Trump admin closes 270 truck driving schools for giving licenses to illegal aliens

Vice President JD Vance slammed the Biden administration Monday over commercial driver’s license (CDL) standards, saying Americans should not be forced to share the road with truck drivers who cannot communicate in English or properly operate a commercial vehicle. This comes as the Trump administration earlier on Monday announced that 270 truck driving schools were being shut down for giving licenses to illegal immigrants.

 "I don't know about you, but with my kids driving around, I don't want a person who can't even read the road signs to have a CDL in the United States of America. It's basic common sense," Vance said.

Vance praised truckers for moving goods across the country through difficult conditions, including the Covid-19 pandemic. “What’s amazing is that if you show up, they don’t complain, they go to work, and they get it out of the American people every day,” he said.

The vice president slammed the Biden administration for allowing commercial driving standards to weaken, including by allowing illegal immigrants to drive, while the number of CDL holders grew, arguing that the consequences were being felt on American roads. Vance also pointed to a requirement that commercial drivers be able to read and understand English, saying the standard is a clear necessity for road safety.

His remarks came hours after Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced in Detroit that the Department of Transportation had shut down 270 CDL training schools for violating federal requirements. The announcement was made alongside Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and federal prosecutors.

Duffy said 110 schools were removed from the federal Training Provider Registry after investigators identified serious English-language proficiency violations. Those schools had trained approximately 5,000 enrollees who were later found unable to speak English. Another 160 schools were suspended over inadequate training facilities.

“If you’re here illegally and you can’t speak the language and you’re not well-trained, you don’t deserve to be in a big rig, driving American roads, endangering American citizens,” Duffy said. Duffy also rejected concerns that the crackdown would create a shortage of truck drivers.

“We’re not gonna have a problem. We’re gonna have truck drivers,” he said.

“You have to speak English to operate a commercial vehicle. I didn’t create that rule. President Trump didn’t create that rule. That rule has been in place for decades, and we have schools that know the rule and still pass people through their school who can’t speak the language,” Duffy continued.