Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, announced Tuesday that he is withdrawing Texas GOP Sen. John Cornyn's legal opinion from his time as state attorney general that gave illegal migrants a way to get occupational licenses.

Paxton claimed that the 2001 opinion allowed licensing authorities to circumvent state law that required applicants to submit their Social Security numbers in their applications. The opinion was based on guidance from the Clinton administration.

The attorney general, who is hoping to defeat and replace Cornyn in the Senate next month, issued a new opinion that his office claims protects jobs of Texans by emphasizing that state law requires occupational license applicants to submit their Social Security numbers to ensure they are authorized to work in the United States.

“Illegal aliens who don’t belong in this country should not be rewarded for their criminal actions by receiving occupational licenses that allow them to undercut the wages of American citizens,” Paxton said in a statement. “Illegals must be rounded up and deported instead of being given licenses to steal opportunities from Americans.”

Paxton accused Cornyn of "rolling out the red carpet" for illegal migrants in Texas and claimed that Cornyn's interpretation of the state law did not even require migrants to prove that they have a Social Security number.

The change comes after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott instructed the state Department of Public Safety to strictly enforce English language proficiency requirements for commercial truck licenses.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.