'Ready To Die For My New Country': Gaining Quick Citizenship In Combat Boots
Oumama Kabli, center, celebrates becoming a U.S. citizen during a naturalization ceremony on April 15 at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Kabli, 19, is a private in the Army National Guard and entitled to become a citizen without the normal five-year residency requirement because of her military service.
By Bill Briggs This story is part of NBC News’ series “Immigration Nation,” an in-depth examination of immigration in America. A wartime edict to entice immigrants to join the military in exchange for rapid naturalization has created 83,000 new American citizens. But one critic worries the initiative will become permanent — or perhaps even expand — essentially outsourcing more U.S. combat jobs and, he argues, injecting the armed forces with an increased security risk.
Launched via a 2002 executive order by President George W. Bush, the program lets green-card holders who enlist in the U.S. armed services bypass the typical five-year residency rule and apply immediately for citizenship at no fee. More than 10 percent of such naturalization ceremonies have taken place in 28 countries abroad, including 3,412 in Iraq, 2,102 in Japan and 1,134 in South Korea, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, or USCIS, which administers the process.
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