The governor does not see the same tie between terrorism and the privilege to drive an automobile.

The new regulations would identify those who request driver’s licenses by means of the passport of the country of origin without verifying their legal right to be in the United States.

The state of New York is not the only one to use a similar procedure in the matter of driver’s licenses. Eight others states use this system, while the majority of states demand proof of legal residency in order to issue a driver’s license.

When all motorists have driver’s licenses, citizens of the state of New York will benefit, according to Spitzer, because it will bring out from the shadows those who drive without the legal right to do so.

Illegal immigrants without a license who are stopped by the police may have a strong urge to flee if they are involved in an accident. The lack of driver’s licenses usually means no auto insurance will be present either. In an accident involving illegal immigrants, victims may not be compensated. Moreover, illegal immigrants witnessing a traffic accident or a crime would in all likelihood be reluctant to cooperate with authorities for fear of being deported.

For all practical purposes, Spitzer accepts the fact that illegal immigrants are in America and it’s better to integrate them. The Department of Motor Vehicles is not the federal agency that must be worried about immigration, according to Spitzer.

David J. Swarts, the director of the DMV, adds that drivers without licenses are more likely to be involved in accidents since they tend not to know the rules of the roads. The Department of Insurance also says that the new regulations will save New York motorists about $120 million because their insurance rates will go down.

Offering driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants is not popular with New Yorkers – or Americans in general. Many believe that driver’s licenses could be used by terrorists to board airplanes and cause other tragedies. Licenses, they fear, could be used as legal documents to integrate into America and might also encourage others to enter illegally in the United States.

The problem for Americans is that, in the absence of a national identity card, the driver’s license is often used for these purposes – even if the document makes no such claim and merely indicates that the owner has the right to operate an automobile. Driver’s licenses are also used by Americans as I.D. cards for travel to foreign countries neighboring the United States that do not require passports.

The idea of illegal immigrants with driver’s licenses makes Americans fearful.

Some are concerned that it might be possible to obtain more than one license that could be passed to someone else for criminal activities. Spitzer says that the new regulations would prevent these problems because the passport would serve as clear identification. In fact, the documents that are now required to obtain a license, a social security number and birth certificate, can more easily be forged because neither includes a photograph.

To ease concerns about abuses, Spitzer changed his original proposal, creating three types of driver’s licenses.

The first one would not be valid as an I.D. card to board airplanes or cross borders. This “second-class” license would be available to all New Yorkers and illegal immigrants and would have a low fee.

The second type, with a higher fee, would be available to those who could prove legal residency. This one would be more secure since it would meet federal standards and would allow holders to board airplanes and cross borders.

A third type of license, available only to U.S. citizens, would comply with the stricter requirements of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative program.

Spitzer’s latest changes pleased no one. But without federal immigration reform, New York and other American states must deal with the problems of illegal immigration as best as they can.

Some states, like Georgia and Colorado, have approved very harsh laws against illegal immigrants. Others are more realistic and view the presence of undocumented workers as a shot in the arm to their local economy, particularly in states where agriculture is important. The integration of illegal immigrants, therefore, reflects a kind of realpolitik of immigration.

At the same time, it serves as a reminder that the United States is a country of immigrants. As long as people from all over the world try to enter the country, America continues to progress. Our decline will begin when no one wants to come to the United States anymore in search of the American dream.