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Article Is licensing illegal immigrants a good idea? - NO - it would weaken terrorism fight by Mike McGarry Denver Post February 22, 2002 "A driver's license is a gateway to guns, airplanes, pilot schools, checking accounts and credit cards." Charlie Weaver, Minnesota Public Safety Commissioner Had Sen. Ron Tupa's bill (SB 67) to give driver's licenses to perhaps hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens not been defeated in committee and eventually become law, it is unlikely that it would have contributed significantly to road safety. Instead, it would have weakened our efforts to defend against terrorism and it would have been perversely dismissive of the expressed opinions of Coloradans. The stated rationale for SB 67 was that because illegal aliens are here, working and driving, ensuring they learn the rules of the road and have insurance would increase traffic safety. But Colorado has no law prohibiting individuals without driver's licenses from obtaining insurance, and a recent story in The Post quoted illegals who were able to get insurance without a license. Also, manuals detailing the laws and rules of the road are readily available for those who are truly concerned about safety. In most states, obtaining a driver's license is a privilege extended to those with proven legal residence, among other things. Even so, the federal government and state governments use license denials for other law-enforcement reasons, such as punishing those who fail to pay court-ordered child support. "In licensing illegals, those we know have broken the law, we are treating them better than we do U.S. citizens," said Jay Maxwell of the American Association of Automobile Administrators. SB 67 would have given licenses to illegal aliens who possess individual taxpayer identification numbers that tell nothing about the people to whom they are issued. Those numbers are potentially available to all of the more than 500,000 illegal aliens from all over the world, including those intent on doing us harm who yearly transgress our borders and violate visas, permanently entrenching themselves. Sen. Tupa glibly dismissed the fact that his bill would have made it easier for terrorists to insinuate themselves among us, saying terrorists will always find a way to get licenses. That is a cynical, defeatist attitude. Equally cynical is his accepting that illegal aliens will drive whether they are licensed or not, implying, it would seem, we should never deny a license to anyone for any reason because they will just drive anyway. That is a curious assumption on the part of lawmaker. Some backers of SB 67 point to the handful of rogue states, Tennessee included, that had dropped proof of legal residency as a requirement for a license as "successful" examples for Colorado to copy. But a recent Boston Globe story reported a Tennessee licensing system in "turmoil," with "the Tennessee National Guard called out to control crowds (of illegals) swarming into licensing stations." Several states now will not accept a Tennessee driver's license as a primary form of ID, and the Globe reported some airline counters are now turning away Tennessee natives with only a state driver's license as identification. Tennessee legislators have introduced legislation to end that state's reckless experiment. The Globe quoting one state legislator as saying: "We're in a position where anyone can come and get a driver's license. It's bad situation." A lawfully issued Colorado driver's license confers legitimacy upon its holder. Issuing licenses to illegal aliens gives a false impression of legal status, the real motivation of many of SB 67's supporters. Coloradans agonize over the negative effects of more and more people pouring into the state with no end in sight. Like most Americans, as shown in poll after poll, the vast majority of Coloradans want a complete halt to illegal immigration. Ninety-two percent of respondents to a recent Post question-of-the-day opposed issuing driver's licenses to illegals. Overwhelmingly, Coloradans recognize giving licenses to those who violated the premises by climbing in through the bathroom window is not "smart growth." Mike McGarry Mike McGarry is an Aspen resident and a spokesman for the Lakewood-based Colorado Alliance for Immigration Reform. Articles Home |