Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio has introduced a bill that would dramatically change the rules surrounding American citizenship. The “Exclusive Citizenship Act” seeks to eliminate dual citizenship altogether, forcing Americans who hold foreign citizenship to choose which nationality they will keep. The article describes the legislation as “the latest attempt by the right to attack immigrants and tighten the rules around what is permissible with regards to American citizenship.”
The bill is built on the argument that dual citizens pose national loyalty concerns. Moreno’s proposal claims that people with foreign citizenships may have “conflicts of interest and divided loyalties.” The legislation asserts that individuals should not “owe allegiance to another country,” and makes that claim central to its justification for eliminating dual citizenship.
Under the text described in the source material, the requirements would be strict. According to the article, the bill states that anyone who acquires foreign citizenship would be required to relinquish their U.S. citizenship. It also says that individuals who already hold dual citizenship would be required to “submit a written renunciation of their U.S. or foreign citizenship to the government within a year.” If they do not comply, the bill specifies that they would be “assumed to have renounced their U.S. citizenship.”
The consequences outlined in the legislation would be substantial. The article explains that individuals who lose their U.S. citizenship under the bill would be “treated as an alien for the purposes of the immigration laws.” This change would shift people who had been citizens into a legal category that affects access to federal programs, work eligibility, the right to vote, and the ability to reside in the United States without immigration procedures.
The proposal would affect a wide range of Americans. Millions hold dual citizenship through birth abroad, parental nationality, or naturalization. For these individuals, the one year deadline would require a significant legal and personal decision. Those who do not take action would automatically be classified as having relinquished their U.S. citizenship under the bill’s language, a process that would reshape their rights and legal status without a formal voluntary renunciation.
The article notes that supporters of the bill frame it around concerns about loyalty. The claim that dual citizens have “conflicts of interest and divided loyalties” is presented in the legislation, although the source material does not include additional explanation or evidence for these assertions. The proposal argues that American citizenship must be exclusive, yet the source does not report any further legislative commentary or statements from other lawmakers.
Because the bill states that individuals who fail to submit paperwork would be “assumed to have renounced their U.S. citizenship,” questions could arise about due process and the long standing principle that renunciation must be intentional. The article does not explore these legal questions but highlights the sweeping nature of the bill’s requirements.
The proposal appears within a broader political context of efforts to reshape immigration and citizenship policy. The article states that the bill is part of “the latest attempt by the right to attack immigrants,” placing the measure within a pattern of initiatives aimed at limiting pathways to citizenship and narrowing definitions of national belonging.
If enacted, the “Exclusive Citizenship Act” would create a nationwide process requiring individuals with dual nationality to file renunciation documents within a single year. Those who do not respond would lose their U.S. citizenship automatically. The consequences described in the source text show that individuals reclassified as “an alien for the purposes of the immigration laws” would face a fundamentally different relationship with the federal government, the legal system, and the country itself.
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