Letter to the editor, the New York Times, December 10, 1996:

Your Dec. 6 front-page article on the nomination of Madeleine K. Albright to be the next Secretary of State correctly notes that the holder of that office is fourth in line for the Presidency. But Ms. Albright, as you suggest, is a naturalized citizen, having been born in Czechoslovakia. Accordingly, she cannot become President because she does not meet the eligibility requirement of Article II, Section I of the Constitution that "no person except a natural born citizen" can hold the office of President.

Clearly, this constitutional provision has lingered way beyond any purpose it was designed to serve in 1787. While amending the Constitution should always be approached warily, Ms. Albright's likely accession to the position of Secretary of State provides an opportunity to cleanse our supreme statute of a provision that is now discriminatory.

—Nicholas W. Puner
Chappaqua, N.Y.

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