"Rahm is a natural-born Chicagoan"--prezident

Once again, life imitates fraud:

Obama wants Rahm back on ballot
January 25, 2011

President Barack Obama wants former chief of staff Rahm Emanuel to stay on the Chicago mayoral ballot, a top presidential confidante said Tuesday after an appellate court ruled he hadn't met a one-year residency requirement.

“The president believes Rahm is eligible and will make a terrific mayor," said Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to Obama and fellow Chicagoan.

"The president encouraged Rahm to submit some sort of affidavit--maybe something like a birth certificate--that would prove he's eligible to be mayor."

"The president believes Rahm is the best candidate, so the city should put his name on the ballot even if, hypothetically, he didn't meet the residency requirement. After all, some of our greatest, most amazing leaders may not always have met some tiny, insignificant requirement to hold an office, and it's just not fair to use that trivial point to keep them from running. In fact, it would be racist to do so. At least it would be racist under most conditions."

A clerk in the Cook County (Chicago) tax office said he had personally seen records showing that Emanuel had lived in Chicago during the past year. However, he was unable to release these without Emanuel's permission. Emanuel's spokesman said Emanuel had tried to contact the official to get the records released but so far had been unable to find his telephone number.

The governor of Illinois promised to get to the bottom of the controversy once and for all. His office later said he was unable to find the actual records, but had seen "several hand-written notations referring to Rahm Emanuel and Chicago." The governor said he was personally satisfied that this had settled the issue and Emanuel could run.

The debate over Emanuel’s eligibility hinges on the nearly two years Emanuel spent working in the Obama White House and the fact that he rented out his Chicago house.