Columns
Real ID creates a national ID
<i>Commentary</i> column
It’s easy to push aside singular news reports that point to the establishment of a super state comprised of Canada, Mexico and the United States, but when all of the available information is taken in its totality, the rise of the North American Union appears to be nearly a done deal.
With the formation of the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America, U.S. cabinet level officials negotiate with their Canadian and Mexican counterparts and make deals out of the oversight of Congress. While the organization claims its agreements are not binding, they can become de facto laws through the trade mechanisms of the North American Free Trade Agreement.
One of the biggest hurdles of a North American Union, though, would be keeping up with the movements of the approximately 440 million citizens of such a merger.
One of the ways to handle such problems would be with a more comprehensive identification program, which came in the form of the Real ID Act of 2005.
With the act, the Department of Homeland Security sets ID standards the states are forced to meet. In essence, Real ID creates a national ID.
The ID card would contain normal identification information, along with a person’s Social Security number, biometric information which may include one or more of the following: fingerprint, retinal scan or DNA. There also is a lot of other personal information to be included on the card — more information than on a passport.
Government officials and others have said Real ID is necessary in the ongoing War on Terror, so on the surface, Real ID and the North American Union may not be related, but on closer inspection, you can’t have one without the other.
Department of Homeland Security Assistant Director Paul Rosenzweig brought up a program called the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative at a June 8, 2006 hearing of a Congressional immigration sub-committee. During the hearing Rosenzweig spoke about the work the SPP was doing with the formation of the WHTI.
“Cabinet Secretaries and Ministers convened trilateral working groups to develop concrete work plans and specific timetables for securing North America and ensuring legitimate travelers and cargo efficiently cross our shared borders,” Rosenzweig told the committee.
The WHTI came out of an intelligence reform bill that was passed in 2004 after findings were released from the 9/11 Commission.
The Commission wanted all people entering the United States from Mexico and Canada to present proper documents. This requirement also included all Americans — the reason for the recent big passport push.
While many think border security is essential, the proposals being put forth are going well beyond that scope.
Here is something the Government Accountability Office reported to Congress about the use of standard identification, which raised its head with the passage of the Real ID Act. “A number of stakeholders are advocating a driver’s license with enhanced security features as a substitute for a passport. They maintain that when states adopt driver’s licenses with enhanced security features in accordance with the REAL ID Act, the document should be sufficient for land border crossings under the Travel Initiative.”
Are the connections becoming clearer? In order to expedite travel across a wide continent a comprehensive identification program needs to be put into place.
The standards for the Real ID are to be established by Homeland Security. That information will then be fed into massive databases. The original language of the Real ID Act stated that the database of information was to be standardized with that of Canada and Mexico, both of whom were eligible to participate in the Real ID program.
That language was later dropped, but at some point in the future is likely to be brought up again.
Other officials have said Canada’s identification system is compatible and could be integrated with the Real ID.
The PACT Act, which was introduced by Representatives Louise Slaughter and John McHugh in February would require the United States and Canada to develop identical documents for use under WHTI.
With Real ID and WHTI, mechanisms are being put into place that would allow U.S. and Canadian officials free access to each country’s identification databases.
Next week we’ll take a look at how the country’s infrastructure is being developed in anticipation of a merger between the three nations.
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Wayne Stewart may be reached via e-mail at wstewart@palestineherald.com
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