The Justice Department introduced Monday that it’s going to transfer to revoke citizenship from 17 people nationwide, marking the most recent transfer in the Trump administration’s unprecedented push to goal naturalized residents.
Since President Donald Trump returned to workplace, his administration has doubled down on its denaturalization marketing campaign, concentrating on foreign-born American residents whom it accuses of fraudulently acquiring US citizenship.
Officials say that a few of the people focused in the most recent effort are accused of committing fraud and sexual abuse of a minor.
Denaturalization – the method of revoking citizenship from a naturalized US citizen – is uncommon and might solely happen in federal court docket. Historically, the US revoked citizenship for a variety of causes, from mendacity about an individual’s date of arrival, age or marital standing to political causes. During World War II, for instance, the US reviewed naturalization circumstances of German Americans who had been pro-Nazi.
Under the Biden administration, the Justice Department filed 24 denaturalization circumstances, in accordance to a DOJ official. The Trump administration has already outpaced that throughout the final yr.
In May, the administration additionally moved to denaturalize a dozen people.
“Gaining U.S. citizenship is a privilege and under the steadfast leadership of President Trump, this Department of Justice maintains a zero-tolerance policy for the abuse of this process,” stated Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche in an announcement.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin stated the administration “will continue to use every lawful avenue to denaturalize and remove aliens.”