The assertion that Nikki Haley is ineligible for the presidency due to her parents not being born in the United States was debunked after a fact-checking analysis. A post on Instagram, shared by the Gateway Pundit and subsequently on Truth Social by former President Donald Trump, claimed that a legal scholar asserted Haley’s disqualification based on the 12th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The on-screen text in the post suggested that Haley’s parents’ non-U.S. birthplace rendered her ineligible for the presidency or vice-presidency.
However, the fact-checking investigation concluded that this claim was false. The argument that Nikki Haley is ineligible for the presidency due to her parents’ foreign birth contradicts both the Constitution and historical precedent. The primary reason for this debunking lies in Haley’s own birthplace: she was born in Bamberg, South Carolina, making her a natural-born U.S. citizen according to the 14th Amendment.
The 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is crucial in this context. It states that anyone born or naturalized in the United States is considered a U.S. citizen, with the only exceptions being individuals with allegiance to a foreign country, such as foreign diplomats. In Haley’s case, being born in South Carolina automatically conferred U.S. citizenship upon her, regardless of her parents’ foreign birth.
Legal scholars Michael Morley and Mark Seidenfeld, both with expertise in constitutional law at Florida State University, emphasized that the natural-born citizenship requirement for the presidency pertains solely to the president, not their parents. Morley explicitly stated that Nikki Haley’s birth in South Carolina, in accordance with the 14th Amendment, makes her eligible to serve as president.
The historical context further discredits the claim, as several former U.S. presidents had parents who were immigrants, including notable figures such as Andrew Jackson, Woodrow Wilson, and Barack Obama. James Gardner, a law professor at the University at Buffalo, dismissed the claim as “ridiculous,” highlighting that there is no parental requirement for presidential eligibility.
The 12th Amendment, which the Instagram post invoked, primarily addresses the electoral process for the president and vice president, offering no provisions regarding citizenship requirements for either position. On the other hand, Article II of the Constitution outlines the eligibility criteria for the presidency, specifying a minimum age of 35, U.S. citizenship, and residency in the U.S. for at least 14 years. Notably, it does not impose any restrictions based on the birthplace or citizenship of the candidate’s parents.
In essence, the fact-checking investigation refutes the claim that Nikki Haley is ineligible for the presidency due to her parents’ foreign birth, underscoring the constitutional basis of her eligibility as a natural-born U.S. citizen by virtue of her birth in South Carolina. The debunking highlights the importance of accurate information in discussions about political figures and eligibility for high office.