New Mexico advances bill to ban licenses for illegals

[The Northerner]

SANTA FE (Reuters) – New Mexico lawmakers passed a bill to ban undocumented immigrants from getting driver's licenses on Friday, advancing legislation backed by newly elected Republican governor Susana Martinez.

The state House of Representatives passed the bill by a vote of 42-28, with all 33 Republicans voting for the measure along with eight Democrats and one Independent, who sponsored the bill.

"Despite numerous procedural schemes to defend the status quo, a broad coalition of Republicans, Democrats, and the House's lone Independent came together to stand with an overwhelming majority of New Mexicans who want to see the dangerous practice of issuing driver's licenses to illegal immigrants overturned," Martinez said, who ran on a promise to get tough on illegal immigration.

New Mexico is one of only three states, with Utah and Washington state, allowing undocumented immigrants to receive driver's licenses. About 83,000 foreign nationals hold drivers licenses in the state, Martinez said.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110305/us_nm/us_newmexico_licenses

[bluestateguy]

1. So how would this work?

If you have a liscence and are here illegally, is it now null and void, or can you keep driving until it expires?

[Warpy]

2. The only problem is that the program has been working around here

to get these drivers aware of local laws, their cars registered and insured, and make them a hell of a lot safer. The licenses are easy to tell from citizen licenses because the SSN spot is blank. They can be used to cash checks but not to register to vote.

Have I mentioned that I despise Republicans and everything they do? Here they're often joined by conservative Democrats, mostly from the southern part of the state and the result is disgusting.

[Tx4obama]

3. So now the folks won't be able to get car insurance w/o license ... and when

the folks of New Mexico get into a wreck with someone without a license and insurance they will have themselves to blame!

If people think that folks will stop driving they are nuts!

I bet the folks that run those rip-off cash checking stores are applauding this move, it's means their business will increase due to people not being able to use the banks without a driver's license.

Ugh.

[former9thward]

4. They can't get them in your state either.

People like to attack other state's laws and they ignore that they have them in their own state.

[jwirr]

5. I would assume that most illegals stay away from government offices

as much as possible to avoid the chance of being caught. Do they even get licenses? That would seem to me to be the fasted way back across the border.