An interesting turn of events... thoughts?
------------------------------------------------------------------
Another Lawsuit against Obama makes it to Supreme Court.
http://www.prlog.org/10139161-obama-presidency-challenged-by-new-jersey-voter-renatural-born-citizen-before-us-supreme-court.html
Voter re:"natural born citizen" - Before US Supreme Court
Obama presidency challenged by New Jersey voter re: "natural born citizen"
now before US Supreme Court. Standing not an issue-Birth Certificate not
main point of suit. Action was originally filed against both Obama and
McCain alleging ineligibility.
Champion of rights
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PRLog (Press Release) - Nov 10, 2008 - On October 27, 2008,
plaintiff-appellant, Leo Donofrio, a retired attorney acting Pro Se, sued
Nina Mitchell Wells, Secretary of State of the State of New Jersey, in the
Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, demanding the Secretary
execute her statutory and Constitutional duties to police the security of
ballots in New Jersey from fraudulent candidates ineligible to hold the
office of President of the United States due to their not being "natural
born citizens" as enumerated in Article 1, Section 2, of the US
Constitution.
Unlike other law suits filed against the candidates, Berg etc., this action
was the only bi-partisan suit, which sought to have both McCain and Obama
removed for the same reason. (Later, Plaintiff also sought the removal of
Nicaraguan born Roger Colera, the Presidential candidate for the Socialist
Workers Party). The Berg suit will almost certainly fail on the grounds of
"standing", but Donofrio v. Wells, having come directly from NJ state
courts, will require the SCOTUS to apply New Jersey law, and New Jersey has
a liberal history of according standing to citizens seeking judicial review
of State activity.
While raising it as an ancillary issue, Plaintiff in this case didn't rely
upon questioning Obama's birth certificate as the core Constitutional issue.
Rather, he alleges that even if Obama was born in Hawaii, he was born to a
Kenyan national father and is therefore not eligible to be President due to
having dual loyalties at birth and split jurisdiction at the time of his
birth.
The cause of action first accrued on September 22, 2008, when Secretary
Wells certified to county clerks, for ballot preparation, a written
"statement", prepared under her seal of office, that was required by statute
to contain names of only those candidates who were "by law entitled" to be
listed on ballots in New Jersey. The statement is demanded by N.J.S.A.
19:13-22.
The law suit raises a novel contention that the statutory code undergoes
legal fusion with the Secretary's oath of office to uphold the US
Constitution thereby creating a minimum standard of review based upon the
"natural born citizen" requirement of Article 2, Section 1, and that the
Supremacy clause of the Constitution would demand those requirements be
resolved prior to the election.
The key fact, not challenged below, surrounds two conversations between the
plaintiff-appellant and a key Secretary of State Election Division official
wherein the official admitted, twice, that the defendant-Secretary just
assumed the candidates were eligible taking no further action to actually
verify that they were, in fact, eligible to the office of President. These
conversations took place on October 22nd and 23rd.
Plaintiff-Appellant then initiated the litigation process on Monday, October
27th.
Now, post-election, plaintiff is seeking review by the United States Supreme
Court to finally determine the "natural born citizen" issue. Plaintiff
alleged the Secretary has a legal duty to make certain the candidates pass
the "natural born citizen" test. The pre-election suit requested that New
Jersey ballots be stayed as they were defective requiring replacements to
feature only the names of candidates who were truly eligible to the office
of President.
The action was brought as a "Complaint In Lieu of Prerogative Writs" (aka
writ of mandamus) directly to the Appellate Division in NJ. An arduous four
day litigation ended with Judge Sabatino denying plaintiff emergency relief.
Plaintiff then submitted the matter to the New Jersey Supreme the next
morning, and after an emergency review by multiple Supreme Court Justices,
the application for emergency relief was denied.
However, in an incredible turn of events, the NJ Supreme Court specifically
ignored the lower court's five page opinion - such opinion having avoided
the Constitutional question presented - and relied upon "Movant's Papers"
which did discuss and employ Constitutional issues.
This then opened a door to US Supreme Court review. Since "Movant's papers"
are based on a Constitutional issue, it is proper for the US Supreme Court
to review the case.
Plaintiff-appellant prepared the US Supreme Court emergency stay application
over the weekend and then rushed off to Washington DC on November 3rd where
he filed an Application For Emergency Stay of New Jersey ballots, and/or a
stay of the "national election". Plaintiff's terminology is of vital
importance here. Plaintiff's use of the term "national election" includes
all aspects thereof, including the popular vote, full election results, and
the Electoral College process.
Justice Suoter, facing a tough decision in the wake of Obama's landslide
victory, took four days to examine the extensive lower court paper trail and
legal precedents pertaining thereto, but he eventually denied the
application on Nov. 6th, 2008. However, the case is still live, but not for
the reason erroneously listed on the SCOTUS Docket.
It appears Justice Suoter was misinformed by the US Supreme Court Stay
Clerk, Mr. Danny Bickle. A full Petition for Writ of Certiorari is listed as
"pending" on the Supreme Court docket, and such Petition having not been
dismissed by Justice Suoter indicates the serious merits of the case, but
plaintiff-appellant did not make a full Petition, and so its existence is a
procedural fiction. But the case is still live and pending as an Emergency
Stay Application.
Due to the emergent nature of Stay proceedings, plaintiff is entitled - by
law - under US Supreme Court Rule 22 to resubmit the Application for an
Emergency Stay to another Justice of his choice along with a supplemental
letter to accompany the original Stay application. Justice Suoter had right
of first review because he is charged with review of 3rd Circuit actions,
and New Jersey is in the 3rd Circuit.
But now that Justice Suoter has denied the emergency stay with prejudice,
Plaintiff may resubmit the Application For An Emergency Stay of the national
election results and Electoral College meeting to the Honorable US Supreme
Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Furthermore, all nine Justices will be
served on this round, according to Rule 22 which requires Appellant to
submit 10 copies of the original Stay application for the entire Supreme
Court.
A supplemental letter detailing the unorthodox procedural history involved
with this case is being prepared for Justice Thomas to review along with the
prior Stay application. submitted to the SCOTUS.
Instead of making a full Petition for Certiorari, plaintiff-appellant, as to
his Emergency Stay Application, relied on the procedural history in Bush v.
Gore, wherein Bush also chose to fore go a full Petition for Cert., and
instead relied exclusively on an emergency Stay application handed to one
Justice who then empaneled the entire court. The Supreme Court then granted
the Stay, treated the Stay application as a full Petition for Certiorari and
granted that Petition despite the fact that Bush only submitted the one
Application for Emergency Stay. That was done because the urgency of the
situation begged resolve of the national Presidential election. The same
conditions apply here as the clock is ticking down to December 15th, the day
for the Electoral College to meet.
The bi-partisan case progressed quietly through the lower courts with no
publicity as the plaintiff-appellant sought to respect court authority
seeking only to have the "natural born issue" determined once and for all.
He didn't create a web site or request donations. The suit is self
financed.
However, due to some very unorthodox treatment of the case in the NJ
Appellate Division, and also by the US Supreme Court Clerk's office, a press
conference is now being prepared to coincide with the resubmission of the
Stay application to Justice Clarence Thomas.
To view the official court documents, pleadings and orders,
please see http://www.blogtext.org/naturalborncitizen
# # #
Leo Donofrio is a citizen rights advocate. He is a retired attorney who now
uses his legal background to identify Government abuse of citizen rights in
order to educate the public, "We The People".
jd4fox23
