The 9/11 Commission Report recommended that ‘Real ID’ be enacted after they discovered that the 19 9/11 hijackers were state-issued 57 drivers licenses and identification cards. Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) voted to enact ‘The Real ID Act of 2005.’ While Senator Clinton refuses to criticize New York Governor Spitzer for his plan that will make it easier for terrorists to conduct additional attacks here, President George W. Bush is not backing down:
The White House yesterday turned a cold shoulder to Gov. Spitzer’s plan to give driver’s licenses to illegal aliens. Asked if President Bush sides with Spitzer or critics of the plan, such as Mayor Bloomberg and former Mayors Ed Koch and Rudy Giuliani, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino touted the president’s own approach. “We’ll stick with our REAL ID Act,” she said, referring to new federal requirements that state driver’s licenses include “biometric” identifiers to combat the identity fraud that gave the 9/11 terrorist plotters free rein.
Another White House spokesman, Scott Stanzel, later added that while states are responsible for extending driving privileges, the federal government is responsible for national security and border control that is easily undermined with bogus identification cards.
“Anything that conflicts with our efforts to increase secure identification or the enforcement of our immigrations laws is concerning,” he said. “The Department of Homeland Security has been very focused on secure identification – increasing the security of identity documents and assuring that individuals are who they say they are.”
Spitzer aides were not surprised at the White House reaction. “Did you expect them to [endorse it]?” asked Spitzer spokeswoman Jennifer Givner. She said New York, like the rest of the states, is still waiting for the federal government to release regulations about how to enact the REAL ID act. “Once we have the definitive regulations, New York will respond accordingly,” Givner said.
Governor Pataki did not wait for “regulations” before protecting the people of New York. In fact, New York — a state that lost 1,747 people on 9/11 — began to require proof that a person is in the United States legally even before ‘Real ID’ was signed into law by President Bush.
Speak up, Senator Clinton. Are you for or against Governor Spitzer’s plan?
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