Is renouncing his Canadian citizenship the only step he needed to take in order to be a viable candidate for the U.S. presidency?
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2 Answers
How is it that Ted Cruz can run for the U.S. presidency seeing as he was born in Calgary?
The US Constitution just requires that the President be a "natural-born citizen". It doesn't say anything about the place of birth. Although the term "natural-born citizen" was never officially defined, the current legal consensus is summarized by a Congressional Research Service report:
The weight of legal and historical authority indicates that the term “natural born” citizen would mean a person who is entitled to U.S. citizenship “by birth” or “at birth,” either by being born “in” the United States and under its jurisdiction, even those born to alien parents; by being born abroad to U.S. citizen-parents; or by being born in other situations meeting legal requirements for U.S. citizenship “at birth.”
Ted Cruz was automatically and involuntarily a US citizen at birth, according to US law. The law for acquisition of US citizenship at birth for children born abroad in wedlock to one US citizen parent (Cruz's mother) and one alien parent (Cruz's father), in effect from 1952 to 1986 (Cruz was born in 1970), says that the child is a US citizen at birth if the US citizen parent was physically present in the US, before the child's birth, for at least 10 years, including 5 years after turning 14. Cruz's mother easily satisfied this condition.
Is renouncing his Canadian citizenship the only step he needed to take in order to be a viable candidate for the U.S. presidency?
Renouncing his Canadian citizenship was never necessary for him to run for or be President. US law does not mention anything about the President having or not having other nationalities. As for whether it makes him more politically viable, well, that depends on your political opinion of him.
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3Nice answer. I think, by him Renouncing his canadian citizenship he avoided certain questions, so it was done to help his campaign, but I agree with you, from a legal sense, it was entirely unnecessary, just as Obama showing his birth certificate was entirely unnecessary from a legal point of view, but such actions can help from a public opinion point of view.– userLTKAug 8, 2015 at 11:19
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Your answer seems pretty definitive. This should render Trump's remarks regarding Cruz moot Jan 18, 2016 at 14:37
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1@JoeTaxpayer: Well, it is true that no court has directly ruled on the matter. It's only a research report. Jan 18, 2016 at 18:09
Is renouncing his Canadian citizenship the only step he needed to take in order to be a viable candidate for the U.S. presidency?
From wikipedia:
The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) neither defines dual citizenship nor takes a position for it or against it. There has been no prohibition against dual citizenship, but some provisions of the INA and earlier U.S. nationality laws were designed to reduce situations in which dual citizenship exists. Although naturalizing citizens are required to undertake an oath renouncing previous allegiances, the oath has never been enforced to require the actual termination of original citizenship.[31]
If you don't mind an opinion interjected; I think Ted Cruz renounced his Canadian Citizenship and distanced himself from Calgarian cultural upbringing to lessen political attacks especially from Fox Media types.
If you don't mind an analytical observation; Whether or not his Alberta heritage makes one a good leader or a bad leader of an international super power is a mute point in this question. But remember Albertans have been called "Blue eyed Arabs" and as noted in redit "Alberta is so American". But the link I really want I can't find which shows how Alberta was settled by American gun-runners trading native furs for western guns and whiskey before England kicked them out with the NWMP (North Western Mounted Police) who were the predecessors to the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) who are kind of world famous today for their red coats and brown hats. "The RCMP always gets their man" is famous quote.
Sorry for digressing but the point is someone from Alberta (whose heritage is arguably both Saudi Arabian and American in nature) is not necessarily a bad thing coupled with the socialist laws, diversity and harmony of immigrants seeking capitalist gains like you see in Canada. Ted Cruz is the wrong man for other reasons I surmise.
