Hawaiian Legislators Put Birther’s Claims to Rest – Obama is Not Kenyan

forged Kenyan birth certificate that circulated the conservative blogosphere

I can’t believe this is news, but Hawaiian legislators have taken steps today to ensure skeptics that President Obama was not, in fact, born in Kenya. We all remember the incredulous McCain supporters, unable to just admit that they lost. Perhaps my favorite claim was that our president is a Muslim, and even maybe a sleeper terrorist cell (?) – and with a name like that, how could it not be true? Representative Rida Labanilla, the bill’s main sponsor, said, “All these people are still doubting it because they don’t want the birth certificate from Obama. They want it from our state office.” The state is currently unable to release the records because of strong constitutional privacy protections.

But, putting these ridiculous claims to rest was only one motivating factor behind the measure. If passed, anybody will be able to acquire Obama’s birth certificate for a fee of $100. One of the main reasons the new legislation is being considered is actually to offset the time lost by state employees who frequently receive phone calls and emails from people who believe Obama was not born in the US. Hawaii is currently facing a budget deficit exceeding $800 million, and if they can make money putting these idiot's claims to rest, then fine. But that does imply that birthers follow some kind of reasonable logic, and I’m not convinced they do yet.

Further Reading:

Washington Post: HI bill would give anyone Obama birth info for fee

Daily Kos: GDP growth clocks in at 3.2% for fourth quarter