Responding to political pressure can lead to bad law. The Associated Press reports:
The state would charge $100 for a copy of President Obama’s birth records under a bill introduced in the Legislature by five Democrats. It would change a privacy law barring the release of birth records unless the person seeking them has a tangible interest. The bill has not been scheduled for a public hearing, and cannot move forward unless that happens. But the idea behind it is to end skepticism over Mr. Obama’s birthplace while raising a little money for a government. “If it passes, it will calm the birthers down,” the bill’s main sponsor, Representative Rida Cabanilla, said of people who claim there is no proof Mr. Obama was born in the United States, and therefore cannot be president. “All these people are still doubting it because they don’t want the birth certificate from Obama. They want it from our state office.”
The language of the proposed law can be found on Hawaii’s legislative site. The underlined text indicates the provision and language that would be added to their disclosure law.
Even if you disagree politically with “Birthers,” do you think having a provision to make the birth certificates of people running for office who need to be citizens is a good idea or not?