Immigration Reform Impossible Without US ID Card

Most liberals and conservatives hate the idea of the federal government issuing a US ID card. Fine. I hate it too. But absent that, there's simply no way to control who's in our country--whether it be nice people just seeking work, or terrorists seeking our destruction, or criminals seeking profit at our expense.

An ID card with biometric data would enable us to keep illegals from working at large businesses and enable everyone from hospital clerks to beat cops to verify someone's status easily. A wall across the Mexican border is great, but at the very least it won't affect the 10-15 million illegals already here. They can be given a one year deadline to leave the country legally, and after that be subject to permanent expulsion, with returning made a felony.

Otherwise just be honest and say you value your personal privacy above our integrity as a nation, above the cultural shifts such a huge influx guarantees, above the mockery we've made of our legal immigration system, above the mistreatment of our domestic unskilled workers by forcing them to compete with illegals who have no rights, above the possibility of terrorists pulling off another 9/11.

I have no doubt that some people in government would want to misuse a national ID database. But that's what a democracy with elected officials is for.