Does President Obama have a citizenship case Hollister v. Soetoro coming up in the US Supreme Court?

Answer 1

No. The case of Hollister et al. v. Soetoro,09-5080 (consolidated 09-5161) is currently pending appeal before the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Philadelphia lawyer, Phillip Berg, who unsuccessfully brought earlier birther cases against President Obama, filed an interpleader action on behalf of Col. Gregory S. Hollister, Air Force, retired (1978-1998). An interpleader is a legal proceeding brought by a third-party, called a "stakeholder," who asks the court to determine ownership of disputed funds or property. The stakeholder's dilemma is that he or she has custody of something to which two or more parties claim legal rights, such as multiple claims against the distribution of proceeds from an insurance policy. If the stakeholder awards the disputed property to either party, the other is likely to initiate legal action against the stakeholder. The basic concept is not too difficult to understand when the item in dispute is something tangible.

Berg, citing both Federal Rule of Civil Procedure, Rule 22, and 28 USC § 1335 (federal law), originally filed in US District Court under diversity jurisdiction (Obama and Hollister are residents of different states/territories), using the unorthodox theory that property in dispute can be intangible, in this case involving "duties owed to a Commander-in-Chief" and the relationship between Hollister and those in his chain of command (despite Hollister's lengthy retirement).

The action anticipates Hollister could be forced to make decisions about acting on lawful (military) orders or refusing to act on unlawful orders, and asks the court to determine to whom he owes these duties. As usual, the core of the case involves the birthers' refusal to accept Obama's natural citizenship, and an attempt to the force the courts to make a declaration supporting these claims.

US District Court judge James Robertson, a past President of the District of Columbia Bar, summarized the legal proceedings as follows:

"This case, if it were allowed to proceed, would deserve mention in one of those books that seek to prove that the law is foolish or that America has too many lawyers with not enough to do. Even in its relatively short life the case has excited the blogosphere and the conspiracy theorists. The right thing to do is to bring it to an early end."

Berg, undeterred, appealed the case to the DC Circuit where he recently filed a Reply Brief to the defendants' opposition to motion for oral argument, indicating the paper-bombardment pre-adjudication stage may be nearing an end, and the case could be before a panel of judges or out the door soon.

Berg's antics are amusing to follow, but unlikely to achieve his desired results. The US Supreme Court already denied cert in an earlier birther case in which Berg was plaintiff, so it's reasonable to assume they would see a petition for certiorari on the present case as his old birther argument recycled.

For anyone holding out hope that Obama's Presidency will be nullified, it's time to move on. The courts consider the matter res judicata.

For more information, see Related Questions and Related Links, below.

Answer 2

No, and it never will, since the president is in fact a natural born U.S. citizen. Throughout his first term in office, a group of people called Birthers have continued to question his citizenship and have filed numerous suits. All of these suits have been dismissed by the courts, and judges have said these cases are groundless-- one federal judge even said the case was "frivolous" and a "waste of the court's time." Although you may not like Mr. Obama or you may disagree with his policies, there is no credible evidence that he is foreign-born. I enclose one of the many documents from a reputable fact-checking site, demonstrating that he is in fact a U.S. citizen, born in Hawaii in 1961. Sadly, I doubt this documentation will stop the questions from those who refuse to accept Mr. Obama's presidency.