Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) seeing chance to nix Real ID Act

[Breeze54]

Lamar seeing chance to nix Real ID Act

http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/lamar-seeing-chance-to-nix-real-id-act-2008-03-25.html

By J. Taylor Rushing
Posted: 03/25/08 07:06 PM

Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) wants to scrap a three-year-old anti-terrorism law that his fellow Republicans drafted in response to the Sept. 11 attacks. And with his new power in the GOP conference, he may have a chance.

Alexander’s target is the 2005 Real ID Act, which mandated that states adopt uniform federal standards for driver’s licenses. Despite the Tennessee Republican’s concerns, he was outnumbered by party colleagues who wanted to stop terrorists from exploiting loose identification laws.

This time around, Alexander has leverage. As chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, he is the third-ranking Republican in the chamber. He also has a strong ally in Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), who, like most Democrats, disagrees with the law. As a former governor, Alexander also has many of the nation’s governors and state legislatures behind him. Many complain that the federal government overstepped its bounds when it enacted the legislation that included the provision and effectively passed along a huge public expense to the states.

When Congress returns next week, Alexander plans to file an amendment to the fiscal 2009 homeland security appropriations bill that would halt the program until the government finds a way to reimburse states for its cost.

“The federal government shouldn’t be able to enforce the Real ID law unless the federal government pays for it,” Alexander told The Hill. “It wasn’t properly considered in the Senate, it creates a national ID card, and it’s a massive unfunded mandate.”

In May, states must start to comply with the law’s regulations on driver’s license information standards, which the Homeland Security Department issued in January. Federal officials have repeatedly pushed back implementation of the law, however, and at least 19 states have passed measures stating their opposition.

Critics of the law see a rare opening to overturn it.

“Congress created Real ID, and they can do away with Real ID,” said Jim Harper, director of information policy studies at the Cato Institute and the author of a book on identification laws and technology. “Not a single state is going to be in compliance with the law by May, and the program has been failing from the start.”

more.....

[havocmom]

1. Glad to hear it. Should be able to get it yanked just so GOP can save face.

DHS gave Montana 'an extension' on time to comply, though Montana did not request any such thing. We just said NO. Like the little kid holding his breath, DHS looks pretty silly.


Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer is a good man to learn from. Common sense, a spine, plain spoken, and called DHS's action what it was.

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/01/montana-governo.html

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/03/montana-gov-dhs.html

[Breeze54]

2. I hope they abolish it!

It has so many ways to invade your privacy it's ridiculous!
Not to mention all the other reasons it's a bad idea.

[havocmom]

3. Breeze, has anyone dug up what corporations stand to make $$ from this?

Nothing cheney/bush does lacks a profit center for some big corporation. Would it require special hardware to make the ID's? There HAS to be $$ involved if they are trying to force it on people

And my personal favorite tin foil theory is that a unified form of ID makes it SO much easier for the black market fake ID crowd to produce product. Yes, I AM that cynical about cheney and DHS.

[Breeze54]

4. Information Technology Association of America+++ - I've posted about the RIDA many times but Here-->

http://www.realnightmare.org/

-----------------------

ACLU.tv
This 90-second Freedom Files video short looks at the federal Real ID Act
... Learn more about the distinction between these two components of the ACLU.
... www.aclu.tv/realid

Who Loves Real ID? AOL, Microsoft and Yahoo Do.
http://blog.aclu.org/index.php?/archives/301-Who-Loves-Real-ID-AOL,-Microsoft-and-Yahoo-Do..html

--------------

http://blog.aclu.org/index.php?/archives/301-Who-Loves-Real-ID-AOL,-Microsoft-and-Yahoo-Do..html

snip-->

Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) sent a letter to Congress this week begging for more federal funding for Real ID. Why would an organization, whose membership includes AOL, Microsoft, Verizon and Yahoo, support a national ID card? For the answer, let’s employ that fundamental adage of Washington politics: Follow the money.

Also included in the ITAA membership list are Digimarc and Northrop Grumman, companies that specialize in creating high-tech ID cards, as well as Choicepoint and LexisNexis, data brokers that make their money selling personal information about you to advertisers and the government. These companies stand to make millions in contracts from states who are struggling with a federal mandate to overhaul their licensing systems and share more data by the May 2008 deadline (now widely viewed as impossible to meet).

[havocmom]

6. Thanks. I have missed posts on the subject, but figured there was $$ involved

We damn well know the junta doesn't give a shit about real security and we have pretty good evidence there isn't as many threats as they would have us believe. The whole thing = a magician's lovely and distracting assistant, diverting our attention while the magician makes off with our wallets.

[Breeze54]

8. Of course there is $$ involved.

:P

Look at all those companies! Gheesh!

[Benhurst]

5. I never thought I'd hear myself saying this, but good for Lamar Alexander!

Are Clinton and Obama speaking out on this. If not, why not?

[Breeze54]

7. LOL...I almost typed the same thing in the OP

:rofl:

I never route for a repub but I might be willing to make an exception in this case! :P

I have no idea about the candidates.

Have you checked at the Vote Smart website, to see if they voted for or against Real ID?