The Legal means to becoming a U.S. Citizen are far more repressive then needed! The vetting process can be handled in under 2 years once the papers are submitted, and the test could be handled at any Fed courthouse, BUT NO, We had to go through 9 years+ of constant Krap, get treated like krap, and then had to make an appointment a YEAR in advance to drive all the frickin way to San Francisco to finalize every thing so my lovely bride could become a honest tax paying U.S. Citizen! Stomper is correct, the Consulate makes you feel all nasty, and they treat you like some child molester! I feel all nasty just posting this! I hired a really good Lawyer to handle all the papers and navigate the many hurdles, and it was still a nightmare, especially in the beginning as we were trying to figure it all out! Then there were all the different Visa's that were required, and "Up Grade Status" at each step, all requiring a extensive check, and a large fee! Friggin KRAP if you was to ask me!
Is this a recent change to immigration? My wife of 25 years became a citizen about 5-7 years ago, and the process was a little confusing, but ultimately not really that hard. We sent some paperwork in, went to some classes and interviews and she was sworn in as a citizen downtown PDX. I am honestly curious if the process has been changed to such an extreme, or if it was easy because of the 20+ years of marriage to a US borne citizen.