The Trump administration announced this week that more than 230 illegal migrant truck drivers were arrested across 15 states during a 72-hour operation called “Operation Guardian,” run by the Department of Homeland Security between October 26 and October 28.
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin made the announcement on November 2, and he did not mince words. Of the 230-plus migrants arrested, 40 were actually holding Commercial Driver’s Licenses, which means sanctuary states handed out CDLs like Halloween candy to people who had no business behind the wheel of an 80,000-pound rig.
Mullin pointed the finger squarely at states like California and New York, blasting them for “issuing CDLs to individuals that are not qualified to drive.” DHS backed him up with a statement that left nothing to the imagination: “Too many American lives have been lost because sanctuary states have issued CDLs to tens of thousands of illegal aliens who are unqualified, poorly vetted, do not speak English, and have known criminal histories.” So yes, California looked at all that and said, here are the keys to a semi-truck, good luck out there.
The arrests were not just paperwork violations, either. The Oklahoma Highway Patrol, one of the state partners in the operation, helped nab migrants with outstanding felony warrants. Officers also detained six individuals who had a teenage girl in their vehicle and are suspected of sex trafficking. Another suspect was driving a stolen vehicle and assaulted police officers during the arrest. Totally the kind of guys you want hauling freight through your neighborhood at two in the morning.
You can read more about Operation Guardian migrant trucker arrests and the full scope of what DHS uncovered during those 72 hours.
Indiana law enforcement joined in as well, patrolling what they described as “secondary and bypass routes” that criminals routinely use to dodge checkpoints on main roads. Because when you’re an unvetted illegal alien with a felony warrant driving a commercial truck, you know where the speed traps are.
Secretary Mullin summed it all up plainly. They absolutely wreak havoc on actual companies that are doing it right,” he said of illegal alien truckers. “What we’re trying, through the DHS, our partners with state and local officials, is we are trying to restore law and order again. We’re trying to take these unsafe drivers off the road.” Crazy concept, enforcing the law. Democrats should try it sometime.
Operation Guardian is part of a broader Trump administration push to crack down on illegal immigration and the public safety disasters that come with ignoring it. If sanctuary state politicians want to keep handing out CDLs to people with criminal histories who can’t speak English, they should probably expect more operations like this one, and more very bad press days for their side.
