Presidential birth certificate bill dies in subcommittee
By Tom Humphrey
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
NASHVILLE - A bill requiring presidential candidates to provide their birth certificates to Tennessee's secretary of state as a condition of getting on the Tennessee ballot was killed Wednesday in a House subcommittee.
Also dying Wednesday was a proposal to establish a legislative committee that would review federal laws and regulations then recommend which, if any, should be nullified by the General Assembly.
Rep. Rick Womick, R-Rockvale, was House sponsor of the birth certificate bill. He said it was inspired by constituents who doubt that President Barack Obama was born in the United States. Passage of the bill, he said, would "put this issue to rest," even though he personally believes Obama is a citizen.
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The freshman lawmaker said he does not know why colleagues rejected his bill, though he has talked with some who were concerned that the bill would lead to "expensive litigation" in the courts and others want to see how pending court cases - most notably those involving a federal health care reform law - "shake out" before going to such an alternative method of challenging federal laws and regulations.
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2011/mar/30/presidential-birth-certificate-bill-dies/