Melania should be on first boat: Deportation calls for US' First Lady gains traction amid Trump's immigration crackdown
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Melania Trump visa controversy
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Americans have started a petition asking the US government to deport Melania Trump, her parents and Barron Trump amid the President's plan to target naturalised citizens for deportation. A petition on MoveOn has gained traction online demanding that US First Lady Melania Trump her son Barron, and her parents also be deported, reports The Irish Star.The petition says that since the President wants to deport naturalized citizens, "it's only fair that Melania and her parents are on the first boat out." This comes as the Department of Justice began to prioritize stripping naturalized Americans of their citizenship when charged with crimes.The petition claims that since Melania Trump is a naturalised citizen, she and her family should be 'on the first boat out' if Trump's proposals are applied fairly.It also refers to Barron Trump as an 'anchor baby' and cites the birth of Melania's mother outside the US as part of the criteria Trump's policy reportedly targets.An Anchor Baby is a term used to refer to a child born to a non-citizen mother in the US, especially when viewed as providing an advantage to family members seeking to secure citizenship or legal residency.'Since Trump wants to deport naturalized citizens, I believe it is only fair that Melania and her parents are on the first boat out,' the page reads. 'In addition, Melania's anchor baby, Baron, should be forced to leave as well because we know that his mother's mother was born in a different country. That is part of the criteria that Trump is putting into place. Your mother's mother has to have been born in the United States and we know Melania's mother was born elsewhere. If it's good for one, it's good for all! There should be no exceptions! On the first boat or flight out!'The petition further argued that the move would prevent perceptions of favoritism, adding, "If this is truly about national security, then Melania needs to go!" The remarks reflected growing public frustration over what many viewed as double standards in Trump's deportation agenda.Even though the petition was launched five months ago, it has gained popularity over the last few months, going from 100 signatures two days ago to over 3,300 at the time of publication. Earlier this year, Congresswoman Maxine Waters called for the deportation of Melania, saying Trump should "first look at Melania's records.' Waters' remarks came after Trump signed an executive order on his first day in office seeking to restrict birthright citizenship by reinterpreting the 14th amendment. The order is currently under judicial review."When he [Trump] talks about birthright, and he's going to undo the fact that the Constitution allows those who are born here, even if the parents are undocumented, they have a right to stay in America. If he wants to start looking so closely to find those who were born here and their parents were undocumented, maybe he ought to first look at Melania," Waters was seen saying from the stage, various videos posted on social media showed, Fox News reported.She added, "We don't know whether or not her parents were documented. And maybe we better just take a look." According to Fox News, her remarks were met with loud cheers from protestors at the rally, which focused on opposing Trump's federal government downsizing agenda.Also, Democratic Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett turned her sights on First Lady Melania Trump over her visa."We don't know whether or not her parents were documented. And maybe we better just take a look," Waters said at a rally. 'If he wants to start looking so closely to find those who were born here and their parents were undocumented, maybe he ought to first look at Melania.''The first lady, a model—and when I say model, I'm not talking Tyra Banks, Cindy Crawford, or Naomi Campbell-level—applied for and was given an EB-1 visa,' Crockett said.'Let me tell you how you receive an Einstein visa,' she said, 'you're supposed to have some sort of significant achievement, like being awarded a Nobel Peace Prize or a Pulitzer, being an Olympic medallist, or having other sustained extraordinary abilities and success in sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics. Last time I checked, the first lady had none of those accolades under her belt. It doesn't take an Einstein to see that the math ain't mathin' here.'Melania was born in Slovenia in 1970 and moved to New York in 1996. She is the first Lady of the United States to become a naturalized citizen. She was a Slovenian model living in New York when she applied for the EB-1 in 2000. The visa was approved in 2001, and she became a US citizen in 2006. That citizenship later allowed her to sponsor her parents for green cards.Details about her immigration status before she got her green card in 2001 have remained unclear, often kicking off conspiracy theories about whether or not she had maintained legal immigration status.In 2018, The New York Times reported that Melania sponsored her parents, Viktor and Amalija Knavs, for green cards and later citizenship. Amalija Knavs passed away in 2024, while Viktor Knavs has been seen at recent public events with the Trump familyHowever, Robert Scott, an immigration attorney based in New York, told Fact Check last year: 'There's really no sound argument that any of Donald's children are not U.S. citizens.' The 14th Amendment states, 'All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and the State wherein they reside.'
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