Obama has Two Countries!?!

You are about read a conversation I have had with two different friends on different occasions.  The conversation went almost word-for-word both times like this,

Friend: Does American Samoa have a president?

Me: Obama

Friend: Obama has two countries?!?!

Me: No, American Samoa is a US territory

A little back ground on the politics of American Samoa…The US Department of the Interior does the administrative work pertaining to American Samoa.  The US provides a lot of financial aid, but the everyday government is left to American Samoa to decide how to govern.  They use three branches of government Executive, Legislative, and Judicial.  The executive branch is headed by a governor who is elected by public voting.  The Legislative branch has a house and a Senate each with 18 members.  The Judicial branch is made up of the High Court of American Samoa which is the highest court in American Samoa except for the US Supreme Court.  The judge is elected by US Secretary of the Interior.  District court judges are elected by the governor.  Each village in Samoa still has a chief, which is usually assigned through lineage.  American Samoans can participate in primary elections, but cannot vote in a presidential election.  Which might be a good thing for Obama because they seem to really like Romney.