Ranking Member Jayapal Denounces the Trump Administration’s Shameful Denaturalization Quota
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), Ranking Member of the Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Subcommittee, issued the following statement in response to new guidance that the Trump Administration will require U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to “supply Office of Immigration Litigation with 100-200 denaturalization cases per month” to increase denaturalizations:
“I am absolutely outraged by the Trump Administration’s plan to denaturalize American citizens by the hundreds every single month and use the immigration system to terrorize immigrants across this country, including US citizens. According to reports, between 2017 and today, there have been just over 120 denaturalization cases filed in total. These arbitrary numerical targets Trump has put out show that he is using the immigration system to go after anyone who disagrees with him, anyone who comes from countries he doesn’t like or decides to call ‘shithole’ countries, anyone he wants to terrorize into submission. Trump’s campaign of terror has never been about going after the ‘worst of the worst,’ and this latest move makes that crystal clear.
“Every U.S. citizen should be outraged by this. If he can do this to ‘them,’ he can certainly do it to you.
“As a proud naturalized citizen myself, one of only two dozen to serve in the United States Congress and now the top Democrat on the Immigration Subcommittee, I understand the deep meaning and privilege of becoming a US citizen. I came to this country when I was 16, alone, and with nothing in my pockets, and spent 17 years on an alphabet soup of visas before becoming a U.S. citizen. I treasure that moment to this day and take seriously my oath to this country — as so many millions of naturalized citizens do. The process is lengthy and meaningful, offering the security of knowing I am at home here, never to be separated from my U.S. citizen child and spouse or from the country where I’ve built my life and career. The idea that our own government would now seek to rip away this sacred bond that binds naturalized citizens to our country will harm all Americans, and indeed, the very idea of America.
“I call on the President to remember our history. We are a country built on the idea of being a refuge for those in need, a country where anyone can work hard and get ahead. Ultimately, immigration is about more than just who comes here and who is allowed to stay. It is about who we are as a country and what we are willing to stand up for.”
Issues: Immigration