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Lowenna Waters
Aug 10, 2018
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Pool / Getty Images
On Thursday it was announced that Melania Trump's parents have been sworn in as official US citizens through sponsorship by their adult daughter.
There's one tiny issue with this - they appear to have gained citizenship through taking advantage of a family-based immigration system, otherwise known as 'chain migration', that the president himself has railed against vehemently.
Slovenian couple Viktor and Amalija Knavs, 73 and 71 respectively, gained their citizenship in a private ceremony in Manhattan, their immigration attorney Michael Wildes announced.
Asked whether they'd obtained citizenship through 'chain migration', he responded 'I suppose', reports the New York Times.
In November, the president railed against this type of family-based migration, which he regularly calls 'chain migration', saying that it is harmful to the US, and seeking to repeal it as a means of obtaining a green card.
In a speech in November, the president Trump tweeted:
CHAIN MIGRATION must end now! Some people come in, and they bring their whole family with them, who can be truly evil. NOT ACCEPTABLE!
Needless to say, it didn't take long for the internet to pick up on this apparent extreme hypocrisy.
Asked if the Knavses (Melania's parents) obtained citizenship through family-based immigration, sometimes called 'c… https://t.co/DlXks2hK2w— Kyle Griffin (@Kyle Griffin) 1533847235
To be clear, Melania Trump sponsoring her parents is a method many, many Americans use to bring their family to the… https://t.co/3BHefFjMDl— MJ Lee (@MJ Lee) 1533849822
.@DavidLeopold does not mince words in my story on @FLOTUS’s parents becoming naturalized citizens today.… https://t.co/8JdtCttc5g— David Nakamura (@David Nakamura) 1533843654
Some focused on the plight of other families at the borders.
How do you sleep at night? @realDonaldTrump @FLOTUS @IvankaTrump , how’s family reunification going at the bo… https://t.co/q4Bv995BLq— Jonathan Van Ness (@Jonathan Van Ness) 1533849447
While others highlighted the fact that Melania's own immigration story is still unclear.
Reminder in light of the naturalization of Melania's parents: On this date two years ago—August 9, 2016—Trump promi… https://t.co/b0EHkwLvqO— Kyle Griffin (@Kyle Griffin) 1533869110
While others tried to work out exactly howthe Knavses could have gained citizenship.
There are very limited, precise ways that someone can get a green card. If Melania Trump's parents got green cards… https://t.co/FnUclvHFkM— Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) 1520274494
You can also get a green card through unemployment. Melania Trump herself got a so-called Einstein Visa. As you may… https://t.co/2WUmSCXSXH— Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) 1520274617
You can also get a green card through unemployment. Melania Trump herself got a so-called Einstein Visa. As you may… https://t.co/2WUmSCXSXH— Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) 1520274617
Unless Melania Trump's parents have been moonlighting as Afghan or Iraqi translators, religious workers, internatio… https://t.co/kZPIBnWmVX— Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) 1520274729
Are Melania Trump's parents refugees or asylees? That's another way they could have obtained green cards. There are… https://t.co/miPTXxCCqJ— Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) 1520274809
Were Melania Trump's parents trafficked into the US by a coyote? If so, they could get a T visa. Were they victims… https://t.co/TdbQPrZHB0— Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) 1520274939
If Melania Trump's parents were from Cuba, they could try to get green cards. But they're not. So they can't and they didn't.— Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) 1520274994
Did Melania Trump's parents take their changes with the diversity lottery? It's unlikely, given that family reunifi… https://t.co/aPrfGOBW5U— Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) 1520275089
Did Melania Trump's parents take their changes with the diversity lottery? It's unlikely, given that family reunifi… https://t.co/aPrfGOBW5U— Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) 1520275089
If Melania Trump's parents had been here since 1972, they could apply for green cards through the registry program.… https://t.co/0r5usMFjQe— Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) 1520275184
That's it. Those are the ways @MELANIATRUMP's parents could have gotten green cards. That's why so many immigration… https://t.co/c2RmPejy4H— Aura Bogado (@Aura Bogado) 1520275337
In March this year, it was reported the Melania Trump gained citizenship of the US through an 'Einstein visa' in 2001. Only five people from Slovenia were granted green cards in the US under the programme in 2001, according to the US State Department, and in that year only 3,376 of the over 1 million green cards issued were for immigrants who had 'extraordinary ability'. At the time of her citizenship approval, the future First Lady's achievements amounted to a successful modelling career.
HT CNN
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