Ron Paul on the National ID card

Washington politicians are once again seriously considering imposing a national identification card - and it may well become law before the end of the 108th Congress. The much-hailed 9/11 Commission report released in July recommends a federal identification card and, worse, a "larger network of screening points" inside the United States. Does this mean we are to have "screening points" inside our country where American citizens will be required to "show their papers" to government officials? It certainly sounds that way!

As a practical matter, we already have a national ID card: we just subcontract the issuance to the states and link it to some silly criteria designed to weed out people who are too dumb to drive. But that almost-kinda-sorta state has some significant advantages over a real national ID, and those advantages are instructive on the benefits of maintaining a strong state government rather than a strong federal government.

Under the current, state-based system, the people with real authority are very close to you. They live in your state, and in the US, that means they are within a few hours drive at most. If you don't like what they're doing, you can lobby them, or try to get them kicked out of office during the next election. If you are having a problem with the appointed officials, you can go over their heads to the politicians who appointed them. And you have a chance of actually making a difference, because you're competing for influence with other residents of your state rather than all 300 million people in the US.

With a federal system, though, the people with real power are the people in Washington. You can't reach them except by telephone, unless you are willing to travel possibly thousands of miles to voice your opinion. Your local officials will have no power to set policy. The disaster that our federal government has become will intrude even further into your life.

Go read the whole thing. Ron Paul's speeches are powerful.