Military Judge Will Not Consider Obama Birth Claims In Birther Court Martial

Doug Mataconis · · 12 comments

Following up on James Joyner’s post from earlier today about the court martial of Lt. Col Terry Lakin for refusing to follow deployment orders until he is provided with proof of Obama’s eligibility to serve as President, a military judge ruled today that the issue of the President’s birth cannot be considered in Lakin’s trial:

A military judge has rejected any consideration of President Barack Obama’s birth record in the military trial of an Army officer who refused to deploy because he doubted the president’s authority to send him. The judge said questions about Obama’s birth status are irrelevant to the charges.

Since Lakin is charged with failure to obey a valid order from a superior officer, this is the correct decision, and it’s not all that surprising.