Lawmakers on Capitol Hill plan to examine how illegal immigrant truck drivers ended up on America&#8217;s roads following a string of devastating crashes, The Daily Wire has learned.
The House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability will hold a hearing Wednesday entitled, “Highway Safety Under Threat: Examining Non-Domiciled CDL [commercial driver&#8217;s license] Issuance to Illegal Aliens,” to investigate the now-frequent collisions.
The hearing comes after President Donald Trump mentioned the issue during his State of the Union speech Tuesday while honoring 7-year-old Dalilah Coleman, who was nearly killed in a collision allegedly caused by an Indian illegal immigrant allowed into the country by the Biden administration and who received a commercial driver&#8217;s license in California.
Since then, Republican Senator Jim Banks has introduced &#8220;The Dalilah Law,&#8221; which seeks to strip illegal immigrants of their commercial driver&#8217;s licenses and issue stricter requirements for issuing them.
“Granting commercial driver’s licenses to people who have violated our immigration laws, and in many cases, can’t read traffic signs in English, raises serious safety concerns. Tragically, we have seen the death or injury of innocent Americans due to this practice,&#8221; the subcommittee chairman, Republican Oklahoma Rep. Josh Brecheen, said in a statement to The Daily Wire.
&#8220;This is a matter of saving lives. Next week&#8217;s hearing will provide an important opportunity for local, state, and federal leaders to address this risk and work together to better protect American roads,&#8221; Brecheen added.
The upcoming hearing will feature testimony from Tim Tipton, the commissioner of the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety, and Sheriff Richard Del Toro Jr. of St. Lucie County, Florida.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
The alleged semi-truck driver who killed three people while making a U-turn at an “Official Use Only” turn on the Florida Turnpike is an ILLEGAL MIGRANT who was granted a commercial driver’s license by the State of California. 
<a href="https://t.co/Ky7w9hsojX">pic.twitter.com/Ky7w9hsojX</a>
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) <a href="https://twitter.com/Breaking911/status/1957118057563750441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 17, 2025</a></blockquote>
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The sheriff&#8217;s county was the site of a fatal trucking crash that thrust the issue into the national spotlight.
Harjinder Singh, an illegal immigrant from India, killed three people after making an illegal U-turn in St. Lucie County in August.
Singh was handed a commercial driver&#8217;s license in California after crossing the southern border illegally in 2018. It was later discovered that Singh failed his license test ten times in two months before he received it, Fox News previously reported.
Meanwhile, Tipton&#8217;s department has spearheaded operations in the state that have pulled illegal immigrant truckers off the roads.
In September, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, alongside Immigration and Customs Enforcement, <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/10/06/icymi-ice-and-oklahoma-highway-patrol-arrests-91-illegal-aliens-driving-18-wheelers#:~:text=In%20September%202025%2C%20the%20U.S.%20Department%20of,aliens%20from%20a%20nearby%20marijuana%20grow%20operation**" target="_blank" rel="noopener">caught</a> 91 illegal immigrant truckers with commercial driver&#8217;s licenses.
During a two-day operation in October, state troopers caught 34 illegal immigrant truck drivers. The illegal immigrants had rap sheets that included assault and battery, soliciting prostitution, and DUI, <a href="https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ice-and-oklahoma-bolster-public-safety-states-highways-removing-34-illegal-alien" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to ICE.
Two of them also had warrants for fraud and burglary overseas.
“Many of the illegal aliens arrested behind the wheel of an 80,000-pound tractor trailer can’t even read basic English, endangering everyone they encounter on the roads,&#8221; ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Executive Associate Director Marcos Charles said at the time.

Untitled design – 2026-02-27T115452.072

Congress Turns Spotlight on Deadly Crashes Involving Illegal Immigrant Truckers

Congress To Spotlight Illegal Immigrant Trucking Crashes In Upcoming Hearing

Drivers Licenses

Illegal Immigration

Truckers

Following high-profile accidents at the hands of illegal immigrants who entered the U.S. from &#8220;sanctuary&#8221; states, Florida is taking action to restrict driver&#8217;s license tests to only English and bar any translation support.
On Friday, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) announced the new measure, which is clearly being implemented as another safeguard for Florida residents.
Starting February 6, all tests statewide &#8220;will be administered exclusively in English,&#8221; the department said in a press release. &#8220;This change applies to all driver license classifications, including exams administered orally.&#8221;
<div>
Previously, exams for most non-commercial driver&#8217;s license classifications were offered in multiple languages, and Commercial Learner’s Permit (CLP) and Commercial Driver&#8217;s License (CDL) knowledge exams were available in English and Spanish.
&#8220;FLHSMV has updated its driver license testing system statewide,&#8221; the department added. &#8220;Language translation services will no longer be permitted for knowledge or skills examinations, and any printed exams in languages other than English will be removed for use.&#8221;
</div>
The change follows a devastating crash in Florida that occurred over the summer. Harjinder Singh, an illegal who entered the U.S. through California, was charged with three counts of homicide after he <a href="https://www.flhsmv.gov/2025/08/16/illegal-u-turn-truck-driver-arrested-for-vehicular-homicide/">recklessly</a> attempted to execute an illegal U-turn on the Florida turnpike, resulting in the deaths of three Americans.
According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Singh entered the U.S. illegally into California, a sanctuary state, back in 2018. He was quickly arrested and processed for expedited removal, but after claiming he feared returning to India, he was released on bond. Then, Singh somehow obtained a Commercial Driver’s License in California.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Illegal alien issued CDL by California. Doesn’t even speak English. Sanctuary policies are deadly.
Must hold the illegal alien accountable but also the other actors involved including the company. <a href="https://t.co/GRCOkGJLI3">https://t.co/GRCOkGJLI3</a>
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) <a href="https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/1957434978016387420?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 18, 2025</a></blockquote>
Commercial Driver&#8217;s Licenses for illegals or people with improper status have been the target of scrutiny for months, due to devastating crashes &#8212; like the one involving Singh &#8212; that have killed Americans. 
The Daily Wire’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/illegal-immigrant-trucker-with-california-license-accused-of-killing-newlyweds-in-tragic-collision?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Jennie+Taer&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=Illegal+Immigrant+Trucker+With+California+License+Accused+Of+Killing+Newlyweds+In+Tragic+Collision">Jennie Taer</a> reported in December, for example, that a newlywed couple was tragically killed in a collision allegedly caused by an illegal immigrant truck driver with a California license.
<div>
&#8220;FLHSMV remains committed to ensuring safe roadways for all Floridians and visitors by promoting clear communication, understanding of traffic laws, and responsible driving behavior,&#8221; the department said. 
</div>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/republican-bill-takes-aim-at-democrat-states-giving-truck-licenses-to-illegal-aliens">Republican Bill Takes Aim At Democrat States Giving Truck Licenses To Illegal Aliens</a>

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, holds a press conference to speak

Florida Takes Action On Foreign Drivers: ‘English Only’

English

Florida

U.S.

California’s Department of Motor Vehicles has <a href="https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/news-and-media/california-dmv-extends-date-of-nondomiciled-cdl-action">delayed</a> plans to cancel about 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses held by individuals unlawfully living in the state, giving them an extra 60 days before the licenses are revoked. The extension follows a lawsuit from leftist immigrant advocacy groups, which argue the move is needed to protect people’s ability to work.
The DMV announced Tuesday that it is pushing back the January 5, 2026, revocation deadline to March 6.
Federal officials, led by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, blasted the Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, accusing California of ducking accountability after issuing licenses that did not comply with federal law and endangered public safety.
Duffy responded to the news by writing on X: “Gavin Newsom is lying. The deadline to revoke illegally issued, unvetted foreign trucker licenses is still January 5. California does NOT have an ‘extension’ to keep breaking the law and putting Americans at risk on the roads.  Miss the deadline, Gavin, and the @USDOT  will act — including cutting nearly $160 million in federal funding.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Gavin Newsom is lying. The deadline to revoke illegally issued, unvetted foreign trucker licenses is still January 5.
California does NOT have an “extension” to keep breaking the law and putting Americans at risk on the roads.
Miss the deadline, Gavin, and the <a href="https://twitter.com/USDOT?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@USDOT</a> will act —…
&mdash; Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) <a href="https://twitter.com/SecDuffy/status/2006203195165462545?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 31, 2025</a></blockquote>
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The potential loss of $160 million in transportation funding is on top of $40 million already withheld from California for failing to enforce federal English-language requirements for truckers. Duffy argues the state was caught ignoring rules requiring proof of lawful presence and work authorization tied to the duration of a license. Federal audits found that some licenses remained valid long after their legal status had expired, while in other cases, officials couldn’t even prove that immigration status had been checked.
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Federal scrutiny intensified after a deadly Florida crash in which an illegal immigrant truck driver made an illegal U-turn and killed three people. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said California gave &#8220;an illegal alien a Commercial Driver’s License” who had no “legal right” to be in the United States.
That tragedy highlighted the consequences of weak licensing safeguards. Rather than acknowledge systemic failings, Newsom’s office lashed out at Duffy online, <a href="https://x.com/GovPressOffice/status/1988672753793388708?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">accusing</a> him of lying — even though the DHS and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) identified serious compliance problems, forcing California to finally act.
In reality, California only began revoking the licenses after federal pressure, not out of concern for safety or the rule of law. Even now, the DMV’s  “extension” is being <a href="https://apnews.com/article/commercial-drivers-license-immigrants-california-0eb0b6849e65ae9671fc250109173f83">celebrated</a> by leftist advocacy groups, while trade associations and federal regulators stress that unvetted or ineligible drivers should never have been licensed in the first place. Trucking groups back Duffy’s push to ensure drivers are legally authorized and sufficiently fluent in English to safely operate massive commercial vehicles on American roads.
Newsom’s response, attacking the messenger rather than fixing the system, contrasts sharply with Duffy’s emphasis on enforcement, public safety, and accountability. Duffy has consistently maintained that California violated long-standing FMCSA rules and that his emergency actions were needed because the state refused to comply until penalties loomed.
Meanwhile, California officials continue to frame the conflict around worker protections instead of public safety and legal compliance — despite DHS publicly stating that California issued a CDL to a driver with “no legal right” to be in the country.
In short, the issue reflects a clear divide: Duffy is insisting on law, safety, and federal standards, while Newsom is prioritizing political messaging over serious regulatory failures that could, and already did, cost lives.

MixCollage-31-Dec-2025-09-33-AM-6389

‘Newsom Is Lying’: Duffy Slams California Over License Extension For Illegal Drivers

California

Department of Transportation

Gavin Newsom

Sean Duffy

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/trumps-transportation-secretary-sean-p-duffy-warns-pennsylvania-75-million-line-if">announced</a> that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has determined that Pennsylvania violated federal safety regulations by illegally issuing non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs), including to individuals who were not legally eligible to receive them.
FMCSA found that PennDOT failed to verify lawful presence and, in some cases, issued licenses that extended beyond the individual’s authorized stay in the United States. As a result, the Transportation Department is threatening to withhold nearly $75 million in federal funding unless Pennsylvania revokes all improperly issued CDLs and corrects the systemic failures that allowed the violations.
The findings emerged amid a nationwide audit of non-domiciled CDLs initiated in June, shortly after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/11/17/ice-arrests-uzbekistan-criminal-illegal-alien-and-wanted-terrorist-driving-18">arrested</a> a suspected terrorist who had illegally entered the United States and received a Pennsylvania CDL earlier in the summer. Secretary Duffy cited this case as evidence of the national-security implications of lax CDL standards and criticized prior immigration policies for enabling such risks. He stated that the Department, under President Donald Trump, is committed to preventing unqualified foreign drivers from operating heavy commercial vehicles on American roads.
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USDOT has ordered Pennsylvania to take several immediate steps: pause all issuance or renewal of non-domiciled CDLs and commercial learner’s permits (CLPs); conduct a thorough audit to identify all noncompliant licenses and the procedural failures behind them; and revoke any unexpired, improperly issued licenses to ensure unqualified drivers are removed from service.
This enforcement action follows a broader series of transportation safety initiatives under the Trump administration. Earlier in the year, President Trump issued an <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/04/enforcing-commonsense-rules-of-the-road-for-americas-truck-drivers/">executive order</a> directing the Department of Transportation to strengthen roadway safety, with a particular emphasis on enforcing long-standing English-language proficiency requirements for commercial drivers. The order argues that English proficiency is essential for reading traffic signs, communicating with law enforcement and inspection officials, and performing basic safety and reporting functions. It instructs the FMCSA to rescind its 2016 guidance and implement updated inspection procedures, ensuring that non-English-proficient drivers are placed out of service.
The executive order also directs FMCSA to review irregularities in states’ issuance of non-domiciled CDLs and improve verification of domestic and international driving credentials.
In recent months, Secretary Duffy has introduced several related actions, including emergency restrictions on eligibility for non-domiciled CDLs, a nationwide audit exposing widespread non-compliance, a pro-trucker initiative to reduce regulatory burdens, and new guidelines mandating out-of-service orders for drivers who fail English-language requirements. These steps align with President Trump’s March order designating English as the official language of the United States.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy Marks Newark Airport Runway Reopening

Duffy Says Dem State Is Breaking Law By Giving Driver’s Licenses To Illegals

Duffy Says Pennsylvania Broke The Law By Issuing Driver’s Licenses To Ineligible Applicants

Immigration

Pennsylvania

Politics

Since 2015, President Trump has obviously become very popular because of his stance on illegal immigration.
He said what most people aren&#8217;t willing to say: Illegal immigrants should go home. They don&#8217;t have a place in the country.
And the Left went nuts.
They are still going nuts over the fact that the president of the United States has single-handedly shut the southern border, and this means that apparently he&#8217;s bad and racist and all the rest.
But most Americans don&#8217;t believe that about Trump. Most Americans look at illegal immigrant crime and say President Trump is right.
The latest case in point: According to the Department of Homeland Security, California Democrat Governor Gavin Newsom and his continued support for sanctuary policies are to blame for an illegal immigrant trucker who was given a driver&#8217;s license in California, then charged with killing three Americans in Florida when making an illegal U-turn.
Harjinder Singh entered the U.S. illegally in 2018 and then the state of California decided to give him a driver&#8217;s license. He was driving a semi in St. Lucie County, Florida, and he made an illegal U-turn that left three Americans dead.
Newsom was held responsible for Singh getting a driver’s license. He immediately responded that it was the fault of the Trump administration.
The issue is that he only had a commercial driver&#8217;s license despite being an illegal alien, thanks to a law passed in 2013 and then expanded by Gavin Newsom in 2022.
DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin <a href="https://x.com/TriciaOhio/status/1957503043710181746">wrote</a>, “Harjinder Singh is in the United States illegally, and his work authorization was rejected under the Trump administration on September 14, 2020. It was later approved under the Biden administration, June 9th, 2021. The state of California issues commercial driver&#8217;s licenses. There is no national commercial driver&#8217;s license.&#8221;
It turns out that the illegal immigrant trucker allegedly responsible for all of this failed an English language proficiency test and also failed to accurately identify highway traffic signs, according to the Department of Transportation.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/trumps-transportation-secretary-announces-investigation-deadly-florida-truck-crash">said</a>, “If states had followed the rules, his driver would never have been behind the wheel and three precious lives would still be with us. This crash was a preventable tragedy, directly caused by reckless decisions and compounded by despicable failures. Non-enforcement and radical immigration policies have turned the trucking industry into a lawless frontier, resulting in unqualified foreign drivers improperly acquiring licenses to operate 40-ton vehicles.”
Authoritative estimates have placed California&#8217;s undocumented immigrant population in the range of 2 million. As far as driver&#8217;s licenses, California has, since 2015, allowed illegal immigrants to obtain driver&#8217;s licenses. By 2023, the California Department of Motor Vehicles had issued nearly 1.2 million original <a href="https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/driver-licenses-identification-cards/assembly-bill-ab-60-driver-licenses/">AB 60</a> driver&#8217;s licenses to undocumented immigrants.
That&#8217;s crazy. So 1.2 million illegal immigrants are roaming around the United States with California driver&#8217;s licenses.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-2263-the-ben-shapiro-show?elementPosition=4&amp;row=2&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel">WATCH: The Ben Shapiro Show</a></h3>
But this is part and parcel of a broader Democratic policy that suggests that somehow illegal immigration is a positive good for the United States, and you are inhumane or bad if you say that immigrants should not be in the United States.
In essence, this comes down to a question that&#8217;s increasingly being asked online: What ought an American to be? What is an American?
If you go all the way back to the American founding, the definition of an American was to be a natural-born citizen of the United States. There were real holes in the citizenship definition because it didn&#8217;t include, for example, black slaves in the South.
But the basic predicate for citizenship was that you were assimilating to the dominant culture of the United States, an Anglo-American culture, and you abided by the applicable law in your state, and you were not a drain on the people around you.
The history of the United States was successive waves of immigrants who were then assimilated into the dominant majority culture. Those successive waves of immigrants could be welcomed because there was no facilitation of inability to speak English. There was no facilitation of inability or unwillingness to assimilate to the dominant adherence to law.
My great-great grandparents came to the United States in the early 20th century. They spoke Yiddish, but they and their families immediately stopped speaking Yiddish as fast as possible so that they could actually immerse themselves in the American culture. That was true for the Irish, it was true for the Germans, it was true for the Italians, and it was true for many Hispanics.
And then something changed. And what changed was a gigantic welfare system, accompanied by a view of multiculturalism that suggested that not only ought you bring your home foods and some of your home traditions, but that your culture need not in any way mesh or assimilate with dominant traditions of law or believing in things like free speech or private property, or the constitutional government of the United States. The United States was to be the repository of any people who wished to come here, even if those people were just coming here to take advantage of the system itself.
That meant lower rates of assimilation. It also meant that people came here who didn&#8217;t speak English, couldn&#8217;t read road signs, were immediately entered into the stream of commerce, and then sometimes did things like commit crimes.
But if you say no to this, you are the problem.
What you actually want is people coming to the United States and becoming part of the American experiment by accepting the American experiment, by learning the language and becoming part of the culture, by believing in the creed of the Declaration of Independence.
But if you say those things, then many members of the Left will say, that&#8217;s wrong, that&#8217;s bad, that&#8217;s racist, because what you actually need are segmented populations that don&#8217;t actually believe in the American experiment. They don&#8217;t just bring their food and their customs; they also reject the dominant customs and heritage and law and legal framework of the United States.
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That’s led to identity politics on the Left and to a concomitant rise of a new identity politics on the Right, which says, “If we are going to do various ethnic cliques in a ‘multicultural country,’ then what we really ought to do is have a white ethnic clique as a form of identity politics.”
None of this is good.
Until we get back to accepting legal immigrants but demanding that they know our laws, accept our laws and live by them, know our Declaration of Independence and Constitution and live by them, we are headed for the cliff.

California Gov. Newsom Discusses Texas’ Redistricting Plan

Newsom’s Open Borders Vs. Trump’s Immigration Sanity

Ben Shapiro

Democrats

illegal immigrants

Opinion

President Trump

Why Illiterate Foreign Truck Drivers Are A Much Bigger Issue Than You Think

Immigrants

Matt Walsh

Traffic

A group of illegal immigrants gathered at the Michigan state Capitol building earlier this week to demand that lawmakers push through legislation allowing them to obtain driver&#8217;s licenses.
The rally took place just outside the Michigan House floor on Wednesday as illegal immigrants chanted in Spanish and English, &#8220;What do we want? Driver&#8217;s Licenses! When do we want them? Now!&#8221; The rally was in support of Democrat-backed legislation, which is currently stuck in committees, that would grant driver&#8217;s licenses to illegal immigrants, The Midwesterner <a href="https://www.themidwesterner.news/2024/05/illegals-demand-drivers-licenses-at-rally-in-michigan-capitol/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Currently: Rally for access to driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants in Michigan outside the House floor<a href="https://t.co/5uRR6STRQq">https://t.co/5uRR6STRQq</a> <a href="https://t.co/FL2I0I2Os4">pic.twitter.com/FL2I0I2Os4</a>
&mdash; Anna Liz Nichols (@annaliznichols) <a href="https://twitter.com/annaliznichols/status/1785720701195870390?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 1, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The state House and Senate legislation, known as the Drive SAFE package, was co-sponsored in the <a href="https://legislature.mi.gov/Bills/Bill?ObjectName=2023-HB-4410" target="_blank" rel="noopener">House</a> by Democrat Majority Floor Leader Abraham Aiyash and introduced in the <a href="https://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2023-2024/billintroduced/Senate/pdf/2023-SIB-0267.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Senate</a> by Democrat Majority Leader Winnie Brinks, among others. Advocates of the legislation argue that illegal immigrants need access to driver&#8217;s licenses so they can get jobs in the state.
Last year, Aiyash <a href="https://www.themidwesterner.news/2023/06/illegals-group-claims-credit-for-flipping-state-house-will-get-drivers-licenses-as-payoff/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> the Drive SAFE package “will finally allow all Michiganders to engage in our economy, have access to basic freedoms, and do so with the guarantee of safety.&#8221;
&#8220;If you live in Michigan and have proven you can be a responsible driver, you should be able to obtain a license, regardless of your immigration status,&#8221; Aiyash added. &#8220;The safety of our residents should not depend on whether the federal government has figured out our broken immigration system.”
After Democrats took control of the Michigan legislature following the 2022 midterm elections, the progressive advocacy group <a href="https://forgeorganizing.org/about" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Forge</a> boasted last year that the &#8220;electoral organizing&#8221; of those in the state illegally &#8220;tipped the scale of power in the 38th and 103rd districts, providing Democrats with a slim, one-seat majority in the House, flipping the seats that flipped the legislature,&#8221; The Midwesterner reported. Forge said that was “instrumental for changing the playing field and creating a pathway for the Drive SAFE bills to finally become law.&#8221;
From 1995 through 2008, illegal immigrants in Michigan could obtain driver&#8217;s licenses thanks to former Democratic Michigan Attorney General Frank Kelley, who issued an opinion supporting illegal immigrants getting driver&#8217;s licenses, according to Michigan Advance. That opinion, however, was reversed by former Republican Attorney General Michael Cox.
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Illegal immigration has become a major issue in Michigan, an important battleground state in the 2024 presidential election. Earlier this year, a once-deported illegal immigrant was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/once-deported-illegal-immigrant-charged-with-murder-in-shooting-death-of-25-year-old-michigan-woman" target="_blank" rel="noopener">charged</a> with the murder of 25-year-old Grand Rapids resident Ruby Garcia. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said that Brandon Ortiz-Vite was deported under the Trump administration but illegally re-entered the country &#8220;at an unknown date.&#8221;

Michigan Capitol Building

Illegal Immigrants Rally At Michigan State Capitol To Demand Driver’s Licenses

Illegal Immigrants Rally At Michigan State Capitol To Demand Driver's Licenses

2024 Election

Michigan

A state judge ordered Kansas to stop allowing trans-identifying individuals to change their sex on their driver’s licenses Monday.
District Judge Teresa Watson <a href="https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article277164943.html">issued</a> a restraining order against Democratic Governor Laura Kelly&#8217;s administration to stop allowing trans-identifying drivers to change their sex on their licenses after Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach sued Kelly’s administration over the practice.
Watson’s restraining order states that allowing sex changes on licenses would cause “immediate and irreparable injury,” noting that “driver’s licenses are issued for a period of six years and are difficult to take back or out of circulation once issued.”
“Licenses are used by law enforcement to identify criminal suspects, crime victims, wanted persons, missing persons and others,” Watson <a href="https://apnews.com/article/trangender-drivers-licenses-birth-certificates-kansas-c06f487b05e3d0ba7f6222f64a08868e?taid=64ac1f99c0272c00017084d4&amp;utm_campaign=TrueAnthem&amp;utm_medium=AP&amp;utm_source=Twitter">continued</a>. “Compliance with state legal requirements for identifying license holders is a public safety concern.”
The order comes three days after Kobach, a Republican, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/transgender-birth-certificates-licenses-kansas-29d3a02fa44ec9dbfe28979ea8221591">sued</a> two officials in the Kelly administration, arguing that changing driver’s licenses for those who identify with the opposite sex is unlawful. 
Kobach argued that the practice is unlawful under a state law passed this year — called the Women’s Bill of Rights — that <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/kansas-senate-passes-first-bill-defining-woman-as-a-biological-female">defines</a> men and women on the basis of their “biological reproductive system.” 
Kelly <a href="https://www.kslegislature.org/li/b2023_24/measures/documents/sb180_enrolled.pdf">vetoed</a> the bill, saying it “stripp[ed] away rights” and would “hurt our ability to continue … landing new business deals.” The Republican-controlled legislature <a href="https://www.metroweekly.com/2023/05/kansas-republicans-override-veto-of-transgender-bathroom-ban/">overrode</a> her veto, with the law going into effect July 1.
Last month, Kobach <a href="https://ag.ks.gov/docs/default-source/ag-opinions/2023/ago-2023-2-rep-barth---final.pdf?sfvrsn=f3f6bc1a_12">released</a> a legal opinion that the Women’s Bill of Rights required that driver’s licenses be issued based on the driver’s biological sex. The opinion stated that the Kansas Department of Revenue should update licenses that don’t reflect the driver’s biological sex.
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In his opinion, Kobach also argued the law applies to birth certificates and prisons, but his lawsuit only addresses driver’s licenses. 
Despite the law’s passage and Kobach’s legal opinion, Kelly <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ks-gov-laura-kelly-says-state-transgender-residents-alter-drivers-licenses-despite-law">issued</a> a directive last month that the state’s motor vehicles division would continue to allow trans-identifiers to change their sex listing on their licenses.
Kobach <a href="https://ag.ks.gov/media-center/news-releases/2023/06/29/ag-kobach-statement-regarding-governor's-decision-not-to-enforce-sb-180">called</a> Kelly’s directive “nonsense.” 
“The Governor doesn’t get to veto a bill and then ignore the Legislature’s override,&#8221; he wrote shortly before filing the suit. &#8220;She is violating her oath of office to uphold Kansas law. We will see her in court.&#8221; 
Watson did not rule on whether the Kelly administration broke state law by continuing to change licenses. Kansas has allowed the practice for four years, and nearly 400 people have changed their sex on their licenses. The restraining order lasts two weeks and can be extended by the judge.

Wood Gavel Standing Front Of the Nevada Flag Closeup 3d Render

Judge Orders Kansas To Stop Allowing Sex Changes On Driver’s Licenses

Judge Orders Kansas To Stop Allowing Sex Changes On Driver's Licenses

Courts

Kansas

Social Issues

Transgender

Illinois Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker <a href="https://news.wttw.com/2023/06/30/illinois-make-standard-driver-s-licenses-available-noncitizens-regardless-immigration">signed</a> a bill into law on Friday that will allow illegal immigrants to acquire standard driver’s licenses. 
House Bill 3882, which will go into effect on July 1, 2024, will allow illegal immigrants to use driver’s licenses as official identification documents but do not qualify for Real ID travel purposes. 
“This legislation is a significant step in eliminating the barriers to opportunity that many undocumented immigrants face,” said Pritzker. “We’re ensuring every eligible individual can obtain a driver’s license, making our roads safer, decreasing stigma, and creating more equitable systems for all.”
“Providing access to a standard Illinois Driver&#8217;s License for our undocumented immigrants is about breaking down barriers that lead to discrimination,” said Democratic Lt. Governor Julia Stratton.
Currently, illegal immigrants in the state can obtain a Temporary Visitor Driver’s License, which bears the acronym “TVDL” at the top.
&#8220;TVDLs have become the ‘Scarlet Letter&#8217; of an individual&#8217;s immigration status and sadly exposes them to discrimination or immigration enforcement,&#8221; said Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias. &#8220;This legislation allows immigrants to obtain standard driver licenses that will serve as authentic identification in Illinois.” He added that the policy would “help prevent the stigma, instances of discrimination, and problems that TVDLs have been known to cause.”
There are <a href="https://www.migrationpolicy.org/data/unauthorized-immigrant-population/state/IL">425,000 illegal immigrants</a> living in Illinois, according to some estimates. 
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Meanwhile, state lawmakers recently passed <a href="https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/billstatus.asp?DocNum=3751&amp;GAID=17&amp;GA=103&amp;DocTypeID=HB&amp;LegID=149009&amp;SessionID=112">HB 3751,</a> legislation that would <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/illinois-legislation-would-allow-non-u-s-citizens-to-become-police-officers/">allow</a> DACA recipients who are eligible to work to become law enforcement officers. The bill, which Gov. Pritzker has not yet signed, would violate federal law, which states that only American citizens can become law enforcement officers. The legislature seemingly <a href="https://www.thecentersquare.com/illinois/article_6b6d22ae-f5cb-11ed-bb82-0bb29a8c1b0b.html">justified</a> this conflict by predicting that DACA recipients would eventually become citizens. 
Chicago has struggled to accommodate foreign nationals and asylum seekers who have unlawfully crossed the border. The city recently passed a controversial measure to provide <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nyc-mayor-eric-adams-sues-30-new-york-counties-for-refusing-to-accept-foreign-nationals">$51 million</a> in funding to provide housing for the roughly 10,000 foreign nationals who have arrived in the Windy City over the past year.

JB Pritzker

Illinois Gov. Signs Bill Allowing Illegal Immigrants To Obtain Driver’s Licenses

Illinois Gov. Signs Bill Allowing Illegal Immigrants To Obtain Driver's Licenses

Illinois

J.B. Pritzker

According to Customs and Border Protection (CBP), fake American driver’s licenses, typically shipped from southern China, are being seized in Memphis, Tennessee, everyday with intended destinations all across the United States. 
“U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officers (CBPOs) working at the port of Memphis have been seizing the counterfeit driver’s licenses daily,” CBP <a href="https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/memphis-seizes-counterfeit-driver-s-licenses-every-day">announced</a>. “Sometimes the intercepted shipments contain one license, sometimes upwards of 20 or more.”
The agency noted that most of the fraudulent licenses gave birthdays in either 1999 or 2000, leading authorities to suggest that the primary reason for the demand was for under-age people to purchase alcohol. 
On Saturday, two fake licenses headed to Iowa, designated for 21-year old Missouri women, were confiscated. Earlier this month, agents in Memphis stopped a shipment from China of nearly 300 fraudulent licenses for over a dozen states that were being sent to Illinois. 
Numbers of fraudulent licenses seized in Memphis have only increased in the last several months. The numbers of fake licenses confiscated from October 2021 to now have already surpassed the numbers for Fiscal Year 2021.
While Memphis agents have taken in around 4,516 licenses from October 2021 to January 21, 2022, they took in only 3,487 in all of FY 2021.
Memphis CBP agents found that many of the names on the licenses and the packages matched the names of students at places like George Mason, CalTech, Auburn, Post University, LSU. and Tulane.
Michael Neipert, Memphis Port Director said that these students were aiding a “global criminal enterprise” and fueling the “false identity industry” by ordering the fake IDs. 
“What these youngsters don’t realize is that they are contributing to a global criminal enterprise,” Neipert said. “They are funding the growth of a false identity industry, which breeds more lawlessness. They want to drink a couple years earlier then they’re allowed to, but they may not know their fellow customers are criminals, scammers and those who want to mask their identity for some reason, which is never good.”
CBP noted the risks of giving away personal information, such as name and address, to international scammers, paving the way for identity theft and other crimes. 
Neipert added that his office would continue to crack down on the fake ID industry. 
“My officers will continue to seize these, and our law enforcement partners will continue to investigate and hit the direct buyers and mid-level distributors,” he said. 
Earlier this <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/over-1000-fake-american-drivers-licenses-from-hong-kong-seized-in-indiana">month</a>, thousands of fake driver’s licenses from Hong Kong were confiscated by CBP agents in Indiana. 
Driver’s licenses from more than 20 states were seized, with some using the same photo, but different names. Some of the states represented were Texas, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Illinois, North Carolina, Michigan, South Carolina, Ohio, and California. 
“Counterfeit drivers licenses have historically been used by those under 21 years of age for the illegal consumption of alcohol, but fake IDs have also been used in criminal enterprises, such as identity theft cases and immigration fraud,” Chief CBP Officer Tim Hubbard said at the time.

Personal Documents

‘Global Criminal Enterprise’: More Counterfeit Driver’s Licenses From China Seized In Memphis ‘Daily’ As Fake IDs On The Rise

China

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) seized more than 1,000 counterfeit driver&#8217;s licenses in Indianapolis, Indiana, that had been smuggled over from Hong Kong in recent weeks.
“Last week Indianapolis CBP detained three shipments that were arriving from Hong Kong,” the agency <a href="https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/indianapolis-cbp-intercepts-1207-counterfeit-driver-s-licenses">announced</a> on Friday. “The first shipment was heading to an address in Chicago and the other two shipments were heading to addresses in New York.”
For shipping purposes, the containers were falsely labeled “Game Card” in three shipments containing 1,207 fake licenses. The shippers alleged that the value of the cards was $20. 
One of the shipments had 358 fake licenses, another had 482, and a third had 367.
“Fraudulent driver’s licenses, which can be used for criminal activity or fraud, continue to be found by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at Express Consignment Operations hub across the nation,” CBP explained. 
Driver’s licenses from more than 20 states were found, with some using the same photo, but different names. Several of the states represented were Texas, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Illinois, North Carolina, Michigan, South Carolina, Ohio, and California. 
According to the announcement, many of the fraudulent driver’s licenses seemed to be for college-age adults. Chief CBP Officer Tim Hubbard warned that fake licenses could be used for “criminal enterprises,” including immigration fraud and identity theft, as well as for those under 21 to illegally purchase alcohol. 
“Counterfeit drivers licenses have historically been used by those under 21 years of age for the illegal consumption of alcohol, but fake IDs have also been used in criminal enterprises, such as identity theft cases and immigration fraud,” he said. “Customs and Border Protection officers will continue to be vigilance during enforcement operations, and we remain committed to the safety and security of our nation.”  
Earlier this <a href="https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/cincinnati-cbp-stops-thousands-fake-ids-leaving-us">month</a>, CBP in Cincinnati, Ohio, stopped thousands of fake identifications from being shipped out of the country. In an operation ranging from early December to January 10, 2022, officers seized more than 2,000 international driver’s licenses and paired booklets that were fraudulent. 
“These counterfeit documents can lead to disastrous consequences,” said LaFonda D. Sutton-Burke, Director, Field Operations-Chicago. “Criminal organizations use these counterfeits to avoid attracting attention to their illegal activities.”
Cincinnati Port Director Richard Gillespie noted that often fake identification documents were used for human trafficking, identify theft, and to make money for organized crime. These fake identifications originated in New York and Florida. 
According to Sutton-Burke, fake identification is also often used by those connected to terrorism. 
“Some of the major concerns as it relates to fraudulent identity documents is identity theft, worksite enforcement, critical infrastructure protection, fraud linked to immigration-related crimes such as human smuggling and human trafficking, and these documents can be used by those individuals associated with terrorism to minimize scrutiny from travel screening measures,” she said. 
Operations cracking down on fraudulent identification involves coordination between Homeland Security and a special CBP unit dedicated to analyzing documentation.

Border Patrol Agents Monitor US-Mexico Border

Over 1,000 Fake American Driver’s Licenses From Hong Kong Seized In Indiana

Customs and Border Protection (CPB)

Fraud

Illegal immigrants can begin applying for legal driving permits in Virginia on the first day of the new year, according to the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).
The state is the first southern state to allow people staying in the U.S. illegally to apply for such “driver privilege cards.” Roughly 300,000 illegal immigrants in the state are expected to apply for the permits, according to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/driver-licenses-undocumented-immigrants-virginia/2020/12/28/b55a075a-43c2-11eb-975c-d17b8815a66d_story.html">The Washington Post</a>.
The DMV has listed requirements to qualify for a driver privilege card on its <a href="https://www.dmv.virginia.gov/drivers/#driver_privilege_card.asp">website</a>:
<ul>
<li>
<blockquote>You are a non-US citizen who is a resident of Virginia</blockquote>
</li>
<li>
<blockquote>You have reported income from Virginia sources or are claimed as a dependent on a tax return filed in Virginia in the past 12 months</blockquote>
</li>
<li>
<blockquote>Your driving privilege is not currently suspended or revoked in Virginia or any other state, to include <a href="https://www.dmv.virginia.gov/vehicles/#insurance.asp">insurance-related infractions</a>.</blockquote>
</li>
</ul>
“A driver privilege card is not REAL ID-compliant and, as such, may not be used as identification to board a flight or enter a secure federal facility. Driver privilege card applicants are not eligible for a commercial driver&#8217;s license or identification card,” the DMV website says.
According to the website, in order to obtain a driver privilege card, the applicant must pay a $50 fee as well as show:
<ul>
<li>
<blockquote>Two proofs of identity</blockquote>
</li>
<li>
<blockquote>Two proofs of Virginia residency</blockquote>
</li>
<li>
<blockquote>Proof of your social security number (if you have been issued one) or your individual taxpayer identification number</blockquote>
</li>
<li>
<blockquote>Tax return documentation</blockquote>
</li>
</ul>
The new permits are possible under a new law the Virginia legislature passed earlier this year. Critics of the law say that giving such privileges to illegal immigrants is a threat to public safety and national security.
“Giving any form of driving privileges to illegal aliens not only undermines public safety but national security as well,” Matthew Tragesser, spokesman of the Federation for American Immigration Reform told <a href="https://dailycaller.com/2020/12/27/illegal-immigrants-driver-privilege-cards-virginia/">The Daily Caller News Foundation</a>. “Providing these cards incentivizes more illegal immigration, rewards law breakers, and jeopardizes our national security.”
Advocates for the new law claim almost exactly the opposite, but they add that the new law will also aid economic growth by granting illegal immigrants’ greater mobility with less risk.
“It makes our families and communities safer: safer from being unfairly caught up in the criminal justice system and deportation pipeline for just trying to get to church or a child’s school and safer from being on the roads with unlicensed drivers,” Laura Goren, research director of the Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis, argued in a January report pushing driving permits for non-U.S. citizens, according to the <a href="https://richmond.com/news/state-and-regional/undocumented-immigrants-in-virginia-can-soon-drive-legally-but-mistrust-privacy-concerns-persist/article_8768a204-4c4e-5e8d-86b7-43dbbb2c1a3c.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-1">Richmond Times-Dispatch</a>.
The law may make permit holders more vulnerable to being picked up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Activists are pushing the state to adopt more stringent protections of illegal immigrants with the permits so lessen the chance that ICE finds them and deports them.
“Of course, there will always be those risks that each person needs to take into account before applying for a driver privilege card,” Edgar Aranda-Yanoc, the lead organizer of the immigration advocacy program at the Legal Aid Justice Center, told the Times-Dispatch. “That’s why it’s our goal as activists to secure those privacy protections and completely close the window that could give ICE access to this information in the upcoming General Assembly session.”

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Virginia To Offer Illegal Immigrants Legal Driving Permits Starting Jan. 1

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