Tim Burchett Humorously Offers Some Advice to Sanders, Newsom Over Birth Certificate ID Quandaries

The fact that we even have to have a "debate" about the wisdom of voter/photo ID at this point is entirely due to Democrat/media fearmongering on the matter, something we repeatedly saw here in North Carolina in the years just before a voter ID bill was passed was signed into law (2013), and for roughly a decade after, as Democrats kept the issue mired in the courts.

It's something that had widespread support here in NC at the time, and across the nation, in fact. And despite the Democrats' best efforts, it maintains broad, bipartisan support among voters to the tune of 83 percent as of 2025. "I don't think you have 83 percent agreement on almost anything, so that's phenomenal support," my colleague Nick Arama correctly observed in response to the polling numbers.

But, desperate to keep illegal immigrants voting for them, Democrats have proclaimed that voter/photo ID would "disenfranchise" minority voters, including black, Hispanic, and female voters, even though in states like Georgia, where voter ID has been on the books for several years now, that scare tactic hasn't really panned out.

The latest and "greatest" argument coming from Democrats who stand opposed to the SAVE (Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility) America Act is that it allegedly would make it difficult for people (especially married women) to prove they are who they say they are because some of them don't have a copy of their birth certificate, and supposedly have no idea how to get a copy.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) offered up a similar argument recently:

Here we go again: Bernie Sanders says he doesn’t have his birth certificate or know how to get one.

“I don't have my birth certificate. God knows how I get it."

Just incredible. https://t.co/mmhQuLFGEH pic.twitter.com/H5ja8BXnph
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) February 21, 2026

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) also feigned ignorance:

“You've got to find your birth certificate. I have no clue where mine is." - Gavin Newsom, unable to find paperwork in his $9 million estate so the SAVE act is Jim Crow 3.0 pic.twitter.com/W1LCzfxE5F
— Kevin Dalton (@TheKevinDalton) February 19, 2026

But it's actually fairly simple for both, as GOP Rep. Tim Burchett (TN-02) helpfully explained in his own delightfully southern way, explaining that Sanders, for instance, was born in New York - and that he can Google "how to get a birth certificate in New York" and then go right on the state's website to learn how to make a request and have it sent by mail or possibly even email.

Burchett further advised Sanders that if he didn't know how to use Google, one of his staffers should be able to do it for him:

I found out how ⁦@BernieSanders⁩ can get his birth certificate. pic.twitter.com/PrcCG6q5fO
— Tim Burchett (@timburchett) February 22, 2026

It’s probably in one of his three mansions https://t.co/HAanAUN1C6
— Tim Burchett (@timburchett) February 21, 2026

Interestingly, the specific area of New York where Sanders was born was the Brooklyn part of New York City, where we learned over the weekend that multiple forms of ID and photos were needed to sign up to be an emergency snow shoveler for the impending blizzard.

As for Newsom, California has a similar webpage where one can apply for a copy of their birth certificate. Some counties offer this service as well.

Relatedly, Republican Rep. Chip Roy (TX-21), who sponsored the SAVE America Act, debunked the Democrat argument about married women and voter ID by noting:

"This is absolute nonsense, and we specifically allow for a provision to make sure that no one can possibly be left behind," he said.
"If a woman tried to register to vote with different names on her birth certificate and driver’s license," Roy said. "We literally put in the statute that all you have to do is sign an affidavit under penalty of perjury that, ‘I am that person. This is my birth certificate … and this is my driver's license that is reflecting my married name.’"

While it's unclear whether the bill will go anywhere in the United States Senate, one thing is clear: The Democrats' attacks against it are hot garbage.

Editor’s Note: Republicans are fighting for election integrity by requiring proper identification to vote.

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