Over the weekend, I noted the arrest of illegal alien Mohammed Yusef Mullawala, of Jamaica, N.Y., who enrolled in a Smithfield tractor-trailer training school in order to obtain a commercial driver’s license and permit to haul hazardous materials. He’s the guy who was in a hurry to learn how to steer a tractor-trailer, but not how to back up. I followed up with Rhode Island state police this week; they are continuing to probe Mullawala’s connections. My column this week puts the probe in context:

Terrorist truck bombs have killed hundreds of Americans in Beirut, at the Khobar Towers, and Iraq. For the operatives behind the wheel, a license to drive is a license to kill. Over the past two years, the FBI has put law enforcement officials on high alert for U.S.-based operatives connected to al Qaeda who may be in possession of commercial driver’s licenses and may be planning to use truck bombs.

In Boston, suspected al Qaeda agent and illegal alien Nabil al-Marabh obtained a license permitting him to drive semi-trucks containing hazardous materials, including explosives and caustic materials.

In Minneapolis, suspected al Qaeda operative Mohamad Elzahabi, who obtained a green card through a fake marriage, was able to obtain a commercial driver’s license to drive a school bus and to haul hazardous materials — despite FBI knowledge that Elzahabi had been tied to terrorism.

Earlier this year, more than 200 Somalian and Bosnian immigrants illegally obtained Missouri commercial driver’s licenses or certifications to handle hazardous materials through a West Plains truck-driving school that had a contract with the state, according to federal prosecutors.

In just a few short weeks, Democrats led by Nancy Pelosi — a staunch opponent of strengthened ID laws and strict immigration enforcement — will reassume power in Washington. An open borders-friendly White House has expressed willingness to deal with them. So we know who supports illegal alien workers and potential terrorist drivers waiting for amnesty. But who will stand up for us?