Wow, this is ridiculous. My family just went through two international adoptions and both of the kids became citizens when they stepped off the plane in the US, had no idea that law was only passed in 2000. Should have applied retroactively, this dude is a citizen...
The guy should have applied for citizenship a long time ago. This really is a bizarre situation because at the very least he would have needed a social security card to work and in all likelihood obtaining an ID post 9/11.