Every time I am pulled over by a cop he asks me for three papers; license, registration and proof of insurance.
When I went to renew my driver’s license (which had not yet expired) I had to go in person because even though they had my social security number on file (required for all men to prove they are not deadbeat dads in Texas), they had to physically SEE my SS card AND I think they also needed more documentation (passport or birth certificate I think).
And our president doesn’t have to show squat.
Consider this when he speaks out against AZ and papers. Arizona also recently passed a law to require proper paperwork to get on the ballot in 2012.
A license doesn’t prove citizenship...every state has different requirements, and some are so weak that an illegal can get a driver’s license, as well as own a car and get insurance.
Green Card Holders do have to carry the green cards on them at all times, but they usually only show them to Immigration Officials & State Department.
The Difference in Ben’s scenario, he was doing something that caught the cops attention & driving is a privileged not a right.
But the Arizona law allows a cop to stop any person and demand proof of citizenship. A driver’s license isn’t proof of legality. A social security number isn’t proof of legality (and quite easy to forge). A birth certificate is easy to forge (to paraphrase a t-shirt “Sure Officer, all Maine Birth Certificates are written in crayon). To prove legality you would need to carry around a valid US Passport.
And here’s the thing, you might think you are “OK” but the cops are going to have to have the racial numbers balance out. They’ll be stopping more white people. And they’ll be taking in more white people who don’t have the appropriate ID.