The Trump administration has announced its plan to revoke the citizenship of 17 citizens who have been accused of immigration fraud.
The government may lawfully try to denaturalize foreign-born United States citizens that are believed to have committed fraud to obtain citizenship. But, the process is overwhelming and complex, and rarely used. The government has to just convinced judges to strip Americans of their citizenship.
This will be the largest effort in history by the government to use its powers of denaturalization. Between 1990 and 2017, the Department of Justice only filed 11 complaints seeking to denaturalize Americans. With Monday’s announcement, the Trump administration’s unparalleled denaturalization campaign.
As a part of the Trump administration’s broader immigration clampdown, Trump is seeking to accelerate the denaturalization process. In Trump’s first year, the DOJ broadened the list that qualifies naturalized citizens for denaturalization.
Within this current set of 17, five men were convicted of violent crimes including child sexual abuse and assault. Some were convicted of fraud or immigration fraud. One immigrant has been accused of filing fraudulent H-1B visa petitions. Another, the daughter of a Colombian drug lord, accused of money laundering.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said that the DOJ would take a “zero tolerance” approach for abusing the naturalization process.
“Criminal aliens are lying about their past crimes, including drug dealers, sexual predators, and fraudsters,” Blanche said.
New Department of Homeland Security head Markwayne Mullin said that the administration would use all legal remedies to denaturalize and deport “aliens.”
“American citizenship is a privilege, and it must be earned honestly. If you come here, break our laws, and lie in your immigration proceedings, you forfeit the privilege,” said Mullin.
It should be noted that those up for denaturalization have the right to fight to retain their citizenship. If the judge sides with the DOJ, that individual will be demoted to their previous immigration status and lose all of the benefits of U.S. citizenship, including protection from deportation.
