The birther movement isn’t going away anytime soon. And a Montana state representative on CNN last night demonstrated the continued skepticism on the right about the legality of Barack Obama’s presidency.
State Rep. Bob Wagner (R) appeared on Anderson Cooper to talk about his introduction of a “birther bill” in the his state’s capital. The bill requires “documentary proof of the kind established by rule by the secretary of state that shows that the candidate has complied with the durational citizenship and residency requirements for the office as prescribed by the United States constitution.”
When asked by Cooper whether he believes Obama is a citizen of the United States, Wagner said, “Well, I don’t really — I’m not really qualified to say whether I believe he is or not,” he said. “It’s irrelevant to me. There’s been no proof offered, and as far as belief, it doesn’t matter what I believe.”
In disbelief, Cooper pressed forward.
“How can you say there’s no proof offered? There’s the certificate of live birth shown by his campaign in 2008 which has the seal of — the raised seal of the state, it’s signed off on, you know, there’s plenty of evidence that he is. How can you say that there’s not?”
“Well, a certificate of live birth is different than a long form birth certificate,” Wagner replied. “And that’s what intended by the documentation process.”
The interview eventually concluded with Wagner misstating the 14th Amendment and locating his natural citizenship belief in the writings of Swiss philosopher Emer de Vattel.
“Are you saying a natural — that President Obama is not a natural born citizen?” asked Cooper.
Wagner’s response: “A natural born citizen, according to the law of nations and the law of nations and the study of natural law in accordance with a book written by Vattel, which we believe to be the standard for natural born citizenship, requires that you have two parents of — of citizenship born in the United States to be the son or the daughter of a — two parents born of citizenship in the United States.”
Cooper’s reply: “That’s not what is in the 14th amendment.”
Wagner rebutted: “Well, sir, maybe you could do better at it.”
The interview came after a poll showed that half of GOP primary voters believe President Obama wasn’t born in the United States. Montana joins 10 other states considering legislation to require a Presidential candidate to give proof of citizenship in order to get on the state’s ballot.
Watch the video below:
