Birth Certificate

McHenry: "I Haven't Seen Enough Evidence" Whether Obama Is A Citizen

Eric Kleefeld | August 13, 2009, 9:52AM

We can add another name to the list of Republican officeholders who won't say that President Obama is a citizen, thus playing into the Birther movement: Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC).

McHenry was asked by a constituent at a town hall meeting whether he thinks Obama is a citizen. "I haven't seen enough evidence one way or the other," said Mchenry, who also added that the issue is being addressed "in the courts."

Late Update: McHenry's office has given this statement to Greg Sargent, backtracking and seeming to affirm that yes, Obama is an American:

"As I stated last night, I have not carefully reviewed the evidence as a jurist would. However, from what I have read, I have absolutely no reason to question President Obama's citizenship. I anticipate that as a legal matter the courts will continue to come to the same conclusion."

Republicans

GOP Rep. McHenry Complains: "All We Can Talk About Is Tax Cuts"

Eric Kleefeld | May 7, 2009, 1:52PM

Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC), a vocal conservative who serves as a deputy Republican whip, appears to have just admitted openly that the GOP's policies are irrelevant.

In the new Time article on the current sorry state of the party, McHenry decried the endless rhetoric about tax cuts -- and apparently declared that the era of Reagan is over:

The most urgent question is the meaning of economic conservatism. Representative Patrick McHenry of North Carolina, a conservative who keeps a bust of Reagan on his desk, surprised me by declaring that the Reagan era is over. "Marginal tax rates are the lowest they've been in generations, and all we can talk about is tax cuts," he said. "The people's desires have changed, but we're still stuck in our old issue set."