NBP: BOSTON — Gov. Charlie Baker plans to file an amendment to the Massachusetts state budget that he says will keep illegal immigrants from getting driver’s licenses, according to a report in the Boston Herald.
Massachusetts has until October to meet federal identification standards developed after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in 2001.
Congress passed the Real ID Act in 2005 in an effort to thwart terrorism. The law requires states to issue secure forms of identification, potentially replacing driver’s licenses. The Transportation Security Administration has granted Massachusetts a waiver on compliance that expires this fall. If the state fails to act before the deadline, it is possible that individuals with Massachusetts driver’s licenses will not be able to enter federal buildings or board airplanes at major airports. more
Yeah, right.
Laws stop these criminals from entering our country illegally and more laws will stop them from driving illegally.
Politicians never learn to stop throwing crap against the wall, most of it doesn’t stick anymore.
MA? Common sense?? Knock me over with a feather.
I think I just heard Teddy’s screams get even louder.
sig94, I agree that blocking illegals from getting drivers licenses won’t stop them from driving (they’ve already broken the law, why stop now?) but it does prevent them from receiving the law’s blessing, and will hamper their ability to try to vote.
Racer X,
That’s what I was thinking. Can’t necessarily stop the driving, but at least try to stop the voting and entitlement bennies.
As a foreigner is allowed to drive in the US using the license from their country of origin, there is no need for any state to issue them drivers licenses.
If their home country won’t give them a license to drive, maybe that is a hint that they should not be driving here either.
JohnS, not so fast. A foreigner is allowed to drive in the US as long as he is issued a visa. I have stopped and issued tickets to international students for traffic violations. Not so much for Canadians and Mexicans who are here for short periods of time like overniht shopping expeditions, etc. But if are taking up residence for any length of time, then, yeah. You just can’t plunk your ass down and nest. Of course that’s the way it used to be…
@MM, Teddy drove off a bridge without a valid license. So the Registry Commissioner went in on Sunday evening to back date a new one for him. But there was no conspiracy to protect him (sounds a little like HRC’s lack of intention!
Sig94, technically you are correct, in practice however, a traffic officer is not going to establish the persons residency situation and will rarely arrest someone for not having a visa on their person.
Either way, though, this discussion is about legally driving here, not the immigration status. Nobody driving with a valid foreign license and the proper insurance gets punished for driving illegally regardless of their status with ICE. That is a completely unrelated to the issue of legally driving.