Ted Cruz: Too Canadian to Be President?

Ted Cruz has only been a senator for a few days but speculation about a 2016 presidential run has already begun—along with questions over whether the rising Republican star from Texas is even eligible, Politico finds. Cruz was born in Canada to an American mother and a Cuban father, which makes some experts question whether he is "a natural born citizen" as the Constitution requires. His advisers say his mother's citizenship transferred to him automatically.

The same question dogged John McCain, who was born in the Panama Canal Zone and Mitt Romney's father George, who was born in Mexico. Cruz is a "birthright citizen but his birthright citizenship derives from his parents, and the question is, does that fit with the definition of natural born citizen? I think it does," says a UPenn law professor. "Anyone who thinks he’s constitutionally ineligible can simply not vote for him," he added. (More Ted Cruz stories.)