Stop Worrying - You Can Still Have Elvis on Your Driver's License-(nothing sinister in ID Act )

The REAL ID Act has many Americans, especially civil libertarians, up in arms. They are concerned that "Big Brother" has crossed the fine line between security and intrusion.

While we are all well advised to guard against an ever-intrusive government, it serves no good purpose to denigrate a piece of legislation simply because special interest groups are attempting to persuade us into believing there is something sinister afoot.

"We the People" have a responsibility to ascertain the facts about any given issue before we storm the village square, flaming torches in hand. This concept is called civic responsibility and our Founding Fathers envisioned as a cornerstone of their grand design, a nation of people who would embrace this notion.

In this age of instantly accessible information there really is no excuse not to know the facts of the important issues of the day. Granted, we cannot trust the mainstream media to provide information that isn't slanted to the bent of an agenda, but there are many other outlets we can access that will offer us straight-forward accounts of the pressing issues of the day.

In fact, every piece of legislation, proposed and established, is accessible to everyone on the Internet via the Library of Congress website.

When read, the actual verbiage of the REAL ID Act - devoid of the inserted rhetoric of reactionaries - doesn't set-up any super-secret clandestine conspiratorial network. There aren't any government minions sitting deep inside any hollowed out mountain keeping tabs on what kind of milk we buy.

What it does is lay out some minimal requirements for the uniformity of information that is already required by our respective Secretaries of State. It reiterates that every state should cooperate with regard to the reciprocal access of information when requested. And it sets a standard as to what documentation is required in order to receive a driver's license that will be recognized by the federal government as a form of identification.

- The person's full legal name.
- The person's date of birth.
- The person's gender
- The person's driver's license or identification card number.
- A digital photograph of the person.
- The person's address of principle residence.
- The person's signature.
- Security features designed to prevent tampering, counterfeiting, or duplication.
- A common machine-readable technology, with defined minimum data elements.

Further, Section 202(d) of HR 1268 Title II requires that individual Secretaries of State:

- Capture digital images of identity source documents for electronic storage.
- Retain paper copies of source documents for a minimum of 7 years, images for 10.
- Subject each person applying to mandatory facial image capture.
- Establish an effective procedure to confirm or verify a renewing applicant's information.
- Confirm any social security account number presented - Refuse to issue a driver's license to a person holding one by another state.
- Ensure the security of offices where drivers' licenses and ID cards are produced.
- Employ appropriate security clearance requirements for employees.
- Establish fraudulent document recognition training programs for employees.
- Limit the period of validity of all non-temporary driver's licenses and ID cards to 8 years.
- Afford other states access to information contained in the motor vehicle database.
- Maintain a state motor vehicle database that contains, at a minimum: (a) all data fields printed on drivers' licenses and identification cards issued by the state; and (b) motor vehicle drivers' histories, including motor vehicle violations, suspensions, and points on licenses.

Not included anywhere in this piece of legislation are provisions that enable the government to acquire information we don't already provide freely to our respective Secretaries of State. So, I ask you, where is the heavy hand of "Big Brother" in this piece of legislation? After actually reading it "Big Brother's" fingerprint is impossible to find.

Sadly, we've become complacent and generally accept the summaries and reports of the mainstream media talking heads and special interest organizations. Few of us take the initiative to seek out the facts. This results in easy prey for those relying upon ignorance for their own gain.

The only people affected by the REAL ID Act are those who are here illegally. The last time I checked entering or living in the United States outside of immigration law was still illegal. Of course, that's hard to remember after listening to the spokespeople from organizations who insist that illegal aliens have the same rights as citizens. I suspect that these organizations, with a little help from the mainstream media, are the ones spreading the "Big Brother" fear among those who are vulnerable

If "We the People" would simply educate ourselves on the issues, if we sought out the actualities on the important issues of the day, hysteria the likes of what we are hearing over the REAL ID Act wouldn't exist.

If "We the People" would embrace the concept of civic responsibility in the fashion our Founding Fathers envisioned we could eliminate the ability of special interest groups to manipulate public opinion and our laws to suit their short sighted, tunnel-vision utopian aspirations.

In the end, to borrow a phrase from Franklin Roosevelt -- a man who liked the idea of personal retirement accounts, by the way -- "we have nothing to fear but fear itself."

Frank Salvato is a political media consultant and managing editor for TheRant.us. He is regularly featured in The Washington Times, CNS News, GOPUSA, chronwatch.com and about 50 other publications.

Hmmm, Mr. Salvato seems to have missed this small section of the bill:
Section 102(c) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1103 note) is amended to read as follows:

`(c) Waiver-

`(1) IN GENERAL- Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall have the authority to waive, and shall waive, all laws such Secretary, in such Secretary's sole discretion, determines necessary to ensure expeditious construction of the barriers and roads under this section.

`(2) NO JUDICIAL REVIEW- Notwithstanding any other provision of law (statutory or nonstatutory), no court, administrative agency, or other entity shall have jurisdiction--

`(A) to hear any cause or claim arising from any action undertaken, or any decision made, by the Secretary of Homeland Security pursuant to paragraph (1); or

`(B) to order compensatory, declaratory, injunctive, equitable, or any other relief for damage alleged to arise from any such action or decision.'.

The only person who determines whether a particular law applies to this is the Director of Homeland Security. He doesn't have to justify that decision to anyone and that decision is now removed from judicial review. Also, isn't it interesting how Congress has no problem removing this matter from judicial review, but they can't seem to remove other non-federal issues from judicial review.

"You're papers, please"

FAQ: How Real ID will affect you?

What does that mean for me?

Starting three years from now, if you live or work in the United States, you'll need a federally approved ID card to travel on an airplane, open a bank account, collect Social Security payments, or take advantage of nearly any government service. Practically speaking, your driver's license likely will have to be reissued to meet federal standards.

The Real ID Act hands the Department of Homeland Security the power to set these standards and determine whether state drivers' licenses and other ID cards pass muster. Only ID cards approved by Homeland Security can be accepted "for any official purpose" by the feds

How will I get one of these new ID cards?

You'll still get one through your state motor vehicle agency, and it will likely take the place of your drivers' license. But the identification process will be more rigorous.

For instance, you'll need to bring a "photo identity document," document your birth date and address, and show that your Social Security number is what you had claimed it to be. U.S. citizens will have to prove that status, and foreigners will have to show a valid visa.

State DMVs will have to verify that these identity documents are legitimate, digitize them and store them permanently. In addition, Social Security numbers must be verified with the Social Security Administration.

What's going to be stored on this ID card?

At a minimum: name, birth date, sex, ID number, a digital photograph, address, and a "common machine-readable technology" that Homeland Security will decide on. The card must also sport "physical security features designed to prevent tampering, counterfeiting, or duplication of the document for fraudulent purposes."

Homeland Security is permitted to add additional requirements--such as a fingerprint or retinal scan--on top of those. We won't know for a while what these additional requirements will be.

You said the ID card will be electronically readable. What does that mean?

The Real ID Act says federally accepted ID cards must be "machine readable," and lets Homeland Security determine the details. That could end up being a magnetic strip, enhanced bar code, or radio frequency identification (RFID) chips.

In the past, Homeland Security has indicated it likes the concept of RFID chips. The State Department is already going to be embedding RFID devices in passports, and Homeland Security wants to issue RFID-outfitted IDs to foreign visitors who enter the country at the Mexican and Canadian borders. The agency plans to start a yearlong test of the technology in July at checkpoints in Arizona, New York and Washington state.

Will state DMVs share this information?

Yes. In exchange for federal cash, states must agree to link up their databases. Specifically, the Real ID Act says it hopes to "provide electronic access by a state to information contained in the motor vehicle databases of all other states."

Is this a national ID card?

It depends on whom you ask. Barry Steinhardt, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's technology and liberty program, says: "It's going to result in everyone, from the 7-Eleven store to the bank and airlines, demanding to see the ID card. They're going to scan it in. They're going to have all the data on it from the front of the card...It's going to be not just a national ID card but a national database."

At the moment, state driver's licenses aren't easy for bars, banks, airlines and so on to swipe through card readers because they're not uniform; some may have barcodes but no magnetic stripes, for instance, and some may lack both. Steinhardt predicts the federalized IDs will be a gold mine for government agencies and marketers. Also, he notes that the Supreme Court ruled last year that police can demand to see ID from law-abiding U.S. citizens.

When does it take effect?

The Real ID Act takes effect "three years after the date of the enactment" of the legislation. So if the Senate and Bush give it the thumbs-up this month, its effective date would be sometime in May 2008.

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