On Wednesday morning, the White House released President Barack Obama's long form birth certificate.
The document indicates that Obama was born in the state of Hawaii and thus is eligible to serve as president. The release comes in the wake of some raising skepticism over his place of birth.
White House spokesman Jay Carney says Obama felt the debate over his birthplace had become a "sideshow" that was bad for the country and political debate.
White House officials have said the issue was settled long ago. But so-called "birthers" opposed to Obama have kept the issue alive. Potential Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump recently began questioning why Obama hadn't ensured the long form was released.
"The president feels this was bad for the country, that it's not healthy for our political debate," Carney said in releasing copies of the long form to reporters.
This is a developing story... More information to come...
Donald Trump: Obama Birth Certificate Should've Been Released Long Ago
AP/The Huffington Post
First Posted: 04/27/11 09:13 AM ET Updated: 04/27/11 09:57 AM ET