Americanswers! Could Zohran Mamdani serve in a Democrat White House?

**Justin Webb** (0:00)
Happy bank holiday.
If you're in the UK and you're listening on the day of publication at least, and full transparency here, if that is the case, like you, I'm also enjoying mine because we have asked for questions that you've always wondered about for today's special Americasters, which we actually recorded secretly last week. But as a result, what we've ended up with is an episode which is actually more timeless. And if you don't mind me saying, it is pretty interesting as well. So welcome to Americanswers, the burning question special.

**Marianna Spring** (0:37)
Americast from BBC News.

**Justin Webb** (0:39)
You hear that sound?

**Donald Trump** (0:40)
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**SPEAKER_5** (0:44)
We didn't start this war, but under President Trump, we are finishing it. This is a big cover up and this administration is engaged in it.

**Justin Webb** (0:51)
This guy has Trump Derangement Syndrome.

**Anthony Zurcher** (0:54)
I have four words for you.

**Justin Webb** (1:03)
Hello, it's Justin in the Worldwide Headquarters of Americast in London, England.

**Anthony Zurcher** (1:06)
And it's Anthony in the American Headquarters of Americast in Washington, DC.

**Marianna Spring** (1:10)
And it's Marianna also in the Worldwide Headquarters of Americast next to Justin in London.

**Justin Webb** (1:14)
Okay, first question is about Zohran Mamdani. Here we go.

**Will** (1:17)
Hi guys, my name is Will and I'm from Hartlepool. My question is, could Zohran Mamdani serve in a Democratic cabinet?
And does this come with a precedent for non-natural citizens to serve in the cabinet? Thanks guys, keep up the great work.

**Marianna Spring** (1:31)
Very good question.

**Anthony Zurcher** (1:33)
Well, Zohran Mamdani was born in Uganda, so he was not born in the United States.
So he can't, he is not eligible to be a president of the United States, but the Constitution says nothing about cabinet secretaries. They can be born anywhere and serve in the cabinet. Alexander Hamilton, of course, was the first treasury secretary and he was born in St. Kitts. Most famous, of course, is Henry Kissinger, Richard Nixon's secretary of state and national security advisor. Madeleine Albright, who was Bill Clinton's secretary of state. Also, Elaine Chao, who was Mitch McConnell's wife. We have a senator, we've talked about her in the past, but she was cabinet secretary twice with George W. Bush and with Donald Trump. And Jennifer Granholm, she was born in Canada. She was energy secretary under Joe Biden. So it happens, not uncommon, really.

**Justin Webb** (2:28)
So really it's just the presidency that's barred to you. Nothing else is.

**Anthony Zurcher** (2:32)
Exactly, you can be a senator and be a non-native born US citizen. And you don't even have to be born in the United States if you were a citizen at birth. So say Ted Cruz, he was born in Canada, the Texas senator, but he was a citizen at birth because his parents were US citizens. John McCain was born in the Panama Canal zone in Panama.
His father was in the military and he ran for president and got the Republican nomination without any big issue because he was born as a US citizen. So it's just that one little provision in the Constitution. And you know, Zohran Mamdani is very popular right now in New York City. I was just there last week and there are still a lot of people who really think he's doing a good job. There are a lot of people who are maybe a little more suspicious of his Democratic socialism and his policies. But he seems to be pretty popular right now. Arnold Schwarzenegger, born in Austria when he was governor of California. People are talking about maybe he could run for president if they change the Constitution. But you would have to change the Constitution to get it to get it.

**Justin Webb** (3:47)
I remember that stuff about Schwarzenegger when he was at the height of his powers and he was rising to become governor of California. I was there then and I went to his inauguration, I suppose it was, when he won. There was this real groundswell of opinion there, Marianna, that somehow if we want to do it as Americans, we can change the Constitution, we can make it happen. I suppose it's not entirely impossible if the Democrats have an absolutely clean sweep in the midterms and they are enormously popular, Republicans fall apart, they have the presidency as well.
I mean, it's quite an effort to change the Constitution, to put it mildly, but you do wonder if there is a groundswell then that comes for Mamdani and possibly for some others who weren't born in the States, but ought to at least have the right to run.