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"I do not feel that we
should reward people who enter this country illegally," Mitchell
said. "A sovereign nation should be allowed to protect its borders."
House Bill 1100 passed the House by a slim margin of 60-56. This
bill provides that a driver's certificate can be issued to someone
without a Social Security number.
"There is no reason that someone who does not have a Social
Security number in the United States should be able to obtain an
official Illinois driving certificate," said Mitchell. "Tennessee
enacted a very similar program a few years back and disbanded it
because of the amount of fraudulent certificates being obtained and
the number of illegal immigrants entering the state. This type of
legislation just seems to have a number of problems and could
potentially lead to very dangerous future legislation regarding
illegal immigrants.
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 "It seems that we are just sending the wrong message by passing
laws like this that allow people to break the rules. Becoming an
American citizen is a very serious matter that should be a great
moment in an immigrant's life. This legislation completely
undermines the great right of becoming an American citizen. I refuse
to support laws that will continue to encourage people to enter this
country illegally and continue to provide these people with the
benefits that actual American citizens are granted.
"At present nearly 60 percent of persons signing up for All Kids
health care are illegal aliens. By allowing illegals to legally
drive is just putting a giant welcome sign up for people who enter
this country illegally."
[Text from news release from
Rep. Bill Mitchell]
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