Still plenty of unanswered questions.
According to the timeline, in 2001, Melania adjusted from H1B to green card (Wilkes’ letter) not to EB-1. Had she been on EB-1 she would not have been eligible for citizenship in 2006. Citizenship is 5 years after green card or 3 years if green card was through marriage.
So, if Melania obtained her citizenship in 2006, only 1 year after marrying Donald, we can only assume she got a green card in 2001. How did she get her green card back then?[/quote]
How about the modeling agency sponsoring her for a green card. The visa for a model is H-1B3. To get this one, you will have to be sponsored by a reputable American agency. There are also O-1 visas that can be obtained by really top models – which do not require an sponsoring by an American modeling agency.
NOTE:Melania was at a level in her career at the time that she could have gotten either a O-1 or a H-1B3.
When marrying a foreigner, there is a time period after marriage and applying for spousal naturalization. I suspect that some or all of the time period during her H-1B was used to cover the normal waiting period (I think it is something like 3 years – I can find out if it is really really important). There are different ways to do this.
As for ‘hardline’, I am only hardline on those that want to disrespect the laws, enter the US illegally, then expect to get citizenship, amnesty etc. Yes, the process is messed up and needs to be fixed, but as citizens we are expected to follows the laws of the country, or at least make a genuine effort at trying. Starting off by breaking the laws of the nation and then expecting citizenship is not a very good way to start. I understand that there are hardships in their country (Mexico, Guatemala, etc), but in many cases the move is for economic benefit not true asylum.
I hear claims that by deporting them, we are being cruel. Lets be realistic here. If you are in Mexico illegally, you can be imprisoned there for 2 years in a Mexican jail – and then be deported. It can be more than 2 years if the judge, prosecutors or anyone else with some authority want you to grace their hand with silver(a bribe). Several of these cruelty claims have come from Mexican politicians themselves. On that one point, I think that Mexican politicians need to work on fixing their country so that their own citizens would not want to run to the United States, instead of making claims against our deportation – particularly considering their own rights records. Lets start by having Mexico declare a realistic minimum wage and enforcing it!?
Another thing to consider is that Melania, in the worst case, tried to work within the screwed up system to get the correct visa. She did not sneak across the border. There are many indications that she did do it correctly. Note that the fed has historical records of all visas that were given, and they have been quiet. http://www.vox.com/2016/8/4/12377286/melania-trump-illegal-immigrant
