There’s Nothing Safe about Michigan’s Drive Safe Act for Illegal Aliens
Since 1913, the foundation of Michigan’s economy has been the automotive assembly line which has employed millions over the years and given rise to Detroit’s “Motor City” moniker. Making large quantities of goods quickly and putting people behind the wheel is what the state does best. Perhaps then, it’s not surprising that some Michigan lawmakers are envisioning another item for mass production. Only this time, it won’t be cars on conveyer belts conforming to strict safety standards, rather large-scale manufacturing of driver’s licenses for illegal aliens.
The proposed legislation would allow all Michigan residents to obtain state identification cards or driver’s licenses regardless of their immigration status, joining 19 states and Washington, D. C., that already do so. The bill, euphemistically labeled The Drive SAFE Act (Safety, Access, Freedom, and the Economy), alludes to such soaring attributes, one might presume Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness were excluded from the title only because the acronym would be nonsensically extended.
Rep. Rachel Hood, D-Grand Rapids, a primary sponsor of the legislation, deceptively claims 700,000 Michigan “immigrants” will benefit, conflating legal immigrants and illegal aliens, thereby inflating the numbers to enhance the urgency of passage. FAIR’s research reveals roughly 200,000 illegal aliens reside in Michigan.
Still, that’s 200,000 eligible folks without lawful presence whose identities are highly questionable and unverifiable. That was the primary concern of the 9/11 Commission and the reason it recommended strengthening issuing standards for state driver’s licenses. (All of the terrorists involved in the 9/11 attacks had used fraudulently obtained driver’s licenses or state IDs to board commercial flights.)
Opposition to the plan from one influential group is a refreshing surprise. While most Chiefs of Police associations endorse sanctuary policies, and/or otherwise take a lax approach to illegal immigration — unlike tougher-minded elected sheriffs — the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police is sounding the alarm.
The group’s executive Director Bob Stevenson says, “The pending legislation doesn’t provide a well-defined “standard of proof” that applicants need in order to obtain a license and would let people use false or duplicated documentation to obtain a license. We have zero confidence that the Secretary of State has the ability to vet this paperwork. It takes the federal government sometimes years before somebody gets their final paperwork to stay inside the country, and we’re going to put this burden on the Secretary of State?”
The legislation is pending in the House Committee on Regulatory Reform and in the Senate Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Hopefully, it will be taken off the assembly line because while motoring is a Michigan institution, not everyone should “See the USA in their Chevrolet” – notably illegal aliens who shouldn’t be here in the first place.