AHC: Earlier (and Successful) Equal Opportunity to Govern Amendment

[True Grit]

So in 2003, Republican Senator Orrin Hatch proposed the Equal Opportunity to Govern Amendment, which would have repealed the natural born citizen clause and allowed anyone, so long as they had been an American citizen for 20 years, to run for President/Vice President.

What I'm wondering is when is the earliest time (or best time, really), such an amendment could have been successful?

 

[GeographyDude]

The 27th is the last Amendment ratified:

"No law, varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and Representatives, shall take effect, until an election of Representatives shall have intervened”

And before that, the 26th Amendment ratified in 1971 lowered the voting age to eighteen.

And the very close call on the Equal Rights Amendment, being ratified by (?) 35 states.

 

[GeographyDude]

http://prospect.org/article/27th-amendment-or-bust

One afternoon in March 1982, an undergraduate student at the University of Texas named Gregory Watson was poking through the stacks
.
.
.
the Congressional Pay Amendment
.
.
.
Armed only with an IBM Selectric typewriter and postage stamps, Watson—who describes himself as "mistrustful of politicians, regardless of their partisan affiliation”—began sending letters to members of Congress, Senators, and state legislators, looking for sponsors for the amendment and champions who would push it through statehouses. In a pre-Internet era, this was painstaking work, Watson said, but it paid off. He needed 30 states to ratify the amendment, and before long the effort gained momentum.
.
.
.
On May 7, 1992, the Michigan Legislature became the 38th State to ratify the amendment—enough to declare it approved (it was discovered later that Kentucky had actually already ratified the amendment in 1792, so Alabama was actually the 38th state to ratify on May 5).
.
.
.
After the amendment was certified, Watson continued to press state legislatures for ratification, ultimately having 45 of the 50 states adopt it.

Alright, so Greg Watson and other advocates kept going and eventually got 45 states.

But if they had stopped, it would have raised a real question.

 

[GeographyDude]

If the Equal Opportunity to Govern Amendment had been passed and ratified, maybe Arnold Schwarzenegger runs in the '08 Republican primary. (assuming the man even wants the job!)

 

[Emperor Norton I]

If the Equal Opportunity to Govern Amendment had been passed and ratified, maybe Arnold Schwarzenegger runs in the '08 Republican primary. (assuming the man even wants the job!)

Wasn't the entire amendment just an attempt to allow Schwarzenegger to run?

 

[Minty_Fresh]

Wasn't the entire amendment just an attempt to allow Schwarzenegger to run?

Eh, I kind of doubt it. Hatch is known to be somewhat of an extremist on immigration liberalization.

 

[Dathi THorfinnsson]

I'm not sure it's possible any time recently or now, without some changes, at least.

1) one party is far more likely to support such an amendment if they have someone who fits the rôle, which then makes the other party less likely to.
1a) so you almost need possible candidates from BOTH parties that it might affect, which is a little tough

2) Another way to do it would be for there to be a Supreme Court ruling that strongly restricted the definition of 'natural born citizen', e.g. had to be born on US soil. The injustice of e.g. John McCain (born in the Canal Zone) being ousted from even possibly running might gain enough sympathy from even Democrats, let alone independents, that such an amendment might pass.
2a) It might even be a lower court ruling, or two lower court rulings that conflicted
2b) Chester A. Arthur might well have been born in Canada (there's some confusion as to which kids in that family were born during their stay in Canada), and might have served as an earlier inspiration for such a movement, had it been proven that he was, for instance.

 

[GeographyDude]

almost thinking something very early in the history of the Republic, like 1800, 1810, something like this

 

[Miss Teri]

If the Equal Opportunity to Govern Amendment had been passed and ratified, maybe Arnold Schwarzenegger runs in the '08 Republican primary. (assuming the man even wants the job!)

He's expressed interest in the idea.

 

[Dathi THorfinnsson]

almost thinking something very early in the history of the Republic, like 1800, 1810, something like this

TOO early, without some massive changes.

The Constitution was written with the wording used deliberately, and changing that within the lifetime of the writers would need a good impetus. You'd need Steuben, Lafayette, or Kościuszko to stay in the US, take out citizenship (AFTER 1792), and then run for president later for there to be enough support for such an amendment that early. IMO

 

[True Grit]

Anyone else have any ideas?

 

[Theoretical_TJ]

The easiest POD is that you get "Birther"-type attacks on candidates for a series of elections to where the intent of the constitutional section becomes a mockery/sideshow and the public is tired of people having to have greater and greater proof just to be eligible to run. Popular fatigue can go a long way.

A Supreme Court ruling narrowly interpeting this section would also do the trick due to the potential gotcha-ing risk of a sitting president suddenly becoming ineligible.

 

[GeographyDude]

The easiest POD is that you get "Birther"-type attacks on candidates for a series of elections to where the intent of the constitutional section becomes a mockery/sideshow and the public is tired of people having to have greater and greater proof just to be eligible to run. Popular fatigue can go a long way.

I like this.

The public wants something straightforward. And 20 years does sound like a long time to be a citizen, as a minimum requirement.

 

[GeographyDude]

this question,

When I was in Boy Scouts back in the '70s, there were two boys whose parents were British. They had dual citizenship until age 18 and then would have to make a choice.

But these days, I think some people keep dual citizenship much longer. Would be interested in the details.

 

[Theoretical_TJ]

I like this.

The public wants something straightforward. And 20 years does sound like a long time to be a citizen, as a minimum requirement.

The other reason is that a uniquely federal qualification gets a federal standard less subject to the mischief of a corrupt or vengeful county clerk altering a recor that would only get noticed decades later.