[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]State declares Obama birth certificate genuine[/FONT] [FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]
Friday October 31, 2008 10:46 PM[/FONT]
[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif] HONOLULU (AP) - State officials say there's no doubt Barack Obama was born in Hawaii. [/FONT]
[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]Health Department Director Dr. Chiyome Fukino said Friday she and the registrar of vital statistics, Alvin Onaka, have personally verified that the health department holds Obama's original birth certificate. [/FONT][FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]
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[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]Fukino says that no state official, including Republican Gov. Linda Lingle, ever instructed that Obama's certificate be handled differently.[/FONT][FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]
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[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]She says state law bars release of a certified birth certificate to anyone who does not have a tangible interest. [/FONT][FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]
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[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]Some Obama critics claim he was not born in the US. [/FONT][FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]
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[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]Earlier Friday, a southwest Ohio magistrate rejected a challenge to Obama's citizenship. Judges in Seattle and Philadelphia recently dismissed similar suits. [/FONT]