US lawmaker wants to denaturalise US citizens with links to so-called 'Islamic fundamentalism'

Far-right Republican Representative Chip Roy has introduced a controversial new bill called the “MAMDANI Act” that would allow the US government to deny entry, revoke citizenship (denaturalisation), or deport individuals tied to certain ideologies, including “Marxism, socialism, communism, or Islamic fundamentalism”.

According to Roy’s office, the legislation, formally titled the Measures Against Marxism’s Dangerous Adherents and Noxious Islamists (MAMDANI) Act, “enacts sweeping immigration law changes that would deport, denaturalize, deny US citizenship, or entry to any alien who is a member of a socialist party, a communist party, the Chinese Communist Party, or Islamic fundamentalist party, or advocates for socialism, communism, Marxism, or Islamic fundamentalism”.

Roy framed the legislation as a national security measure, saying it is designed to target individuals who “do not share” American values and pose ideological threats. 

The bill’s name references New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a progressive Muslim politician and democratic socialist who was born in Uganda and became a naturalised US citizen in 2018. Roy has previously pointed to Mamdani’s political rise as justification for the legislation. 

“Why do we continue to import people who hate us? Not just for the last six years, but for the last 60 years, our immigration system has been cynically used to disadvantage American workers’ competitiveness in favor of mass-importing the third world,” Roy was quoted as saying in a press statement released by his office.

Roy, who is currently running for Texas attorney-general, has faced repeated criticism over his hostile statements and positions towards Muslims.

Late last month, he posted “No more Muslims” on X, prompting backlash from Muslim communities across the state. He has also been a vocal opponent of a proposed housing development linked to the East Plano Islamic Center in the Dallas–Fort Worth area, aligning with other Texas Republicans who warn of a “Sharia law” conspiracy.