The Great CNMI Switcheroo: Foreign Labor Out, American Pride In – Paradise Regained? Why the U.S. Department of State MUST take more of an active role in the Oversight of the CNMI. Introduction In the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) stands as a strategic outpost of American sovereignty—a chain of 14 islands that serve as a vital link in the U.S. defense architecture against rising geopolitical threats, particularly f