As we point out in our chapter on citizenship, there is a key distinction between aliens and citizens. The government can deport aliens. A case in point is Justin Bieber, as Politico reports:
Washington may be buzzing about Tuesday’s State of the Union, but many Americans are concerned about another issue facing the nation: the immigration status of Justin Bieber.
A petition to deport Bieber and revoke his visa on the White House’s citizen portal reached 100,000 signatures Wednesday morning, the threshold needed for the White House to be required to respond.
The young pop star, who is Canadian and in the country on a temporary work visa, was arrested last week on charges of driving under the influence and resisting arrest. A petition was created the same day, urging the White House to revoke his permission to be in the country.
“We the people of the United States feel that we are being wrongly represented in the world of pop culture. We would like to see the dangerous, reckless, destructive, and drug abusing, Justin Bieber deported and his green card revoked,” The petition reads. “He is not only threatening the safety of our people but he is also a terrible influence on our nations youth. We the people would like to remove Justin Bieber from our society.”
Two competing petitions to not deport Bieber had a little more than 1,800 signatures combined as of 9 a.m. Wednesday, as the deportation request neared 101,000.
The White House’s petition site has been used plenty of times for off-beat requests. After a petition to build a Death Star like in “Star Wars” and another to deport CNN host Piers Morgan reached previous thresholds of 25,000 signatures, the White House raised the requirements to 100,000 signatures in 30 days to merit a response.
