It's Time To Stop Illegals' Driver's Licenses

April 9, 2003

‘Oh, the war is going horribly awry.’   Remember those cries just one week into the Iraq War?   In less than three weeks, coalition soldiers had scratched and fought all the way across the country to take the prize city – Baghdad.   Nutcases from around the area continue to roll in to take on the mighty Americans.   Our soldiers call these idiots dismounts.   These fanatics drive up in trucks then dismount in front of American forces, AK-47s blazing.   They’re then mowed down by our boys and their truck blown to smithereens.   Then, another truck of dismounts pulls alongside the burnt-out shell of the last truck and the process is repeated.

I think it’s time we invited any and all terrorists who ever dreamt of 72 virgins to come to Iraq and “get you some.”   Bring it on!   The more of these fanatics we take care of now, the less we’ll have strapping bombs to themselves and walking up to American checkpoints in the weeks and months ahead of overseeing their transition to a republic.

The problem is, not all of these ‘dismounts’ are in the Middle East.   Some are here.   Some are in Mexico waiting to come here.   The danger of terrorism on our own soil is greater today than it ever has been.   One would think that we would be doing everything possible to reduce that risk.   If you’re in Tennessee, you’d be wrong.

State Representative Donna Rowland is, once again, running her driver’s license bill through the labyrinth of bureaucratic red tape.   This bill, simply, would require proof of either citizenship or legal documentation from the INS that proves you’re here legally in order to obtain a Tennessee driver’s license.   Common sense, right?   Well, it’s not so simple.

The Bredesen administration, to their credit, is counting every cent.   They’re tagging every piece of legislation that comes with a price tag.   They’ve tagged Representative Rowland’s bill because it will cost about $150,000.   You see, that’s how much revenue we’ll lose if we don’t pass out driver’s licenses to the approximately 8,000 illegal aliens who get Tennessee driver’s licenses each year.   I happen to think that number’s low.   You probably do too if you’ve tried to get your license renewed in the past couple of years.

I applaud the Bredesen administration for trying to save money but in this case we’re being penny wise and pound foolish.   The fact that we’re handing out, by their count, 8,000 legal documents to illegal aliens each year is, in itself, criminal.   Governor Bredesen certainly didn’t create this problem.   That was a present left by Rep. Mike Turner and Don Sundquist.   However, he has it in his power to do something about it.

The fact that Bredesen’s state homeland security director had agreed to appear on my radio show but backed out when told that we were going to talk about this issue points to a rift in the administration.   He didn’t want to be put in the awkward position of criticizing his boss and I, quite frankly, can’t blame him.

I understand wanting to save every dollar.   The governor’s mansion needs a new roof and they’re looking to private foundations instead of the taxpayers to replace it.   That’s a healthy trend.   However, running the risk of facilitating a terrorist who finds it easy to get a driver’s license in Tennessee, which then gains him access to a jetliner, is not worth the $150,000 in revenue we receive from illegal alien driver’s licenses.   The notion of giving illegals a legal document is, in itself, absurd.   Taking that chance in precarious times like these is downright reckless.