Over the years, millions of Americans have been born abroad to parents in the military, the diplomatic corps or other government postings, plus the business expats, academics, and tourists who didn't get home in time. To my knowledge, no one prior to the Obama controversy has ever suggested that the born-abroad children of two U.S. citizen parents were not natural born citizens.
Maybe I'm wrong. Do the military and the State Department have advisories out to their personnel to the effect that their children will be disqualified if born overseas?
I don't think so.
The State Department says it's an unsettled issue. I don't think U.S. Department of State Foreign Affairs Manual qualifies as an advisory to their personnel, however.
7 FAM 1131.6-2 Eligibility for Presidencya. It has never been determined definitively by a court whether a person who acquired U.S. citizenship by birth abroad to U.S. citizens is a natural- born citizen within the meaning of Article II of the Constitution and, therefore, eligible for the Presidency.
b. Section 1, Article II, of the Constitution states, in relevant part that No Person except a natural born Citizen...shall be eligible for the Office of President.
c. The Constitution does not define "natural born". The Act to establish an Uniform Rule of Naturalization||, enacted March 26, 1790, (1 Stat. 103,104) provided that, ...the children of citizens of the United States, that may be born ... out of the limits of the United States, shall be considered as natural born citizens: Provided that the right of citizenship shall not descend to persons whose fathers have never been resident in the United States.
d. This statute is no longer operative, however, and its formula is not included in modern nationality statutes. In any event, the fact that someone is a natural born citizen pursuant to a statute does not necessarily imply that he or she is such a citizen for Constitutional purposes.