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House passes driver’s license bill
The Roundhouse in Santa Fe (Photo by Heath Haussamen)
Following two days of procedural wrangling and policy debate, the House today passed a bill that would repeal a law that allows undocumented immigrants to obtain driver’s licenses.
House Bill 78, sponsored by Rep. Andy Nuñez, I-Hatch, now heads to the Senate, where it faces a tough road. The full Senate has already rejected attempts to add similar legislation to another bill as an amendment, and a Senate committee has tabled a similar bill.
In the House, eight Democrats voted with Nuñez and the entire GOP caucus in voting for the bill. See how each member voted here.
Here are comments from news releases sent following the vote:
Gov. Susana Martinez had this to say:
“Today, the will of the people of New Mexico was heard in the House of Representatives. 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. I hope the Senate will also listen to the people of New Mexico and give this bill an up-or-down vote.”
Minority Leader Tom Taylor, R-Farmington, said today’s vote was “an historic effort for a much-needed result.” Minority Whip Don Bratton, R-Hobbs, said those who won the vote “fought through a history of majority rule, stall tactics and broken rules to make this happen, and New Mexicans should be proud.”
Meanwhile, Democratic Party of New Mexico Chairman Javier Gonzales had this to say:
“It would be nice to see Governor Martinez approach job creation for New Mexicans with the same fervor she has showed on the drivers license issue. Apparently wedge issues carry more weight with this governor than our struggling economy.”
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I agree with Mr. rriverstone: we should be ashamed of ourselves for passing this law. The rich have always been taking from the poor and the oppressed. We are headed in a fascist direction and we are too blinded by our own pride to see it. God, save us from ourselves. Amen.
ok
I’ll buy the second argument.
Qofdisks, I am sorry but I do not believe your argument hold water for the following reasons;
1. While there is no hard data available on the number of uninsured drivers in NM we can infer how many there are from an Insurance Research Council study. According to that study you have a 29% chance of being hit by an uninsured motorist which is the same as before the 2003 law. This tells me that the 2003 law did nothing to encourage illegals to go out and buy auto insurance and drive on our highways and byways legally.
2. There have been several illegal immigrants from Easter Europe and the Middle East that are currently under indictment in NM who were brought to NM from the Chicago area to get NM driver licenses. These individuals were provided false NM address to get the driver license. If they were given the license then they would have access to travel by air all over the US thus threatening the safety of the entire US.
Ah yes gm, I suspect some of my ancestors (Tewa, Comanche, and Apache) stole this land from the Anazazi. And of course the Anazazi stole it from the Clovis and Folsom culture peoples, who probably stole it from some other groups, and so it goes….
Let’s hope this scapegoating insanity does not make it past the Senate. Is there a single argument of merit for denying driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants that will drive regardless. Look for your car insurance rates to double. Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face.
Why aren’t they working on the economy and jobs? Shame on those Democrats that voted for this far-right wing fascistic scapegoating wedge issue. Goebbels was right, scapegoating works.
For those who think like River: they may be my distant relatives but they don’t dictate my thinking. I am thoroughly American. I know we “brown-skinned” all look alike
but we don’t think alike.
As for stealing this land, we stole it fair and square and we ought to keep it. As a descendant of people that have been in the area since at least 1712, I consider myself extremely lucky that we belong to the USA and not Mexico.
The bill passed was a House floor substitute, it is not clear whether this was the substitute that Andy Nunez brought to the floor, or some other version. Since Ken Martinez voted against it, I guess it is not the version he was rumored to be presenting. You can download and read a copy at
http://www.nmlegis.gov/lcs/_session.aspx?Chamber=H&LegType=B&LegNo=78&year=11
This bill cleans up some chauvinist language, I am pleased to note. There is also a provision for an identification card. Kudos to the House staff for getting it posted on the website so quickly.
It seems that the whole procedure for denying a license/ID card to a foreign national depends on the person being unable to supply a Social Security card or “…valid passport, valid visa or other arrival-departure record or document issued by the federal department of homeland security…” (some of the language added). The only ID deleted as being acceptable is the taxpayer ID card.
So I wonder if it is still easy to fake a Social Security card?
This is so wonderful and gives me hope for change in NM! I could care less about the law itself, it is just not a big rock. However, the process and the message the people sent to the likes of Ben and his La Politica elites that the people want to take back the process of governing is very significant and profound. We will no longer be bullied by the committee process, the Ben and Ken ego and temper tantrum shows, nor will we allow a few to stop what the many want in government. Now we will see what the Senate trys to stop the will of the people. They have some egos and back-stabbing game-players as bad as Ben and Ken, so we need t keep the presssure on the rational Senators and give them some back-bone to stand up to the entrenched elites trying to stop change and hope.
Most surprising “YES” vote? Representative Al Park…must mean he’s running for Congress in CD1 and needs those NE Heights votes.
Mr. Nuñez,
You just pushed economic refugees further into the underground, further into the arms of waiting, organized crime, where they’ll be even more victimized than they already are! Don’t one of you call yourselves “Christian.” And DON’t call yourselves “conservative,” either! You conserve NOTHING! You SQUANDER everything, else you crush it! I am ASHAMED to be a resident of New Mexico today and refuse, ever again, to call myself a New Mexican! THESE ARE YOUR OWN DISTANT RELATIVES you ostracized today! This land was STOLEN from brown-skinned people! You should be on your knees, grateful for your privileges, not penalizing people for escaping poverty to work scut jobs you think you’re too good to do! Shame on you for identifying more with genocidal conquistadors and rednecks than your own cousins!