Lemme see if I have this right. Everyone with an even casual interest in the Birther saga knows that Hawaii law bars the state from revealing someone’s long-form birth certificate without his/her consent. That’s the whole reason this issue still exists, right? Otherwise the file would have been opened long ago and you wouldn’t have even Chris Matthews and his liberal panelists urging The One to give up the goods already. Everyone but everyone understands this — except, it seems, for the new governor of Hawaii, who boldly announced his quest last month to prove once and for all that Obama was born in Hawaii … without realizing that he has no means to do so. Now, a month later, not only has he singlehandedly revived a fading fringe matter, he’s actually spurred it on by failing to resolve it.

A privacy law that shields birth certificates has prompted Democratic Gov. Neil Abercrombie to abandon efforts to dispel claims that President Barack Obama was born outside Hawaii, his office says.

State Attorney General David Louie told the governor that privacy laws bar him from disclosing an individual’s birth documentation without the person’s consent, Abercrombie spokeswoman Donalyn Dela Cruz said Friday.

“There is nothing more that Gov. Abercrombie can do within the law to produce a document,” said Dela Cruz. “Unfortunately, there are conspirators who will continue to question the citizenship of our president.”…

Hawaii’s health director said in 2008 and 2009 that she had seen and verified Obama’s original vital records, and birth notices in two Honolulu newspapers were published within days of Obama’s birth at Kapiolani Maternity and Gynecological Hospital in Honolulu.

Three theories. One: The Birthers are right and it’s all a big cover-up, and somehow someone in the White House forgot to mention to the incoming Democratic governor of Hawaii, who, by the way, has known Obama since he was an infant, “Pssst — don’t mention the birth certificate.” Seems … unlikely. Two: Abercrombie secretly hates Obama for whatever reason and concocted this whole scheme in order to make the birth certificate thing seem even more suspicious. He co-opted the conspiracy theory to serve his own ends! Crafty. But there’s … no evidence. Three: The guy’s a total moron. At this point, highly likely and plenty of evidence. That’s the one I’m going with, although I’m open to persuasion.

Via Mediaite, here’s Gibbsy from this morning winding down his last weeks as press secretary with yet another Birther question.