U.S. Intensifies Efforts to Denaturalize Naturalized Citizens

WHO:

CBS News - The Trump administration, specifically a senior Justice Department official.

Alternet - President Donald Trump, the Justice Department, and the Department of Homeland Security.

CNN - Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Daniel Kanstroom, professor of law at Boston College Law School.

WHAT:

CBS News - The Trump administration plans to revoke the U.S. citizenship of more than 250 foreign-born citizens.

Alternet - The Trump administration filed 29 denaturalization cases targeting foreign-born Americans accused of fraudulently obtaining U.S. citizenship in less than two months.

CNN - The Justice Department has filed 29 denaturalization cases this year and plans to file at least 250 by October.

CNN - The federal government has the authority to revoke citizenship if false statements were made during the naturalization process or if citizenship was illegally procured.

WHERE:

CNN - The cases are being sent to U.S. attorney offices across the country.

WHEN:

CBS News - The Trump administration expects to file more than 250 cases by October.

Alternet - The administration filed 29 denaturalization cases in just two months this year.

CNN - Between 2008 and June 12, 2026, 166 denaturalization complaints were filed.

WHY:

CNN - The push for denaturalization is part of President Trump's broader immigration agenda, which aims to protect the integrity of American citizenship.

CNN - The administration's intent to prioritize denaturalizations was signaled in a June 2025 memo from Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate.

HOW:

Alternet - The Justice Department is pulling civil litigators from various divisions to pursue denaturalization cases.

CNN - The denaturalization unit consists of 12 attorneys working through a backlog of cases and fielding referrals from the Department of Homeland Security.

CNN - Denaturalization cases proceed as civil or criminal cases depending on the circumstances.

(UPDATED June 18, 2026 18:01 UTC)

The Trump administration is moving forward with plans to revoke the U.S. citizenship of more than 250 foreign-born citizens, having already filed 29 denaturalization cases in just two months this year. This initiative, part of President Trump's broader immigration agenda, aims to uphold the integrity of American citizenship and is being executed by the Justice Department, which is reallocating resources to focus on these cases. The administration expects to file at least 250 denaturalization cases by October, with the cases being sent to U.S. attorney offices across the country.