The Anti-Immigration Bill, which would prohibit illegal immigrants from obtaining driver’s licenses, passed through the U.S. House of Representatives with strong support from the Bush administration Thursday.
“This unfinished business from last year aims to prevent another 9/11-type attack by disrupting terrorist travel,” House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner Jr., R-Wis., said in a release. “The House and the Bush Administration understand the Real ID legislation … [and] will address a number of vulnerabilities in our border and homeland security efforts, including states issuing driver’s licenses to illegal aliens.”
The proposed benefits of the bill include stronger security standards when issuing driver’s licenses, closing the hole in the border between U.S. and Mexico and ensuring all terrorism-related incidents are grounds for deportation, according to a release. All states must comply with the bill if it is approved.
All Democratic legislators from Wisconsin voted against this bill, while all Republicans voted for it. La Crosse Democrat U.S. Rep. Ron Kind was among the Democrats opposing the bill.
Under the bill, new standards for identification would be established. This would require applicants to prove they are legal, otherwise the IDs would not be valid at airports, Kind’s press secretary Stephanie Lundberg.
“Opponents of the bill feel it would overturn states’ rights, gut refugee protections and would not impact the behavior of undocumented aliens or refugees, except to restrict their driving rights,” Lundberg said.
Other concerns include costs of the bill, which remain undetermined. Melanie Fonder, spokesperson for Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle, explained that the bill would cost an estimated $1.3 million to implement and was considered another unfounded mandate.
“Wisconsin is one of the ten states that does not require this,” Fonder said. “Part of the reason is safety — when they have a license they have taken the test.”
U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, voted against Sensenbrenner’s bill for several reasons, including the deletion of important recommendations by the 9/11 Commission meant to improve border security and intelligence.
“Rep. Sensenbrenner’s bill deletes key provisions of the 9/11 law, before we have even given the law a chance to prove its effectiveness,” Baldwin wrote in an e-mail. “Additionally, the bill contains new asylum provisions that would make it much more difficult for persons fleeing legitimate persecution to make their cases, while adding little to our border security.”
Baldwin said she objects to many of the bill’s provisions that have never had a hearing before Congress and “add significant costs to state governments through onerous driver’s license requirements.” Baldwin will continue to press for anti-terrorism efforts targeting the real enemy, as long as they are properly funded and protect civil liberties.
Still, University of Wisconsin business professor John Walter Eichenseher pointed out there are other issues at hand.
“If we don’t have some mechanism for stemming the flow across the border, we should either try to enforce things there, or recognize that the labor is fundamental for our economy,” Eichenseher said.
