NEWNow you can listen to Fox News articles!
Florida Congressman Byron Donalds is calling for a federal tightening of sanctuary state policies that allow undocumented immigrants to obtain commercial driver's licenses after a joint inspection by ICE and Oklahoma Highway Patrol The operation resulted in the arrest of 70 illegal immigrants, including 34 accused of illegally operating big rigs in the United States.
“You have blue states that don’t care about national laws. They want to be sanctuaries, they want to house illegals, and then it's paid for by citizens in red states who don't actually want these sanctuary policies,” Donalds, a Republican, told Fox News Digital.
Donalds said the Oklahoma incident highlights a growing national security risk: foreigners who “can't read our road signs” are nevertheless “gaming the system” to obtain commercial licenses in states such as California, Illinois, New York and New Jersey.
“You have Americans, they're doing the right thing, and now they could get killed or get into a car accident with a CDL driver who can't read our signs and doesn't know our laws,” he said. “These commercial driver's license operators [are] driving 80,000 lb rigs. This is crazy.”
TRUCKERS WARN OF 'FOREIGN INVASION' AS DHS FIGHTS ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT DRIVERS
Truck accident on I-10 in San Bernardino County, California, involving an illegal immigrant driver. (KTLA)
Donalds said the bill he introduced Weighing law would provide the federal government with new tools to stop states from issuing CDLs to illegal immigrants and to punish those who do so.
“That's one of the reasons I sponsored the Weight Act here in Washington,” he explained. “It would actually give the Department of Transportation greater authority to not only hold accountable other states that allow these CDL licenses to be issued, but it would also give the Treasury the ability to withhold federal funds from the process.”
“If you actually penalize these states for allowing this behavior, they're going to have to turn around and correct it on their end,” Donalds said. “And that’s how you save the lives of the American people.”
The bill would also allow the Department of Transportation to conduct immigration and English language proficiency checks at weigh stations across the country.
“If there is a malfunction in one of these two, then that driver is detained,” he said. “It gives them the power to withhold federal funds for transportation from those states… and those are the two mechanisms that we think will stop a lot of these sanctuary policies in California, New York and other blue states in America.”
NEWSOM WARNS 18-WHEELS BECOME 'WEAPONS' AS NEWSOM STATE UNIVERSITY LICENSES ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
Bodycam still shows Harjinder Singh with identification as a New Mexico State Police officer issues him a speeding ticket during a July 3 traffic stop. He is accused of causing a crash in Florida that killed three people in August. (New Mexico State Police body camera)
Donald's comments came after ICE and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol announced:Operation Sentinel“, a two-day law enforcement crackdown in late October that resulted in the arrests of 70 people, including 34 who were illegally driving commercial trucks while in the United States.
ICE said 26 of those drivers had CDLs issued in sanctuary states, while eight others had no commercial licenses at all. The operation was conducted as part of Oklahoma's 287(g) partnership with ICE to address public safety concerns related to unlicensed and unauthorized drivers.
ICE's Marcos Charles, executive deputy director for enforcement and removal operations, said many of those detained “operated 80,000-pound tractor-trailers and in some cases were unable to read basic English,” calling it a “serious highway safety risk.”
ICE reported that Akhror Bozorov, an illegal alien from Uzbekistan, was issued a CDL from Pennsylvania. (US Immigration and Customs Enforcement)
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt praised the efforts, saying the state will continue to enforce “common sense standards” requiring legal status and English proficiency for commercial drivers.
Donalds said the danger extends far beyond one state.
“It's like someone driving an 80,000-pound truck that can't see anything. This is very dangerous,” he said. “The problem that happened in Florida was that there was a section of highway where you weren't allowed to make a U-turn, and the guy turned around. So what happened? You had three people who were killed on Florida Highways. This is so serious…this behavior needs to stop.”
“If these states don't do the right thing, the responsibility will fall on the federal government,” Donalds said.
Donalds also sent his message to Democratic governors in sanctuary states.
“Stop living in this worldview that radical left immigration policies it is the right thing to do on behalf of the American people. This is simply not true. This makes our country less safe,” he continued. “It’s not partisan and it shouldn’t be partisan. This is not ideological and should not be ideological. This is about public safety.”
FLORIDA TRAGEDY SHOWS WHY TRUMP REGULATES TRUCK LICENSES NEEDED
“Every governor has a responsibility to do the right thing to keep our roads safe,” he added.
Echoing Donalds' warning, National Border Council Vice President Art Del Cueto told Fox News Digital that this situation should never have happened.
“It’s amazing that we’re even considering this,” Del Cueto said. “They're illegals—not only should they not have a CDL, but they shouldn't have any driver's licenses either. They are here illegally.”
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
ICE said it intends to expand similar enforcement operations in other states as part of its ongoing focus on traffic safety and coordination with government partners.
A previous operation in September resulted in the arrest of 120 people, including 91 commercial vehicle drivers with criminal records ranging from drink driving to money laundering and people smuggling. Officials said the goal is to ensure that “illegal aliens who engage in criminal activity or operate vehicles without proper authorization” are removed from U.S. roads.
Stevenie Price covers crime including missing persons, murder and migrant crime. Send story tips to [email protected].
