EDITORIAL – Fed-imposed IDs cross state line

Sometimes the federal government really doesn’t know what’s best, and it’s times like these… Sometimes the federal government really doesn’t know what’s best, and it’s times like these that states need to step up and flex a little muscle.

According to the Associated Press, states including Maine, Arizona, Georgia, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Utah and Wyoming have “active legislation” against the Real ID Act of 2005.

The Act mandates that states meet certain standards for state driver’s licenses and IDs beginning in 2008. Changes would include linking all state databases to a federal database a requiring a digital photo and fingerprint on IDs. After the 2008 deadline, only IDs meeting the Real ID Act’s standards will be accepted to board planes, enter federal buildings and open certain bank accounts.

Supporters of the act believe that imposing federal standards on state IDs will keep IDs out of the hands of terrorists and illegal immigrants. However, there are far too many forms of immigration paperwork issued, which would basically require state department of motor vehicle employees to become virtual experts on immigration. And as far as curbing terrorist threats, the critics of the act pointed out that Timothy McVeigh and some of the Sept. 11, 2001, hijackers had legal driver’s licenses.

Critics also say that these new driver’s licenses will hold more weight than older driver’s licenses and will thus be more valuable for identity theft. .

“This does nothing to stop terrorism,” Missouri state Rep. James Guest said in the AP article.

The Republican representative is spearheading a coalition of lawmakers to create and file bills that contest the act.

“This is almost a frontal assault on the freedoms of America when they require us to carry a national ID to monitor where we are,” Guest said. “That’s going too far.”

Besides privacy issues, lawmakers are also concerned about the $11 billion implementation price tag the act totes. They’re also concerned that states are never going to be able upgrade their databases in time for the 2008 deadline.

The federal government is out of line in requiring national requirements for state drivers licenses. There is a separation of power built into the constitution for a reason, and they are violating the sovereignty of states. Why doesn’t the federal government just take over local government, then? How about local taxes, too? If they want to dip their fingers in to driver’s licenses and IDs, there’s no reason why they should only stop there.

Is it only a matter of time before every move we make is tracked by the government with these IDs? How far are we away from retinal scans to use public bathrooms?

We have been shown time and time again over the last few years that if the federal government has access to information about its citizens, it sees no problem with abusing that information for its own ends – under the guise of national security.

The Founding Fathers didn’t trust the federal government with too much power, and neither should we.