Can Trump Take Away Musk and Mamdani's US Citizenship Just Because He Doesn't Like Them?

US President Donald Trump and his administration have hinted that they may consider stripping not only Elon Musk of his US citizenship, but also Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic candidate for mayor of New York City, reports Al Jazeera.

Photo: Mariusz Blach | Dreamstime.com

Trump has threatened to arrest Zohran Mamdani if ​​he does not cooperate with deportation operations conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in New York.

In addition, in light of the disagreement over tax breaks and the recently narrowly passed spending bill, Trump said former aide Elon Musk may have to "shut down his business and go home to South Africa."

But does the Trump administration really have the authority to strip Mamdani and Musk of their citizenship? Both are naturalized U.S. citizens who were born abroad.

On the subject: Justice Department vows to step up revoking U.S. citizenship and deporting those who held it

What is the immigration status of Mamdani and Musk?

Mamdani, 33, was born in Kampala, Uganda, to ethnic Indian parents. He moved to New York at age seven and became a U.S. citizen in 2018.

Musk was born in 1971 in Pretoria, South Africa, to a Canadian mother and a South African father. At 17, he moved to Canada, where he also holds citizenship. In 1992, Musk moved to the United States to study at the University of Pennsylvania. According to a 2023 biography by journalist Walter Isaacson, the billionaire became a U.S. citizen in 2002.

In October 2024, the Washington Post reported that Musk had started his career in the US without proper work authorization, a claim the businessman denies. In an X post, he stated, “I had work authorization in the US. I was there on a J-1 visa, which later became an H-1B.” Note: The J-1 visa is for international students, while the H-1B is a temporary work visa.

To naturalize in the United States, a person must be over 18 years of age and have lived in the United States as a permanent resident (green card holder) for at least five years (or three years if he/she is married to a U.S. citizen).

What the Trump Administration Says About Mamdani

Tennessee Republican Congressman Andy Ogles sent a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi on June 26 asking the Justice Department to investigate whether Mamdani should be stripped of his citizenship.

On Platform X, Ogles posted a copy of the letter: "Zohran 'Little Mohammed' Mamdani is an anti-Semite, socialist, communist who will destroy the great city of New York. He should be DEPORTED. Therefore, I request that you consider denaturalizing him."

Ogles believes an investigation should be launched into whether Mamdani may have obtained U.S. citizenship by “willfully misrepresenting or concealing support for terrorism.” He cites reports, including in the New York Post, that Mamdani expressed solidarity with “individuals convicted of terrorism before becoming U.S. citizens.”
Ogles said Mamdani rapped the line, "Free the Holy Land Five / My boys."
The Holy Land Foundation was convicted in 2008 of providing material assistance to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization.

Ogles writes that the public praise of the foundation's convicted leaders raises serious questions about Mamdani's possible extremist views, which he may have concealed when he received citizenship.

In addition, Mamdani refused to condemn the slogan "globalize the intifada," which has been interpreted as a call for violence against civilians outside the Middle East, Ogles said.
Mamdani also promised to prevent masked ICE officers from “deporting our neighbors.”
When Trump was asked about this at a July 1 press conference, he said, "If he interferes with ICE, then we're going to have to arrest him."

"We don't want a communist in this country, but if we have one, I'm going to watch him very closely on behalf of the entire nation," Trump concluded.

How did Mamdani react?

On July 1, Mamdani posted a statement on his X page: "The President of the United States just threatened to arrest me, strip me of my citizenship, put me in a camp, and deport me. Not because I broke the law, but because I refuse to allow ICE to terrorize our city."

He also called Trump's praise of incumbent Mayor Eric Adams "unsurprising," noting, "At a time when MAGA Republicans are trying to destroy the social safety net, take away health insurance for millions of New Yorkers, and enrich their billionaire donors at the expense of working people, the fact that Eric Adams is parroting the president's rhetoric is scandalous. Voters will loudly reject it in November."

What the Trump Administration Says About Musk

While Musk, the owner of Tesla and SpaceX, had previously been a close ally of Trump and a major donor to his campaign, their relationship soured amid the passage of the "big, beautiful bill" spending bill.

Musk has sharply criticized the bill online and threatened to form a new political party in response to its passage.

The bill would eliminate tax credits of up to $30 for electric vehicle purchases on September 7,500, which could seriously reduce demand.

On June 30, Trump wrote on Truth Social: "Without subsidies, Elon may have to fold and go back to South Africa. No more rocket launches, satellites, or electric cars - and our country will save a FORTUNE."

A little later he added: "Maybe we should let DOGE handle this? YOU CAN SAVE BIG MONEY!!!"

DOGE is the Department of Government Effectiveness, an advisory body created by Musk during the Trump administration. Musk led it until May 30.

On July 1, when reporters asked Trump if he planned to deport Musk, he replied, "We'll see. We might have to get DOGE involved."

On what grounds can US citizenship be revoked?

Naturalized U.S. citizenship may be revoked if:
– committing crimes such as terrorism, war crimes, human rights violations, sexual crimes;
– fraud or concealment of important information when applying for citizenship;
- high treason, service in a foreign army or participation in elections in another country.

On June 11, the Justice Department issued a memo stating that it would "give priority to denaturalization" in cases where citizenship was obtained illegally or through willful misrepresentation.

Could Musk or Mamdani be stripped of their citizenship?

Experts say this is unlikely.

“Denaturalization is only possible with proven fraud on the application,” said Michael Kagan, a law professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. “That’s unlikely for either Musk or Mamdani. These seem like irresponsible statements designed to intimidate political opponents.”

History of denaturalization in the USA

Throughout the 20th century, citizenship was revoked more frequently, especially during the world wars and the Cold War.

During the so-called Red Scare (1917–1920 and 1947–1957), the US government actively revoked the citizenship of communists and Nazi sympathizers.

Two famous cases:
– Emma Goldman, an anarchist born in Lithuania, migrated to the United States in 1885, was stripped of her citizenship and deported to Soviet Russia in 1919 for anti-war agitation.
– Paul Knauer, a German native who became a U.S. citizen in 1937, was denaturalized in 1946 for concealing his ties to the pro-Nazi German-American Bund.

In 1967, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that citizenship cannot be revoked against a person's will unless it was obtained illegally or the citizen committed a serious crime.
The case was the case of Beis Afroim, who voted in the Israeli elections and the government tried to strip him of his citizenship. The court sided with him and overturned the law that allowed such stripping.

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