Federal authorities Thursday shared the results of their September immigration enforcement operation in Chicago while amplifying criticism against California and other Democratic-led sanctuary states and blaming them for issuing commercial driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants.
Undocumented drivers who were issued commercial driver’s licenses to operate large trucks and trailers have been at the center of an immigration debate, following deadly crashes involving those whose licenses were issued by the state of California.
Last month, three people died after Jashanpreet Singh, an Indian national, allegedly crashed his semi-truck into seven other cars along the 10 Freeway in Ontario. Singh, 21, first entered the U.S. through the southern border in 2022, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said.
In August, another undocumented truck driver, Harjinder Singh from India, was accused of making an illegal U-Turn, killing three people in Florida.
As Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons announced Thursday that his agents arrested over 1,800 people in Chicago alone, he said the problem “existed beyond the city borders of Chicago.”
“It’s unconscionable that illegal aliens have CDLs, driving 18-wheelers across our nation, just because some sanctuary cities want to gamble with motorist lives and let these dangerous people on the roads driving dangerous vehicles,” Lyons said while singling out the state of California as an example.
“Most of these illegal aliens we arrest in this operation receive their CDLs from sanctuary states, including California, Illinois and New York,” the acting ICE director said. “This operation is a real-world example of how sanctuary policies negatively impact the whole country.”
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem also said undocumented drivers with CDLs “overwhelmingly” came from California, Illinois and New York.
NBC Los Angeles reached out to Governor Gavin Newsom’s office for comments.
It was announced Wednesday that California plans to revoke 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses given to immigrants after the Trump administration raised concerns about people in the country illegally receiving licenses to drive a semitruck or a bus. But Gov. Gavin Newsom said that isn’t the reason.
Newsom said the revocations are for violations of state law, but he didn’t provide specifics.
Following the Florida crash, the state attorney general sued California and Washington for issuing commercial licenses to those who were in the country illegally, saying the states did not comply with federal safety and immigration requirements in issuing such licenses.
“California’s and Washington’s decision to endanger their own citizens is reprehensible,” the lawsuit said. “But commercial drivers routinely cross state lines, endangering citizens of other states.”
The Transportation Department announced in September that it’s tightening commercial driver’s license requirements for non-citizens, allowing only three specific classes of visa holders to be eligible. States will also have to verify an applicant’s immigration status in a federal database. These licenses will be valid for up to one year unless the applicant’s visa expires sooner than that.
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