Donald Trump played with it a few days ago. Michele Bachmann is hiring people who “want to see the birth certificate” on her presidential exploratory staff.

I’m pretty sure this issue is being cultivated in an attempt to be used as the next “he’s not wearing a flag pin” issue of the next presidential election. And undoubtably ,the topic is red meat for a certain part of the public.   But  besides motivating an already converted base, it”s short sighted populism that will do more harm to a potential candidate than good.

If any presidential candidates seriously tries to run after bringing up the presidential birther issue, here’s the bowling ball the press or other candidates can roll that strikes down that pin:

If you as the potential leader of the free world, can’t glean what you need to know about a president’s birth from a state document, that lists when you were born, who have birth to you, and have an official state seal on it- or can do the research to get that clarified, I’m not sure I want you trying to figure out presidential intelligence briefs. Which I bet are a lot greyer and unclear reports. Otherwise I hear you saying, ” Man, those birth certificates, tough.  But trust me. Deciphering geo-political conflicts with grey levels of intelligence information, no sweat.”

Plus you’ll spend half the summer in 2012 in the “mainstream” press fending off questions why you even flirted with the birther idea.  Something a candidate will find frustrating when he wants the campaign to stay on the issue of the day.