senator mccain birthplace

Senator John McCain's eligibility as the republican candidate for the 2008 presidential election was questioned in concerns to his birthplace along the Panama Canal. As I previously didn't know myself, John McCain was born in the Panama Canal Zone in 1936 and this raises doubts among individuals citing the constitution, where only a "natural born citizen" can take the office as president of the United States. Senator McCain was born on a military installation in the Canal Zone, as his father was stationed there as a soldier in the 1930's. Senator McCain's campaign advisor's, a well as numerous others in the political realm, are certain that McCain is constitutionally qualified to be the president of the United States. However, it does raise an unusually precedent as no other president to be sworn into office has ever been born outside of the fifty states in the US.

Personally, I view the issue as being somewhat ridiculous. While the constitution states that a president of the United States has to be a natural born citizen, as Senator McCain was born on a United States Military base, that is an area under the United States' jurisdiction and therefore should be considered a part of the United States, at least in terms of this case.

McCain's Canal Zone Birth Prompts Queries About Whether That Rules Him Out