Lawmakers Question Plan For Illegal Immigrant Driver's Licenses
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS) -- Some Illinois lawmakers are pushing back against a proposal to provide driver's licenses for illegal immigrants.
Immigrant rights groups are using the strong Hispanic turnout in the election as fuel to push the proposal during the fall veto session.
And while State Sen. Dale Righter (R-Mattoon) says that particular voting base should get more attention from his party – and Democrats – he's not sure if this is the best way to do it.
"The question is whether or not you want to make a substantive change in public policy to drive what you hope will be the politics for the next two or four years, and I think that's a dangerous road down which to go," Righter said.
He calls a driver's license a privilege and doesn't believe people who are in the United States illegally deserve that privilege.
Proponents of the legislation say it would make Illinois' roads safer because many illegal immigrants are driving now without a license or insurance.
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