National ID concerns many

The Federal Real ID Act signed into law on May 11, 2005, mandates that every American citizen must have a National Identification Card (NID) by 2008.

“Starting in 2008, if you live or work in the United States, you'll need a federally approved identification card to travel on a plane, open a bank account, collect Social Security or take advantage of nearly any government service,” said State Representative Linda Harper- Brown, in her column in The Irving Journal. “Each state will have to reissue your driver's license to meet federal standards,” she said.

The NID, called the Real ID Act, was passed by being attached to a huge appropriations bill for troops in Iraq. The appropriations bill was supported unanimously by both Democrats and Republicans in the Senate.

According to the Congressional Record, the estimated impact on state and local economies may exceed $11 billion.

Gov. Rick Perry supports the Real ID Act, said Katy Walt, a representative from the governor's office, but, “he has concerns about costs and believes that the federal government should cover the expenses of compliance.”

Various state and national groups are beginning to rally against President Bush's new law because of what they call civil rights violations and cost issues.

The groups consist of both civil rights organizations and faith-based groups. They say the law forces Americans to succumb to the tyranny of total government control.

“This is very reminiscent of the George Orwell novel 1984,” said Lynn Brink, a North Lake College government professor. “Could it be that Big Brother is watching everything that you do?

“This is a very odd move coming from such a conservative presidency,” said Brink. “Is our privacy in danger? It's as if the government can reach right into our very living room.”

Irvin Baxter, the leader of the faith-based “No National ID” protesters, believes that the law has undertones which go beyond mere government control.

“Unless it is stopped, the Real ID Act will be implemented by 2008,” said Baxter. “We must stop the Real ID Act now before it becomes the mark of the beast. This is our last chance to save America.”

In a September article of the Las Cruces Journal Southern Bureau, Jim Harper, a director of information policy for the conservative Cato Institute said, “The ID Act moves us closer to a surveillance society and it will be up to folks like you to push back and make them [Congress] see the light.”

Earlier this year, Kevin Keenan, executive director for the San Diego chapter of the ACLU, was quoted in the Union-Tribute as saying, “This lays the infrastructure for total surveillance. That's not what our founding fathers signed up for.”

The Department of Public Safety will be the implementing agency in Texas, according to Walt. Guidelines have not yet been released. However, according to the federal mandate, all states must be in compliance by May 11, 2008.