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Tennessee lawmakers lend names to Obama citizenship lawsuit
By THEO EMERY • The Tennessean • February 12, 2009

Buzz up! Several Tennessee lawmakers have signed onto a legal action intended to force President Barack Obama to turn over his birth certificate and other documents to prove his citizenship, an effort already rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court in another case.

Tennessee Reps. Eric Swafford, Stacey Campfield, Glen Casada and Frank Nicely have all agreed to be plaintiffs in future legal action from a Russian immigrant in California who has challenged whether Obama meets constitutional criteria to be president.


The lawsuit from the Defend Our Freedoms Foundation, which has not yet been filed, will be among several court challenges to Obama's citizenship.

One of the cases reached the U.S. Supreme Court late last year, and the court declined without comment to take it up, a move many interpreted as meaning the issue was dead. The campaign posted a copy of his certificate on a page intended to counter rumors about Obama.

Swafford’s letter states “I agree to be one of the plaintiff’s in a legal action filed by Dr. Orly Taitz, Esquire for a Writ of Mandamus to obtain birth certificate, immigration records, passports and other vital records for Barry Soetoro, aka Barack Hussein Obama.”

The letter from the Pikeville Republican is written on the official letterhead of the state House of Representatives.

Niceley, Campfield and Casada, who are also Republicans, confirmed that they too have agreed to be plaintiffs.

Casada said that he believes that Obama does have a U.S. birth certificate, and should just make it widely available.

“Let’s just put this to bed. Yes, people may say, you’re just chasing some conspiracy theory,” he said. “It’s a simple act on his part to just do, and we’re done – move on.”

Democratic lawmakers ridiculed the legal action on Thursday morning at a weekly press conference, with one lawmaker asking, “Who’s Eric Swafford?” and another answering, “He’s from Mars.”

The news of the lawsuit later provoked ribbing around the capitol, with one legislative staffer approaching a lawmaker and demanding to see his birth certificate.

State representative joins group challenging Obama's citizenship
By Richard Locker

Thursday, February 12, 2009

NASHVILLE – A Tennessee state legislator is apparently the first elected official to add his name as a “plaintiff” in a lawsuit by a fringe group challenging President Obama’s U.S. citizenship and constitutional right to be president.

Rep. Eric Swafford, a Republican from Pikeville, used his official Tennessee House of Representatives stationery as a “consent form” agreeing to be one of the plaintiffs in a purported legal action to obtain “original birth certificate, immigration records, passports and other vital records for Barry Soetoro, aka Barack Hussein Obama,” the letter said.

Obama’s citizenship became a point of discussion, mostly on far-right Internet blogs and forums, when he emerged as a serious presidential candidate more than a year ago -- and dismissed as baseless by legitimate organizations. But some fringe groups have continued pursuing the matter, claiming that Obama is constitutionally ineligible for the presidency.

The U.S. Supreme Court in December refused to hear an appeal of a lawsuit filed by a New Jersey man, and during the campaign last year, the Obama campaign posted on one of its Web sites a copy of his Hawaii birth certificate.

But one of the groups is touting on its Web site that Swafford is the first elected official to join its action and posted the “consent form” he sent under his legislative letterhead dated Feb. 9.

Swafford, 35, a conservative in his third term in the legislature, could not be reached immediately for comment, but Democratic colleagues said today the letter is an embarrassment to the state.

“What is the mentality of these kinds of people that continuously make these kinds of goofy statements?” said Rep. Larry Miller, D-Memphis. “It’s embarrassing. We’re the joke of the nation, and they continue to make us the joke of the nation.

“It makes you want to not even go up and serve in the House with them,” Miller said

House Democratic Caucus Chairman Mike Turner said he asked Swafford on the House floor today to see his birth certificate.