Remember that scene in the movie Jerry Maguire when Rod Tidwell is making Jerry yell, show me the money? Well, Arizona’s Rep. Judy Burges (R-Skull Valley) wants Arizona to yell, show me the certificate!
Rep. Judy Burges pushes birther bill in Arizona legislature
It’s true. Yet again, President Obama’s constitutional eligibility for the Oval Office is being questioned. This time President Obama’s place of birth is under review, albeit indirectly, in the Arizona legislature through a bill introduced by Rep. Judy Burges. The bill, HB 2441, would require future presidential candidates to file proof of constitutional eligibility (including birth certificate) with the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office before qualifying for the ballot.
I don’t fault Rep. Burges or others who question, out of curiosity, Mr. Obama’s credentials. The fact is that the mainstream press and the White House have sounded like Willy Wonka in his Chocolate Factory on this issue. I keep hearing Willy Wonka tell the children, “never ever doubt what nobody is sure about.” This should be a non-issue that is easy to clear up. I don’t know about you, but I keep a copy of my birth certificate locked up in my files. I’ve found that I need it for a lot of legal purposes. I’m sure Mr. Obama has one too and it shouldn’t be that hard to produce.
On the whole, this isn’t necessarily a bad bill. It’s wise for a state to have watchful checks in place that maintain constitutional order. Even Santa Claus checks his list twice; perhaps it makes sense that we check our lists twice as well. (I spell checked this twice and but I’m sure there are still errors.)
The problem with this bill is that it reminds me of that other scene in Jerry Maguire when Rod’s wife wants to know what Jerry stands for and Renee Zellweger’s character, Dorothy, responds with the line that Jerry is ‘someone who has some integrity who isn’t sitting around saying show me the money.’ My point? There are just bigger issues at hand.
Show me the certificate! Okay, we care, we are curious, but really? How about showing me the ways the Arizona legislature will make our state laws and regulations more business friendly so that we can promote job growth. How about figuring out where to cut spending to get our deficit under control. Or how about figuring out a way to help our state economy recover.
My instinct tells me this issue will linger like the 2000 presidential election; while nobody really knows the whole story, we’ll always be curious until it’s settled. But for now there are much bigger issues to confront. Somebody pass me the popcorn I feel like watching a movie.
Lyburn earned his Bachelors Degree from Cornell University and has professional experience in the Maryland Office of the Governor and in financial services. 
Mr Furguson, I’d truly like to know what exactly you are curious about. Don’t you think that during the Presidential campaign that the whole issue of the birth certificate would have been brought up? Even Trent Franks has stated on more than one occasion that he is satisfied with the evidence. Enough!
Just because there are big issues facing Arizona, and the entire nation, does not mean that the questions surrounding Obama’s eligiblity should be ignored. After all, we are talking about the highest elected office in this country and the most powerful position on Earth. Our entire political class and almost the entire media gave Obama a pass during the campaign. The courts have never allowed the issue to be heard on the merits. As an American not from Arizona, I am very grateful that 31 of your state’s representatives care about enforcing the Constitution.