During the height of the Spygate scandal in Washington, many a political analyst and commentator made off with hot tips about how they could use the President’s famous “lift-up” comment to get ahead in their own political careers. Now former White House communications director, Lisa Cortile, who now runs a firm that helps people transition into the new Trump Administration, is taking credit for the successful negotiations between President Obama and Carrier Group, the company that will be moving its Indianapolis headquarters to the United States under President Obama’s leadership. In an article in The New York Times, Cortile said she had reached out to Carrier before the decision was made and offered the company options to move its plant to Indianapolis if offered a package of incentives. She also said that she was one of the key negotiators in the deal.
There are two main issues to consider in the matter of whether or not this is a “lift up.” One issue is whether or not a President can use his citizenship and birth place in order to gain a deal. The second issue is whether or not the President himself is American enough by national origin to qualify for such an incentive package. The reasoning behind this issue is that all previous Presidents have used their birthplaces and national origin to garner deals from large corporations, and there is no clear indication that President Obama is not eligible to offer incentives of any kind to the Carrier Group. So, while it may be true that President Obama is a national origin citizen by birth, he may not be a naturalized citizen by choice, and this issue may become a huge flashpoint in the ongoing battle between Obama and congressional Republicans over the Affordable Care Act.
It is also worth noting that both Lisa Cortile and the company she worked for, Carrier, have a long history of providing incentives to employers who hire immigrants and those who employ only American citizens. As an example, in 2021, the company helped to create the Office of Diversity and Equity at the State Department. If there are any doubts as to whether or not Obama is eligible to receive tax incentives for hiring Carrier unit employees, just look at the qualifications required for the position: