Opposition to the REAL ID Act

This petition was created with the purpose of showing support for the opposition of the REAL ID Act (HR 418) sponsored by House Representative Sensenbrenner. We the undersigned are opposed to this Act because of the following issues:

1. This bill was attached as a rider to supposed must pass legislation for the appropriation of war funds for the ongoing conflict in Iraq. This bill was passed without the processes of democracy we, as citizens of one of the largest democracies in the free world, are accustomed to being afforded. There was no public announcement of the possible ramifications of the proposed system. There was no debate about the issue. There was no vote on the floor.

2. The United States has always been a land of possibilities but, with the newest restrictions on immigration into our country introduced by this Act, the options of incoming immigrants whether seeking asylum or citizenship have been severely reduced. As a country that has prided itself on its diversity and capability to provide a new beginning for immigrants we are severely damaging this posture and the view of our country by foreign powers.

3. The bill creates a national identification system that standardizes state drivers licenses, more or less creating a national ID system. It is an unfunded mandate so the states will have to pay their own way through upgrading and supporting this system. That means that the tax-payers who were never told or consulted about this change will have to foot the bill.

4. The national ID system creates a national database of driver and personal information with the capability to add several tracking options to collect data on all aspects of our lives. This decision lies in the hands of the Department of Homeland Security who can change at any time the data that is collected through this ID.

5. The bill does nothing to address the possibilities of forgery of these documents and almost seems to imply that the IDs will be un-forgeable. This, as has been confirmed by many security experts, is a fallacy. No ID system is foolproof and no ID is un-forgeable. As long as there are criminals they will find a way to subvert our most stringent laws. This means that having a national ID will not make us more secure, nor will it stop criminals from circumventing the system to continue their criminal activities.

In short, the undersigned are here to say that we will not allow our civil liberties to be eroded any longer. The implementation of the REAL ID Act is three years away and with the support of the public, it can be stopped. We want to notify the US Government that we will not take this lying down. We want to remind America that in a democracy, the people have all the power. The people have a voice and it will be heard!!