his politics...but to heap such xenophobia on a guy that jingoistically american...is more than ironic.

anything that lowers the trust we place in the electorate is generally a bad idea...so i'd have to say let the people make the choice on this matter. it's not like anyone will be able to run and keep it a secret.

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daswig

Of course she does. She's foreign-born and has political aspirations.

OPgary

We have enough qualified people to run this country without allowing foreigners for president. I would never be comfortable that they would have US interests at heart. I would never be able to trust them. Can you imagine having a muslim running for president?

D Rice

They could monitor the conflicts of intrests in other ways than not allowing an imigrant to run for president. I don't see the problem

filtherton

Are you serious? I could understand not trusting someone who was right off the boat to be a good president, but someone who has lived here without incident for 26 years?

What would be the problem with a muslim running for president? You know there are naturally born u.s. citizens who are muslim, right? You know that most muslims don't want to kill or enslave you and your pseudofreedom loving ilk?

jonjon42

That sir, is religous bigotry! Why do you assume that muslim's aren't born here? You should meet my friends,...both are muslim, and both are born-american citizens. That comment is just insulting

Now to the substance of your post.

why would they not have US interest at heart? If they made the effort to move here. Then made a further effort to become a citizen, (taking a test I bet alot of us couldn't pass) and live here for a while. I don't see why they would not have America's interest at heart.

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doncalypso

That was a very racist and bigoted statement. Though I am not muslim myself I take great offense to this statement because I have grown up knowing several muslim people and they were the most decent and kind-hearted human beings I've ever known.

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phredgreen

this has officially been dealt with. continue your discussion and move past this. that is all.

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Altitude

I don't see any problem with letting foreign-born citizens run for president. All of our ancestors were foreign-born at one point, unless of course you're full-blooded Native American. I agree with Madeleine Albright, in that said person should live in the U.S. for a very extended period of time, but otherwise, why not?

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madsenj37

I think that someone who has lived here for 30 years, has not had citizenship in another country those 30 years, and has not had citizenship in another country after the age of 7 will not have any stronger allegiance to a foreign country than compared to someone who was born and who's parents have strong ties to their homeland.

Are you sure it is not spent the last 14 years here and be at least 34 years old?

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Sen

I'm not a fan of the idea of letting a foreign born citizen be President. It has nothing to do with xenophobia, either. I trust the judgement of the founding fathers in putting this provision in the constitution. I realize there are those who will say that things need to be changed over time, i.e. women voting, African Americans voting, 18 yr. olds voting, etc. But I don't see any pressing reason to make this change. If we can't find a home grown citizen for the office, then we are in bad shape.

I also don't like the idea of ammending the constitution for any one personality. If we were to make this change, it would obviously be for Arnold. I'm a Republican and happen to like Arnold a lot. However, I think the constitution is bigger than any one person and shouldn't be altered for the immediate gain of one person.

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Kadath

The only problem I have with this agenda is it's not "Foreigners for the Presidency," it's "Arnold for President." The chance of a foreign-born citizen becoming president is about as good as the chance of a Jewish, black, homosexual or female president right now. Most people in this country would reject such a candidate on the basis of that one quality. Arnold is a unique case.

Note that I don't intend to say that a candidate with the above qualities is in any way unqualified to be President, other than the foreign-born, who is currently Constitutionally unqualified.

In other words, I agree with Sen (though I don't particularly like or dislike Arnold.)

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Locobot

Well I think the idea is preposterous and stupid, but in my current state of political cynicism, I'm all for it. Schwarzenegger would be a marked improvement over Bush in almost every aspect of governance. He's socially liberal and pro-choice and think how much fun it would make the nightly news. Think about a president Schwarzenegger meeting with Putin or negotiating peace in the Mid-East, hilarious! I really don't think anyone could beat him in an election with the possible exception of Bill Clinton (as long as we're in hypothetical territory here).

Lebell

Uh, George Washington was born in Virginia.


http://www.nps.gov/gewa/

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Mephisto2

I think the reaction here is funny.

Your country is fundamentally based upon immigration.

And just for the record, if they have a US passport then they are not a foreigner anymore.


Mr Mephisto

Glava

Yes, he was, and no, he was not an immigrant. However, he was born a citizen of the British empire, as were the first several presidents after him.

Seaver

How is this in anyway relevant? Being a foreigner in his own land somehow? That point is moot. How is someone supposed to be born a citizen of a nation that didnt exist at the time?

Bill O'Rights

Now this, I would consider. The only reason that this issue is even being raised is because of Arnold. I'm sorry people, but the man is not eligible to run for President of the United States. Period. And I am certainly not in favor of ammending the U.S. Constitution just in order to grant him that eligibility. It may be a dynamic document...but it shouldn't be permitted to be changed on a whim. Otherwise...the Constitution is useless.
If there are those that feel that strongly, that foreign born citizens should be eligible, then the caveat of a 30 year "fuse" built in, should not pose a problem.

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Ustwo

I don't think too many here want him to run, myself included.

On the other hand the constitution CAN change on a whim, as its written, so if there was enough support then yes Arnold could be president. There never will be though.

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