A Democratic candidate waging a high-stakes bid for one of the most competitive in the country touted connections to a group pushing to keep laxer restrictions around commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) for undocumented immigrants.
Rebecca Cooke, running in 3rd Congressional District to unseat incumbent Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wisc., highlighted an endorsement from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME).
“Im honored to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the hard-working men and women of AFSCME.,” Cooke wrote.
Cookes alignment with AFSCME continues Democrats’ pushback against certain industries.
Cooke did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Over the past year, the highlighted several instances where Americans were killed by illegal aliens who acquired CDLs.
In one such case, Dawood Hussain, a Pakistani native, was charged in April with vehicular homicide after driving a commercial truck down the wrong way of a highway, killing a U.S. citizen in a collision.
“Illegal aliens should not be operating 80,000-pound tractor-trailers on American roads,” USCIS spokesman Matthew J. Tragesser said of the incident.
“This tragedy, like many others, was completely preventable. Under President Trumps leadership, USCIS remains committed to safeguarding our communities by helping to ensure dangerous illegal aliens are removed from our country, as well as supporting the presidents call for even tougher measures to
As states and federal lawmakers evaluate rules surrounding CDLs, AFSCME has pushed back, arguing that the standards should remain open to encourage job maximization â even for illegal immigrants.
The group published a toolkit, instructing businesses on how to illegal aliens.
Additionally, the group has sued the Trump administration for imposing federal requirements through the require states to secure proof of lawful immigration status.
Cookes alignment with AFSCME is especially noteworthy in Wisconsin, a state with a trucking workforce.
Over 186,600 residents of Wisconsin are employed in the trucking industry, according to the Wisconsin Motor Carrier Association â a figure accounting for roughly 1 in every 14 jobs in the state.
election to Van Orden, 51.3% to 48.6%, in 2024.
