A MAGA Republican wants the government to reexamine the citizenship of millions of Americans who became naturalized citizens over the past 36 years. But when a reporter asked whether that sweeping standard should also apply to high-profile figures connected to President Donald Trump, the congressman found himself facing an awkward question about Melania Trump and Elon Musk.
Rep. Randy Fine (R-Fla.) made the proposal Monday, arguing that the government should revisit the citizenship of everyone naturalized since 1990.
“I believe that we should go back to 1990, and we should reevaluate everyone who has become a naturalized citizen,” Fine said in the video below.
The proposal came as Fine and other Republicans have focused renewed attention on Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, whose immigration history has been the subject of allegations and political attacks for years.
During an interview with NewsNation’s Nichole Berlie, Fine claimed that “many, many, many people” in Minnesota had obtained citizenship without the proper paperwork. He offered no evidence during the interview to substantiate that broad allegation.
“I think Ilhan Omar needs to be the first; she certainly should not be the last,” Fine said.
But Berlie pressed him on whether the same scrutiny should extend to other prominent naturalized citizens — including first lady Melania Trump and billionaire Elon Musk.
The question put Fine’s sweeping proposal into a more politically uncomfortable context. If the government should revisit decades of naturalization records, would the standard apply equally to people associated with the president?
Fine said the rule should apply to anyone who had been dishonest on immigration paperwork.
“I don’t know anything about the circumstances of the first lady or Elon Musk,” he said, adding that he was unaware of any allegations against either of them.
He then pointed back to the allegations surrounding Omar, saying they had circulated for years and had, in his view, not received adequate scrutiny.
Fine went further, declaring: “I believe that anyone who lied on their paperwork to become a citizen should be denaturalized and should be deported.”
Berlie also noted that Melania Trump entered the United States on an EB-1A visa, often called the “Einstein visa.” The category is intended for people who qualify based on extraordinary ability in fields such as business, science, education, athletics, or the arts.
However, the specific achievements or field of extraordinary ability on which Melania qualified for the visa have not been clearly established in the information publicly available.
Musk, who was born in South Africa and later became a U.S. citizen, was also brought into the conversation as Berlie challenged Fine to explain how broadly he wanted his proposed review to reach.
In a 2013 interview at the Milken Institute Global Conference, Elon Musk’s brother, Kimbal, made a startling admission about their early days in the United States. Recalling the launch of their startup, Zip2, Kimbal said investors discovered that the brothers were “illegal immigrants.” Elon pushed back, describing his own immigration status at the time as “a gray area.” The exchange resurfaced years later as Musk became an outspoken critic of illegal immigration. The precise legal circumstances of his status during that period remain unclear.
The exchange highlighted a central issue with Fine’s proposal: Reexamining every naturalized citizen since 1990 would extend far beyond Omar or any single political controversy. It could potentially place millions of Americans’ immigration histories under renewed scrutiny.
Omar Remains at the Center of the Political Fight
Omar’s immigration history has become a flashpoint in her long-running feud with Trump, who has repeatedly attacked the Minnesota Democrat and called for her to be sent back to Somalia, where she was born and from which she fled as a refugee when she was a child.
Reports have said federal authorities are investigating questions related to Omar’s citizenship records, and her home was reportedly searched last week. The full scope of the investigation and the evidence involved have not been publicly established in the information provided.
Omar has accused Trump of targeting her politically. Any allegations about her immigration history remain distinct from a legal finding that she committed fraud.
Fine’s proposal raises a broader question about how far the government should go in revisiting naturalized citizens’ records, and whether such scrutiny would be applied consistently, regardless of a person’s political connections.
Watch Fine’s interview in the clip below:
GOP Rep. Randy Fine says he’s been open to deporting Melania Trump and Elon Musk if it turns out they lied on their paperwork https://t.co/ALABKFooh4
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 26, 2026
