I rise in strong opposition to HR 418, the REAL ID Act.

This bill purports to make us safer from terrorists who may sneak into the United States, and from other illegal immigrants. While I agree that these issues are of vital importance, this bill will do very little to make us more secure.

It will not address our real vulnerabilities. It will, however, make us much less free.

In reality, this bill is a Trojan horse. It pretends to offer desperately needed border control in order to stampede Americans into sacrificing what is uniquely American: our constitutionally protected liberty.

What is wrong with this bill?

The REAL ID Act establishes a national ID card by mandating that states include certain minimum identification standards on driverīs licenses. It contains no limits on the governmentīs power to impose additional standards.

Indeed, it gives authority to the Secretary of Homeland Security to unilaterally add requirements as he sees fit.