Donald Trump came into his second term with a bold promise — strip citizenship from hundreds of foreign-born Americans he deemed unworthy of it. His administration compiled a list of 385 targets, pressured attorneys to take on transfers and called itself 'laser-focused' on rooting out fraud in the naturalisation process. It was the kind of sweeping, hardline rhetoric that defined his return to the White House.
But the reality playing out in federal courts is a great deal quieter. Since the start of Trump's second term, the Department of Justice has filed just 35 denaturalisation cases. And a close look at those cases suggests the administration's bark is considerably worse than its bite.
