National ID Card Included In Democratic Immigration Bill

[woo me with science]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/huffpost/20100430/cm_huffpost/557721

National ID Card Included In Democratic Immigration Bill

Thu Apr 29, 8:05 pm ET
Democrats pushed forward on an immigration overhaul on Thursday evening with no Republican support, as Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) continues to hold out, arguing that the divisive issue will make progress on climate change legislation impossible.

....

The Democratic proposal includes increased money for border patrol and drug war agents, equipment, helicopters and unmanned drones. It would create a national ID -- which is dubbed a "biometric social security card." Though Democrats insist that it is not an ID card and can only be used for employment purposes.

The proposal would also include a crackdown on employers who hire undocumented workers. It works to deport some immigrants who are not in the country legally and creates a limited pathway to citizenship for others.

....

The crackdown on employers relies on the creation of national identity cards. "These cards will be fraud-resistant, tamper-resistant, wear resistant, and machine-readable social security cards containing a photograph and an electronically coded micro-processing chip which possesses a unique biometric identifier for the authorized card-bearer," reads the bill summary.

[frazzled]

1. It's only for SS and employment verification: it's against the law to ask for it ...

for any other reason.

The proposed bill makes it ""unlawful for any person, corporation; organization local, state, or federal law enforcement officer; local or state government; or any other entity to require or even ask an individual cardholder to produce their social security card for any purpose other than electronic verification of employment eligibility and verification of identity for Social Security Administration purposes."

So, basically, it's just making sure that people can't get a fake SS card and ... a side line: you can't have your identity stolen in this way.

I'm not so sure it's a bad idea, and I'm not so sure it should be called a national ID card if it can only be used in these limited ways.

[sharp_stick]

2. One thing I don't understand

How would this National ID card be much different than the SS card which is already pretty much a National ID card? This one with biometrics would be harder to forge and use illegally like so many are now. It might make the confirmation of employment eligibility easier than the really buggy system in place today.

I guess you don't legally have to have a SS card or do you? We were told that my kids would not be allowed out of hospital without a complete SS card application and you could never get hired anywhere without a SS card. If you were completely off the grid you could probably get by without one card but not very easily.

Just curious.

[Aramchek]

3. oh noes, it's the mark of the beast!!!

They're just proposing adding birthdate, height, eye color, etc. to our Social Security cards.

It will keep some completely random person from stealing your identity.

Not the end of the World by a long shot

[woo me with science]

6. I notice you capitalized "World."

:wow:

[Aramchek]

7. NWO, baby!!!

[Taverner]

4. Question: at the end of all discussion, will the ID card be required to carry on ones person?

at all times?

[Lone_Star_Dem]

12. Unless something's been changed it won't even be legal for an officer or such to ask to see it

It's not an ID in the sense that your drivers license or state issued ID is. It's a ramped up SS card which is supposed to make it more difficult for a person to use another person's SS card for employment.

State/Fed agencies could use it as a from of ID in the same sense as they do a SS card now. Like when you have to show two or more forms of id to get your passport and such.

[w4rma]

5. I knew this immigration "reform" would degrade into crap. This is a big time losing issue. Run. (nt)

[truebrit71]

8. Very bad idea.

This needs to be stopped.

[Lance_Boyle]

9. Why?

What's bad about it?

[truebrit71]

10. What is it about the following...

..."electronically coded micro-processing chip which possesses a unique biometric identifier for the authorized card-bearer" that you don't get as being a bad idea?

Why not skip the middle man and have us all micro-chipped? :eyes:

This is a VERY bad idea..

[Lance_Boyle]

11. the tag is in the card, genius, not in the cardholder. n/t

[truebrit71]

14. Hmm..other than the insult, you seemed to have missed the overall point..

..The rethuglicans tried this idea and DU en masse hollered about it..but it's okay if the Dems want to tag and bag everyone? Or is that too easy for someone of your superior intellect to grasp? :eyes:

This is a bad idea because it is yet another way for the government, and their enforcement agencies, to track the general population..or do you think they'd only scan for the chip if you were stopped?

I don't think I've been that gullible and trusting since I was a child..

[Lone_Star_Dem]

15. Not the same thing

Bush tried to push a national ID card that would replace your current drivers license/ID and had to be carried on a person at all times.

This a swipeable (magnetic strip) SS card which would be used in the same way as your current SS card. The only difference is it has the added personal information about you in the card. The same information which is currently on your drivers license or ID. It's a way of syncing the two together for security of your SS ID while still only requiring you to carry (or not, depending on your state law) your state issued ID.

[robinblue]

17. "V" would love this idea.

[Cleita]

13. Too bad, when the Democrats worked on health care reform, they didn't

see the opportunity of having a national health card that could also serve as an ID card by making Medicare available to everyone. You see the Medicare card would be issued to citizens and legal immigrants and the background check for birth certificates, certificates of naturalization and green cards would be done at that level before the card was issued. Anyone else, who had to pay cash for health care services, would most likely be a visitor or an undocumented immigrant. Employers would only have to ask for their health care card to determine whether they could be employed legally.

I think using a social security card is a bad idea because there was a time when anyone could apply for a social security card and very few questions were asked. So there are many of us of boomer age who were given social security cards without much investigation. I was fifteen when I got mine and all I had to do was fill out an application. Even though the app clearly state that I was born in Chile, no ID or other verification of being legally in the country was asked of me. Although I did have an American passport and a Proof of Citizenship certificate, no one asked me for it.

[Veruca Salt]

16. Is there any reason why a passport isn't enough?

That worked quite well for me in my European travels and appears to work for them too. There's even a wallet sized card version now which I think would work most handily for those who don't want to carry around the book.