Illinois says licensing illegal immigrants makes our roads safer. My daughter’s death exposed a system of assumptions, failed safeguards, and questions the state still needs to answer.

There is an argument used to justify giving driver's licenses to illegal immigrants that I have never been able to reconcile with the basic purpose of government.

They are going to drive anyway.

Therefore, the argument goes, states should license them, test them and make it possible for them to obtain insurance. Proponents say our roads are safer when drivers are trained, tested, licensed and insured.

At first glance, it sounds pragmatic.

Look closer, and the governing principle is remarkable: Because we anticipate that someone will disregard one law, government should accommodate another activity flowing from that unlawful presence because we assume they will do that anyway, too.

When did “they're going to do it anyway” become sound public policy?

Driving isn't an abstraction about human behavior. It is a matter of life and death. A vehicle can become a deadly weapon in a split second.

When government grants someone the privilege of operating one on public roads, it assumes a profound responsibility to the rest of us. It should act like it. Government's obligation should be to do everything reasonably possible to ensure that the people it credentials are properly identified, qualified and capable of driving safely.

“They're going to drive anyway” turns that responsibility on its head.

I understand the distinction between civil and criminal........

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