Do You Need a REAL ID?

I renewed my driver’s license recently for $42. The license and photo looked the same as the old one except for the star in the upper right-hand corner. I wondered why the star was there.

I did not protest the extensive line and the various identifications I had to bring with me besides my old license. State bureaucracy and the huge influx of illegal aliens made for a long wait in line at our local DMV and the fact that most of the customers did not speak English. Lucky for them, all the bureaucratic clerks were Hispanic and fluent in Spanish, the emerging national language of the United States. Not sure if Arabic will bypass Spanish but that is a topic for another day.

The clerk informed me that I was getting a REAL ID and I will be able to fly and enter all federal buildings with this DL. I was a bit perplexed as to why we would need the real I.D. with a star. Were our DLs not real IDs?

I have flown quite a bit with my old DL and used my passport on overseas flights. Unbeknownst to us, the REAL ID law was passed by Congress in 2005, twenty years ago, and nobody had a chance to chime in if it was a clever idea. Suddenly, twenty years later, all citizens must comply by May 7, 2025, to fly or enter federal buildings, nuclear power plants, and Arlington National Cemetery.

So far states have not made REAL ID mandatory, and people are not aware about this federal REAL ID and the fact that it is not mandatory to fly domestically. H.R.418 - 109th Congress (2005-2006): REAL ID Act of 2005 | Congress.gov | Library of Congress

Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) introduced a bill on 1/12/2017 to amend the Real ID Act of 2005 to repeal provisions requiring uniform State driver's licenses and State identification cards, and for other purposes. All Info - S.126 - 115th Congress (2017-2018): A bill to amend the Real ID Act of 2005 to repeal provisions requiring uniform State driver's licenses and State identification cards, and for other purposes. | Congress.gov | Library of Congress

What are the potential dangers of such a federally mandated REAL ID?

Many experts agree that REAL ID can be a threat to health freedom and can be used as the Chinese style social credit score as it is currently in China, U.K., and Australia. Twila Brase stated “REAL ID is a national ID, it is a federal takeover of state and individual sovereignty, it is an usurpation of state rights and individual rights that we have under Constitution.”

Brase stated that “it is not a card, it is a system.” When the REAL ID was debated, Lamar Alexander of Tennessee said that he was not comfortable with the privacy implications because this is a national ID.

REAL ID is a form of outsider control, an usurpation of state rights, “he who holds the data, makes the rules.”

The REAL ID law of 2005 has three stated purposes, to access federal buildings, to board domestic flights, and to enter nuclear facilities. However, the language of the law says, “and any other purposes that the Secretary of Homeland Security shall determine.”

What if the current or future Homeland Security Secretary decides that you “need REAL ID to access health care, get married, get a hotel room, open a bank account, or buy a gun or ammunition?” And the Secretary does not need to ask permission from Congress to expand the Homeland Security’s roles, according to a 2008 rule. In the future, biometrics can be required such as facial profile and DNA.

Right now, it is simple to obtain a REAL ID, i.e. birth certificate, Social Security card, your passport, a bill with your address on it, the old DL, permanent resident ID, but in the future, the documentation necessary could be expanded such as what organizations are you part of, voting record, what clubs you belong to, etc. American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators testified to Congress in December 2023 that they plan to digitize the REAL ID, put it on our phones, and have access to it remotely.

The argument that the REAL ID would protect elections and illegals would not be able to vote is absurd as we have seen illegals receiving voter registration cards from Democrats.

The states’ duty is to protect its citizens from the federal government’s overreach. We cannot allow the federal government to be in control of our social services, travel, access to health care, personal biometrics, and every transaction we make, which would ping a government agency that would know where we are and what we are doing. Data will be weaponized.

What would enforcement look like? Despite what they say, after May 7, 2025, you would fly without a REAL ID. The immediate enforcement of the federal rule would create total confusion at airports, especially since 44% of people have not complied and are fighting the change to REAL ID.