43% Of Republicans Don’t Believe The President Was Born In The U.S.

Another poll (PDF), this one from CNN, that shows the extent to which birtherism has taken hold inside the GOP:

A recent CNN Opinion Research poll shows most Americans think that Obama was indeed born in the United States. But there is a partisan divide on the issue.

The survey indicates that 72 percent think the president was definitely or probably born in the U.S., with one out of four saying that he was definitely or probably born outside the country.

Breaking down the numbers further, 46 percent say Obama was definitely born in the U.S., 26 percent say he was probably born in the country, with 15 percent saying he was probably born outside the U.S. and one in ten saying the president was definitely born outside the country.

The figures are little changed from last summer, when CNN last polled on the issue, but a partisan divide remains.

“A bare majority of Republicans, 52 percent, believe that President Obama was born in the U.S., with 43 percent saying that he was born elsewhere,” says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. “By contrast, 11 percent of Democrats and 23 percent of independents say Obama was not born in the U.S.”

Sorry, but that’s just insane, and it’s yet another indication of the danger facing the GOP that it will draft far afield of the mainstream once 2012 rolls around.

 

FILED UNDER: US Politics, ,
Doug Mataconis
About Doug Mataconis
Doug Mataconis held a B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University and J.D. from George Mason University School of Law. He joined the staff of OTB in May 2010 and contributed a staggering 16,483 posts before his retirement in January 2020. He passed far too young in July 2021.

Comments

  1. Jay says:

    Oh please. Every time we hear this nonsense that the GOP is going to nominate some extremist, the establishment/mainstream candidate always comes out on top. We heard this crap in 1988 when people were sure Pat Robertson was going to get the nomination. Again in 1992 and 1996 when everybody was warning of the impending Pat Buchanan presidential nomination. In 2000, it was “ZOMG!!! Gary Bauer or Alan Keyes is going to get nominated!!” and that never came true as well.

    Who in the hell cares?

  2. Elvis Elvisberg says:

    The difference this time, Jay, is that the GOP now eschews rational policy on every front.

    Here they’re proposing destroying the economy in order to save it. Everyone in the party claims that reducing revenues balances the budget, and that scientists are plotting against them because of the influence of Big Climate.

    It’s not a mainstream party with an extreme fringe; it’s a post-rationality party with nothing but fringe ideas from top to bottom. That wasn’t the case in the past.

  3. tom p says:

    43% Of Republicans Don’t Believe The President Was Born In The U.S.

    Doug, why don’t you just cut to the chase and say. “43% of Republicans are COMPLETE idiots”

    It cuts out so much bullsh*t.

  4. Steve Whiteley says:

    How can 11% of Democrats believe this nonsense? That really is insane.

  5. MM says:

    How can 11% of Democrats believe this nonsense? That really is insane.

    People love a good conspiracy theory (or even a bad one). There’s something in human DNA that makes us feel good when we have special knowledge that the sheeple don’t

  6. Janis Gore says:

    99.4 percent of Republican bloggers are convinced that Bill Ayers admitted authorship of Dreams of My Fathers the other day, or say so. I’ve watched.

    Stanley Ann turned custody of young Barry to Bill Ayers when the boy was just a teenager, so she could spend her time shacked up with Frank Marshall Davis because he had a sweet tongue, or something.

  7. MarkedMan says:

    Only 11% of Democrats believe it? I’m surprised. You can get 11% of the population to admit they believe in Santa Claus. Or that the Cubs will win the Series this year…

  8. James V Feragola says:

    The real question is, knowing that Hawaii has issued “Certification of Live Birth” to persons that were definitely not born in that state, would the document stand as absolute proof that Obama was born there on it’s face. The answer would have to be no.
    According to the Hawaii Department of Health, all births in Hawaii are recorded with a “Certificate” of Live Birth and filed with the DOH and any copies of that document that are requested are then issued in the form of a Short Form “Certification”. In order to stand up, the original document would have to be produced, which apparently has disappeared and has not been able to be located according to the current Gov. Neil Abercrombie (D).

  9. Janis Gore says:

    Mr. Feragola, do you believe that Bill Ayers wrote Dreams of My Fathers?

  10. James V Feragola says:

    I would not care even if he did, that is not the issue here. I’m just making a point that so many people seem to overlook when debating this issue regardless of which side of the political isle you are on.

  11. Janis Gore says:

    Do you think that Stanley Ann ceded her citizenship to her husband’s, at one or another point ?

  12. mantis says:

    The real question is, knowing that Hawaii has issued “Certification of Live Birth” to persons that were definitely not born in that state, would the document stand as absolute proof that Obama was born there on it’s face. The answer would have to be no.

    Hawaii may issue certificates to persons born out of state who provide proper documentation, but the certificates don’t state that they were born in Hawaii. They list those persons actual birthplace. Obama’s lists his birthplace as Honolulu, Hawaii.

    According to the Hawaii Department of Health, all births in Hawaii are recorded with a “Certificate” of Live Birth and filed with the DOH and any copies of that document that are requested are then issued in the form of a Short Form “Certification”.

    Yep. That’s how it goes. In fact, those old originals were all filed away in archives when they were digitized over a decade ago.

    In order to stand up, the original document would have to be produced, which apparently has disappeared and has not been able to be located according to the current Gov. Neil Abercrombie (D).

    Abercrombie said no such thing.

  13. Murray says:

    @J V Fergola
    “I’m just making a point … debating this issue …”

    There is no issue and hence nothing to debate.

  14. James V Feragola says:

    Just because you say it, does not make it so. There is an issue or it would not be brought up.

    Gov. Neil Abercrombie did indeed say that, to be exact he stated that he has seen the recording that that document exists but cannot produce it. Nice attempt at inventing history.

  15. Murray says:

    @James V Feragola
    “There is an issue or it would not be brought up.”

    BS. A few examples of non issues often brought up include:
    – the earth was created in seven days
    – Neil Armstrong didn’t set foot on the moon
    – 9/11 is an inside job
    – FDR knew about the imminent attack on Pearl Harbor
    etc etc etc.

    Just because conspiracy theory lovers and nutcases bring up things, doesn’t make them relevant nor real.

  16. Janis Gore says:

    Are you strictly concerned about Mr. Obama’s place of birth?

    You can find Donald Trump’s official birth certificate here:

    http://blogs.abcnews.com/thenote/2011/03/donald-trump-releases-official-birth-certificate.htm

    What are the missing details on the Certification of birth that fret you so much?

    I see that Ms. Trump spent ten hours of labor after birthing 3 live children. She has a street address, an origin. No religion, mind. An occupation of housewife.

    There is no required address for her husband.

    The doctor didn’t sign. That’s a clerk in the records office.

  17. mantis says:

    Here’s what you said:

    In order to stand up, the original document would have to be produced, which apparently has disappeared and has not been able to be located according to the current Gov. Neil Abercrombie (D).

    Here’s what Abercrombie said:

    “It was actually written, I am told,” said Abercrombie, “this is what our investigation is showing, it actually exists in the archives, written down.”

    Nothing about anything disappearing. I understand it’s a birther article of faith that he said he can’t find it, but he didn’t.

  18. Janis Gore says:
  19. Janis Gore says:

    There’s not even a slot for the citizenship of the husband. Race, yes, but not citizenship.

  20. Janis Gore says:

    Oh, I see now. There is a birthplace for the father.

  21. MarkedMan says:

    Mantis, kudos for fighting the good fight, but you aren’t going to have an impact on Feragola. It is an article of birther faith that anyone in the world can get a COB from Hawaii that is identical to the one Obama got. (Background: This, of course, is false, as the responsible officials from Hawaii have explained on a number of occasions. As a convenience, Hawaii does offer the option of getting a COB even if you weren’t born in Hawaii, for use by people who cannot get one from their original country. However, the COB would NOT state that the person was born in Hawaii. Obama’s does state that he was born in Hawaii because, well, he was born in Hawaii.)

    But Mantis, truth will not sway a birther. They typically do not even respond to it. You can provide all the evidence in the world that this issue is false, but tomorrow they will bring it up again as if your evidence never existed.

  22. mantis says:

    But Mantis, truth will not sway a birther. They typically do not even respond to it. You can provide all the evidence in the world that this issue is false, but tomorrow they will bring it up again as if your evidence never existed.

    Trust me, I know. I still find it useful to post the facts in response to birther nonsense, on the off chance an uninformed person stumbles across their comments, lest they believe said nonsense.

  23. jwest says:

    According to the poll, percentage-wise, the group that doesn’t believe Obama most are white, non-college suburban women who make less than $50K/yr.

    As long as Obama doesn’t need this demographic for reelection, he’s fine. He can ride his 17% strong/decisive leader rating and his 42% approval to a sweeping, Carter-like victory.

  24. Janis Gore says:

    Take it that way, jwest, it sounds like he’s not the mythological father figure.

  25. Janis Gore says:

    Just for kicks, I have the Baylor University Hospital, Dallas, bill for my birth in 1957. Mother entered on the February 11 and left on the 16th. The cost was 210.50. Tubal ligation was 71.50. ( I was the seventh child.)

  26. whatakick says:

    The computer data associated with the “original” released Obama alleged birth certification, proved the story was a fake. It showed the “photo” had been created 3 months before they claimed they got it and immediately released it- whoever they are, and whatever fake credentials they claim. They are also the only ones in the world that have even seen it, and then they made it disappear. And Obama in his autobiography writes about reverentially looking and holding his original birth certificate in his own hands. Where is it? Why does he not release it. He has it. And Bill Ayres himself claims he wrote the book, so who is the liar? Ayers or Obama. One is lying.