Republican New York gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman on Sunday criticized Gov. Kathy Hochul over commercial trucking licenses issued to migrants in the country illegally during her tenure, the New York Post reported.
"Gov. Hochul is knowingly putting New Yorkers in danger. She is handing out commercial licenses to people who should never be behind the wheel of an 80,000-pound truck, and the consequences have been deadly," Blakeman, the Nassau County executive, said.
New York is the eighth state found to routinely issue commercial driver's licenses that remain valid long after recipients are no longer legally authorized to be in the country, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in December.
He threatened to withhold $73 million in highway funds unless the system is fixed and flawed licenses are revoked.
"Hochul's policies create a system where individuals without the proper vetting and training — and even those with revoked licenses — can legally drive massive trucks through our communities. That is an unacceptable public safety failure," Blakeman said.
"My administration will restore common sense and public safety," Blakeman said. "For every CDL handed out to someone in the country illegally, we will give a CDL to a hard-working New Yorker who plays by the rules."
New York was the fourth state run by a Democrat governor publicly called out by Duffy in his effort to ensure truck and bus drivers are qualified to haul passengers or up to 80,000 pounds of cargo.
He previously questioned similar practices in California, Pennsylvania, and Minnesota.
In addition to finding licenses that remained valid longer than permitted, federal audits also uncovered instances in which states may not have checked a driver's immigration status before issuing a license.
Hochul campaign spokesperson Ryan Radulovacki defended the governor, telling the Post: "While Gov. Hochul has made record investments in public safety and worked with law enforcement to bring crime down, Bruce Blakeman actually let violent crime go up in Nassau, hitting 10-year highs, withheld funding for local law enforcement, and refused to lift a finger when Trump tried to defund the NYPD — because he'd rather protect Donald Trump than his own constituents."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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