Is John McCain Legally Eligible to be President?

John McCain may not be legally eligible to serve as President of the United States because he may not be a natural born U.S. citizen, which is required by our Constitution. McCain was born in the Panama Canal Zone to American parents.

McCain defenders claim the Panama Canal Zone was a U.S. territory and thus, anyone born there is a natural born U.S. citizen. However, the Panama Canal was never a U.S. territory. The United States leased the land from Columbia (who controlled Panama in 1903 when the lease was signed). It was land owned by, and part of, the country of Columbia. A few months after signing the lease, Columbia refused to honor it, which lead to a rebellion (supported, and some say arranged by the U.S.) and eventually led to the independence of the country of Panama. Panama then signed a lease with the U.S. for control of the canal. John McCain was born in the small tract of leased land called the Panama Canal Zone in 1936 and has dual citizenship in the U.S. and Panama.

Perhaps the question would get more attention if John McCain had been born in Guantanamo Bay, another piece of property leased by the U.S., but in Cuba.

Leased land is not territory.

Read for yourself:

Section 1 of Article II of the Constitution contains the clause:
“No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.”

Additionally, the 12th Amendment to the Constitution states that: "[N]o person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States."

Three major candidates have sought the Presidency who were born outside the United States: Barry Goldwater (ran in 1964) was born in Arizona while it was still a U.S. territory, George Romney (ran in 1968) was born in Mexico to U.S. parents, and John McCain (ran in 2000 and runs in 2008) was born in the Panama Canal Zone to U.S. parents. Barry Goldwater's case among these three is unique in that although Arizona was not a state, it was a fully incorporated territory of the United States, making it debatable whether or not he was born "outside" the United States. The Panama Canal Zone was under United States sovereignty between 1903 and 1979.[7] None of these candidates was elected, so it has never been fully addressed whether children born to Americans overseas are "natural-born citizens" and thus eligible for the Presidency. However, McCain is currently seeking the 2008 Republican nomination for President.

Interesting that this hasn't been discussed in the mainstream media? Is there a clear cut answer? Is John McCain legally eligible to be the United States President?