Conservative experts hail Marco Rubio's move to halt trucker visas as 'long overdue'

WASHINGTON, DC: Secretary of State Marco Rubio has halted the issuance of worker visas for foreign commercial truck drivers following a deadly crash in Florida involving an undocumented immigrant, which resulted in the deaths of three Americans.

The move has won praise from conservatives focused on immigration and road safety, but sparked pushback from some policy analysts who argue it worsens an existing driver shortage.

Marco Rubio pauses trucker visas, citing threat to American lives

“Effective immediately, we are pausing all issuance of worker visas for commercial truck drivers,” Marco Rubio announced on Thursday, August 21, on X (formerly Twitter).

He argued the growing number of foreign drivers operating large tractor-trailers on US roads is “endangering American lives and undercutting the livelihoods of American truckers.”

The decision follows a crash involving Harjinder Singh, an undocumented immigrant from India who allegedly killed three people while driving a truck in Florida. Federal investigators say Singh failed both English proficiency and road-sign tests before somehow obtaining a commercial driver’s license.

Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, called the move “long overdue,” adding that Americans “can’t depend on trucking companies and state regulators to make sure foreign truck drivers are competent and safe.”

Lora Ries, head of the Heritage Foundation’s Border Security and Immigration Center, echoed the concerns, stating, “This is about road safety and immigration integrity,” and urged DHS and the State Department to analyze all current commercial truck drivers with visas or employment permits and revoke benefits where appropriate.

Republican attorney Mehek Cooke said the issue “ultimately boils down to sovereignty and safety.”

Questions mount over how Florida crash suspect obtained a commercial license

Authorities are investigating how Harjinder Singh obtained a commercial license despite reportedly failing key tests and being in the US illegally.

The St Lucie County Sheriff’s Office released a new booking photo on Friday after Singh was extradited from California to Florida.

“There are legitimate questions about how qualified these foreign truck drivers are, following the horrible episode in Florida,” Vaughan said, describing the crash as a result of Singh “botching an illegal U-turn in the middle of a divided highway.”

Critics say visa pause will worsen truck driver shortage

Some policy experts criticized Marco Rubio’s order as shortsighted. David Bier, director of immigration studies at the CATO Institute, argued the US already faces a “massive truck driver shortage that is driving up the prices of everything we purchase,” adding that “Rubio decides to make it worse based on an anecdote. Totally absurd decision-making process though I don’t know what visas he’s even talking about ‘pausing.’”

A State Department spokesperson said the administration is reviewing millions of visa holders under a continuous vetting program.

“The department’s continuous vetting includes all of the more than 55 million foreigners who currently hold valid US visas,” the spokesperson told Fox News Digital. The effort comes as the Trump administration pushes mass deportation measures and tightens immigration screening following the Biden-era border crisis.