Of late, I have become very interested in representations of women in the media, as part of my ongoing theme of interest that can be best described as how women consume media, and how media consumes women. Tell me what is wrong with this soundbite, from an interview in Elle magazine (scroll down to the headline, “Ashton Kutcher talks sex, drugs with his stepdaughters.”
In today’s NYT, the headline reads, McCain’s Canal Zone Birth Prompts Queries About Whether That Rules Him Out. In the interest of helping clear up the controversy, yes, McCain is eligible, under section 301(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which gives the child of two US citizen parents citizenship at birth, as long as one of the parents has resided in the US for any length of time prior to the child’s birth. One is a naturally born citizen as long as they are citizens at birth.
But it drums up controversy, obfuscates real questions about McCain’s fitness to lead, wastes time and energy, and is, in the end, another “McCain Has A Black Baby” story.
NYT, the better story is, why can’t McCain’s daughter Bridget ever run for president? As a child adopted internationally, she held citizenship in another country at birth, and while she is a US citizen now, she, and the other quarter of a million children adopted internationally into the United States, are not eligible for the presidency. Why don’t these citizens hold the same rights as their biological siblings?