President Trump is launching what he calls “historic action” to get illegal migrant truck drivers off American roads — citing the death of a Pennsylvania state trooper killed by a Haitian migrant with a fraudulent commercial driver’s license.
Trump made the announcement Tuesday at the Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit in Carlisle, promising aggressive federal enforcement targeting both the illegal drivers and the schools that train them.
“My administration will soon take historic action to get illegal alien truck drivers off the roads who are just killing a lot of people,” Trump said. “They can’t read signs. Many of them are on drugs or alcohol, and they shouldn’t be driving these things.”
“They can’t read signs. Many of them are on drugs or alcohol, and they shouldn’t be driving these things.”
The president cited the July death of Pennsylvania State Trooper Michael Pahira, who was run down by an illegal migrant from Haiti while conducting a safety check on Interstate 81 in Schuylkill County.
The driver, Michael Bon, 33, had been living in the U.S. illegally for over a year. He entered during the Biden administration on July 2, 2024, applied for Temporary Protected Status in October 2024, but was never granted it. The Department of Homeland Security notified him in June 2025 that he would have to return to Haiti — but he stayed anyway and obtained a Massachusetts-issued commercial driver’s license.
“We’re here in Pennsylvania, where State Trooper Michael Pahira, Jr., was killed just two weeks ago by an illegal alien operating a semi-truck on a commercial driver’s license, which he should never have had,” Trump said.
The Trump administration is now deploying a multi-agency crackdown. In February, the Department of Transportation announced inspections of more than 550 truck driver schools nationwide, looking for violations of Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration safety standards.
“For too long, the trucking industry has operated like the Wild, Wild, West, where anything goes and nobody asks any questions. The buck stops with me,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a statement.
“For too long, the trucking industry has operated like the Wild, Wild, West, where anything goes and nobody asks any questions. The buck stops with me.”
This month, Fox News’ Bill Melugin reported that 75 schools are now being charged with fraud — suspected of falsifying training records, providing improper certifications, and failing to properly train drivers.
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the fraud has cost American lives.
“Too many American lives have been lost in completely avoidable accidents because illegal aliens have been granted commercial driver’s licenses to drive trucks and 18-wheelers on America’s roadways,” Mullin said.
“DHS law enforcement is partnering with the Department of Transportation to eliminate CDL fraud, strengthen the integrity of the CDL system, and investigate commercial driver’s license schools throughout the country. This is a whole of government approach to keep America’s roads safe.”
Transportation Secretary Duffy said the crackdown is already producing results.
“USDOT has spent the last year rooting out bad actors from our trucking industry,” Duffy said. “We’ve knocked over 24,000 drivers off our roads for failing to speak English, forced states to cancel over 28,000 licenses illegally issued to foreign drivers, and purged over 9,500 unqualified training schools from our FMCSA registry.”
“DHS will be a force multiplier of our efforts to clean up America’s roads. President Trump is using every lever at his disposal to ensure the safety of American families.”
Duffy added on X: “FRAUDSTERS CAN RUN, BUT THEY CAN’T DRIVE.”
“If you cheat the system by giving illegal aliens commercial driver’s licenses: WE WILL FIND YOU, AND YOU WILL PAY A HEAVY PRICE. Our @DHSgov partnership is a massive force multiplier as we shut down these corrupt operations. President Trump is using every lever to clean up our roads and keep Americans safe.”
Too many American lives have been lost in completely avoidable accidents because illegal aliens have been granted commercial driver’s licenses to drive trucks and 18-wheelers on America’s roadways. @DHSgov law enforcement is partnering with the @USDOT to eliminate CDL fraud,… https://t.co/oaT4ovzidJ
— Secretary Markwayne Mullin (@SecMullinDHS) July 16, 2026
NEW: DHS and DOT have announced they've identified 75 entry level truck driver CDL schools across the US that are suspected of fraudulently helping non-citizen drivers qualify for CDLs, and the agencies are partnering to investigate them, with HSI and DOT already visiting some of… pic.twitter.com/o6MiZBTWA5
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) July 16, 2026
