No one, neither Republican nor Democrat, is taking the issue of illegal immigration seriously.  Those opposed to illegals crossing our borders are lumped with those who oppose ANY form of immigration.  I fall into the former, not the latter category.  Citizens and permanent legal residents of the Untied States should be accorded all the rights and privileges due.  Those who have immigrated illegally deserve only to be sent back to their homelands. 

The process of legal immigration has been in place for a very long time.  That process is being subverted, not only by the illegals crossing our borders but by our own government.  Both Democrats and Republicans turn a blind eye to the problem, probably for both political and economic reasons.  One mechanism that contributes to this subversion lies in laws governing the issuance of driver’s licenses.  When illegals gain a driver’s license they gain many of the advantages supposedly reserved for citizens and permanent residents.

Only two states – Tennessee and Utah have taken steps to address this issue.  Tennessee has done so by granting “two different driver's permits: a license, for citizens and permanent residents; and a certificate for driving, primarily for those who cannot prove they are here legally.  To satisfy domestic security concerns, the state has tried to forbid the use of the driver's certificates as identification”. (Shaila Dewan, New York Times, in the Minneapolis StarTribune, May 9, 2005). According to the article, “Gov. Phil Bredesen has said ‘the certificates were a compromise that balanced public safety and domestic security’”.

“From 1990 to 2000, Tennessee’s Hispanic population nearly quadrupled to 124,000…Since July 1, when the certificate program was instituted, more than 21,000 have been issued”.

The Tennessee model might serve the country well. It is probable that Congress will soon require that states issue driver's licenses only to citizens and legal residents.  “Other states that want to allow noncitizens to drive may begin looking to Tennessee's system as a model.

In Tennessee the certificate has a very limited use.  It allows an illegal to drive.  The illegal cannot purchase beer with the document nor will it allow the holder to board a plane.”

Of course, even in Tennessee, the immigration advocates have exercised some ill conceived control over the process.  “To keep the certificates from branding their bearers as illegal, immigrant groups successfully lobbied for them to be issued to temporary legal residents as well, including students and foreign professionals.  First of all, the term “branding” is brilliant, leading one to think of horses and slaves.  Unfortunately that well-conceived descriptor serves the wrong goal.

America has a right to establish and protect its borders.  Both political parties MUST come to grips with the dangers inherent in illegal immigration.  It is the primary goal of tour federal government to protect the security of our nation.  Our federal government is failing.  Maybe Tennessee has found one small antidote to the problem.