Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced he’s putting a pause on work visas for commercial truck drivers after a deadly accident in Florida. Rubio says the number of international truck drivers is a security risk.
“Effective immediately, we are pausing all issuance of worker visas for commercial truck drivers. The increasing number of foreign drivers operating large tractor-trailer trucks on U.S. roads is endangering American lives and undercutting the livelihoods of American truckers,” Rubio tweeted.
This move comes after a truck driver living in the U.S. illegally was charged with three counts of vehicular homicide. Florida police say Harjinger Singh made an illegal U-turn on a highway, and a minivan carrying three people crashed into the truck, killing all inside.
The Department of Homeland Security said Singh illegally entered the U.S. through Mexico in 2018. The Department of Transportation said he obtained a regular commercial license in the state of Washington in 2023 and a limited license in California in 2024. It also reports that he failed an English proficiency exam.
Meanwhile, the State Department is also reviewing 55 million foreigners who hold U.S. travel visas, looking for specific threats.
Since DHS reports there were 12.8 million green-card holders and 3.6 million people in the U.S. on temporary visas last year, the 55 million figure indicates the review would include people who are currently outside the U.S. who hold multiple-entry tourist visas.
The State Department says the main goal is to discover people overstaying their visas or engaging in criminal activity, threats to public safety, or terrorist activity.
“We review all available information as part of our vetting, including law enforcement or immigration records or any other information that comes to light after visa issuance, indicating a potential ineligibility,” the department said.
In addition, the department said that it has already revoked more than 6,000 student visas for overstays and other crimes, the vast majority of which were assault, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, and support for terrorism.
About 4,000 of those 6,000 were reportedly due to actual infractions of laws, and approximately 200 to 300 visas were revoked for terrorism-related issues.
