The US government plans to revoke the citizenship status of 17Americans caught in immigration fraud cases. This is the largest denaturalization campaign in history led by Trump’s anti-immigration policies.
Donald Trump speaks to reporters on Air Force One
Before Trump, the Justice Department confirms that denaturalization powers were rarely invoked by USA governments.
What’s changed is that in the 2024 elections, Trump appealed to many Americans in support of mass deportations and is now making good on that promise.
In the period between 1990 and 2017, the DOJ reported only 11 denaturalization cases.
The government is legally allowed to denaturalize any USA citizens if it finds that they fraudulently acquired their citizenship.
Submitting false information and hiding criminal histories during the citizenship application process is grounds for revocation. But the denaturalization process has always been lengthy and complex, hence seldom used.
During denaturalization, immigration officials must prove the cause for the revocation and convince judges in criminal court proceedings.
The Trump government has made efforts to simplify and speed up the denaturalization process as it cracks down on both legal and illegal immigration.
The DOJ published categories of naturalized citizens that can be prioritized for denaturalization. In the last month alone, 12 cases of denaturalization were brought before the courts.
The Trump administration has been quick to clarify that the persons targeted for denaturalization are the worst of the worst. The 17 latest cases involve citizens previously convicted of violent crimes and sexual offenses involving children.
DOJ officials assert that many of these individuals hid their criminal pasts when applying for the USA citizenship. Some, they say, were ineligible for citizenship because they didn’t fully meet the moral character requirements for naturalization.
Among the 17 Americans about to lose their citizenship status is a Haitian immigrant, said to have sexually assaulted his daughter.
Another on the list is a Yugoslav man convicted of sexually abusing a minor. An immigrant from Mexico on the list is said to have solicited explicit images from minors.
The list also features a Colombian-born catholic priest accused of child sexual abuse and an immigrant from India caught in H1-B visa fraudulent schemes.
A Colombian drug empire heiress is also slated for denaturalization after getting caught in a money laundering scandal, as well as a Jamaican-born man accused of wire fraud.
A Cuban-born lady accused of stealing from a casino is also on the list, among others caught with false identities.
Todd Blanche is the acting attorney general. He says that the DOJ will not tolerate any further abuse of the American naturalization system.
“(Criminals) are lying about their past crimes, including drug dealers and sexual predators,” Blanche said.
Markwayne Mullin, who is the Homeland Security Secretary, shares the same belief. He asserts that the Trump administration will use the full force of the law to “denaturalize and remove aliens.”
Mullin says that American citizenship is a privilege that must continue to be earned. “If you come to the USA, break our laws, and lie, you forfeit that privilege.”
The denaturalization process can be challenged by any of the targeted individuals in court. But if the courts rule in favor of the government, the accused are returned to their previous immigration status, which mostly happens to be permanent residency.
They lose all the benefits associated with American citizenship.
