Buckle up, patriots -- California is hitting the brakes hard, revoking 17,000 commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) issued to immigrants after a firm shove from the Trump administration, as Fox News reports.

This high-stakes showdown between the Golden State and federal authorities has ignited a fierce debate over legal compliance and the policies governing these licenses.

The licenses, originally set to expire alongside the drivers’ legal U.S. presence, are now being pulled after the U.S. Department of Transportation informed affected individuals that their credentials no longer meet federal standards and will become invalid within 60 days.

Federal Push Clashes With State Defiance

California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office didn’t take this lying down, arguing that the federal regulations now being enforced weren’t even on the books when these CDLs were first handed out.

They’ve also swatted away accusations that the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles admitted to any unlawful issuance, maintaining that the withdrawal aligns with California’s own legal framework, not some federal power grab.

Newsom’s team further clarified that these drivers were legally present in the U.S. with federal work authorization, pushing back against any narrative suggesting they were unauthorized migrants sneaking through the system.

Compliance Disputes and Retroactive Rules

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) dropped a bombshell, claiming that over one in four sampled California CDL records failed to meet compliance standards.

California shot back, asserting that the FMCSA’s harsh critique relies on retroactively applying new rules, while the state followed earlier guidance greenlit by the Department of Homeland Security.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy wasn’t buying it, stating, “After weeks of claiming they did nothing wrong, Gavin Newsom and California have been caught red-handed,” and emphasizing that the state ignored original FMCSA guidelines from the get-go.

Emergency Measures and Safety Alarms

Duffy ramped up the rhetoric, declaring, “My emergency rule came as a consequence in part for California’s total disregard of those federal laws -- it was THAT BAD."

The timing of this revocation couldn’t be more telling, coming just a day before a court hearing for Harjinder Singh, an immigrant tied to a horrific crash that has fueled public safety concerns.

Singh, who crossed into the U.S. without authorization in 2018, is accused of causing a fatal accident in Fort Pierce, Florida, where an improper turn through a restricted access point led to three tragic deaths, described by Homeland Security as a “brutal wreck.”

Tragic Incidents Fuel Policy Scrutiny

Adding to the scrutiny, FMCSA investigators found Singh severely lacking in English proficiency, noting he correctly answered only two of 12 verbal questions and recognized just one of four traffic signs during an assessment.

In another gut-wrenching case, Jashanpreet Singh, also an immigrant holding a California CDL and with a record of unauthorized entry in 2022, was charged with vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, resulting in three deaths in a crash where toxicology confirmed impairment and police reported he never even touched the brakes.

These heartbreaking incidents underscore the real-world consequences of lax oversight, raising valid questions about whether progressive policies prioritizing access over strict vetting have gone too far, especially when lives are on the line. While empathy for those seeking a better life remains crucial, public safety can’t be a bargaining chip in political gamesmanship between state and federal powers.