Trump's AG Says Citizens Who Obtained Citizenship 'Illegally' 'Should Be Worried' as DOJ Expands Denaturalization Efforts

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Wednesday that the Justice Department will prioritize efforts to revoke the citizenship of naturalized Americans accused of obtaining it fraudulently, signaling a major expansion of denaturalization cases as part of the Trump administration's broader immigration crackdown.

"We are on track to surpass the number of denaturalization filings the Biden administration submitted in four years, we're going to pass that, I think, in about a week," Blanche said during his remarks at the Border Security Expo in Phoenix, which gathered border-security officials, contractors and immigration enforcement personnel. "This is another way that we're able to deal with border security."

Blanche framed the effort as part of a campaign to protect "the integrity of the naturalization process," arguing that immigrants who obtained U.S. citizenship through fraud "should be worried," as NOTUS reports.

He expanded the idea in an interview with CBS News:

"If you're going to come and become a citizen in this country, but you're going to do it by fraud, you're going to do it in a way that's illegal, you should be worried"

He added that the administration was not focusing on any single category of naturalized citizens. "There are a lot of individuals who are citizens who shouldn't be," Blanche said, declining to estimate how many cases the Justice Department expects to pursue.

The comments reflect a broader effort by the Trump administration to intensify scrutiny not only of undocumented immigrants, but also of legal immigration pathways. Denaturalization cases have historically been rare and largely reserved for severe offenses involving war crimes, terrorism or major fraud. Between 1990 and 2017, federal authorities filed just over 300 denaturalization cases nationwide, according to CBS News.

Last year, however, the Justice Department expanded internal guidance to prioritize broader categories of alleged fraud, including financial crimes.

At the Border Security Expo, Blanche also outlined a wider immigration enforcement strategy involving multiple federal agencies. He said FBI agents, DEA personnel and U.S. Marshals are now participating in immigration-related enforcement under Title 8 authorities. "That hasn't happened in the past," Blanche said. "We have every federal agency focused on the mission of illegal immigration."

Blanche also vowed aggressive prosecution of anyone physically resisting immigration agents during deportation operations. "We're going to make sure nobody can touch you without facing the full wrath of the federal government," he said.