Posted on 03/15/2026 7:05:57 AM PDT by Miami Rebel
After fighting for almost a decade to gain U.S. citizenship, time is running out for Marine Corps veteran Paul Canton.
He’ll likely be deported soon back to his native New Zealand, despite serving in the U.S. military for seven years, and building a life in Central Florida for more than 25 years.
Canton’s story first hit the news cycle in 2020 when his application for citizenship was rejected by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, even though the former Marine had no criminal record.
Despite the setback, Canton and his family kept working on his citizenship case, gaining support from leaders on both sides of the political spectrum.
However, Canton’s glimmer of hope was torpedoed in February when a federal judge nixed his appeal, bringing him one step closer to leaving the place he’s called home for 35 years.
Paul Canton built a life in Central Florida, got married and raised a family after leaving the Marine Corps in 1998. (Facebook) 'Flawed System' Both Democratic and Republican politicians, especially from Florida, have voiced concerns over Canton’s plight, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, along with former Congresswomen Val Demings and current representative Daniel Webster, some even offering help to the former Marine.
But Canton feels the U.S. immigration system is flawed, especially when laws aren’t in the books to allow automatic citizenship to veterans who were honorably discharged with no prior criminal transgressions. His attorney, Elizabeth Ricci, was hopeful Canton would receive citizenship on appeal, but that wasn’t the case.
Left with few options, Canton is planning to uproot his life in the U.S. and return to New Zealand.
Canton looks back on his service with pride. His home in Marion County, Florida, is decorated with memories from his life as a Marine.
(Excerpt) Read more at military.com ...
There must be many more to this story.
it gives you qualification for citizenship, but you still have to apply. He never bothered to for some reason and then there was the illegal voting that dis-qualified him after the fact
“... this story isn’t telling the whole truth is it?”
“This is a place 47 needs to step in and make things right for the guy.”
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Yes he should. But this case provides a conundrum for the administration. We’ve been pummeled by the MSM that Trump is only targeting brown people. If the admin lets him stay, we’ll be pummeled with, “Trump wants only white immigrants.” Just like they did with the Afrikaners.
According to the article, (1) he overstayed his student visa, (2) enlisted after Desert Storm, and (3) voted as a non-citizen.
As a retiree who was attached to Marine units including my service with them in combat, I am in sympathy with this Marine's application for forgiveness and relief, but do not think this is a failure of the Immigration system. Throughout my career I also heard many promises and assurances. But most of us learned to rely on facts that were substantiated with “bible documents.” If I understand the article, the criminal issue is voting as a non-citizen.
Even if say, the recruiter had told a naive 17 YO that his enlistment was proof of citizenship ("believing he was a citizen due to his service")... what of all the other processes that would have required actual proof of citizenship?
Granted, bureaucracy is a black hole of dysfunction on any typical day, but at some point early on, reality would have entered the narrative.
He enlisted after arriving in the U.S. as a 17-year-old exchange student in 1988, was recruited with promises (including from his recruiter) that honorable discharge would lead to citizenship...
...This has left him facing deportation, and he is now effectively stateless (having renounced Australian citizenship upon enlisting, per some reports)
Not enough info When and how did he enter the country ???
So of course the story is that he's being thrown out on his ass by the mean bad selfish United States. Clickbait, basically.
he registered to vote claiming to be a United States citizen and voted in several elections within a year prior to filing his application, in violation of federal law.
https://ecf.flmd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2023-01190-45-6-cv
Go to x.com and address your complaint in a post to @grok
I am not going to reformat to your liking. Sorry. Not sorry.
I would love to know all of it
I am curious as to how he voted in Florida that requires an ID. I live in Florida and vote in person. Did he register years ago before an ID requirement?
There is much more to the story. It appears it is a technecallity and such is life.
But what isn’t being told is that he can leave and reapply and I bet it goes through easily.
The media has an agenda.
Here’s his crime:
he registered to vote claiming to be a United States citizen and voted in several elections within a year prior to filing his application, in violation of federal law.
https://ecf.flmd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2023-01190-45-6-cv
I moved to another country, I would follow the laws.
One thing that's omitted from citizenship stories is that the decision is up to the losing country, not the gaining country.
The U.S. State Department doesn't poach citizens from countries that don't want to let them go, especially from allied nations.
I know folks who needed to emigrate to a second country before being able to emigrate here because of their home countries relationship with the U.S. government.
I agree. A young guy doesn’t consider the future, so I get why he didn’t begin his research while in the Marines. But why wait so long? He did a lot of things before worrying about that.
Here’s the technicality-”...but his active duty began two weeks after that designated period of hostility officially ended...”. Anyone who served knows that even if the “period” has officially ended, members are still in that area of operation. Still serving in that combat area with unfriendlies all around. Many have been screwed out of some benefits because of date issues like this.
Oh, I see why now. Recruiters assured him it wouldn’t be a problem, in essence. Turned out it was when the war ended so early in his service.
Wrong color, wrong religion, denied.
Who was the judge that denied him?
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