Civil rights group marks MLK Day with call for 'Trump card' national ID
A prominent civil rights group is marking Martin Luther King Jr. Day by pressing President Trump to honor his promise to create a national photo ID card for citizens.
Martin Luther King III, the oldest son of the iconic civil rights leader and a co-chairmen of the Drum Major Institute, met with Trump two years ago on MLK Day. During that meeting, the then president-elect endorsed the idea of a national photo ID. This year, the group is calling on Trump to follow through.
William Wachtel, co-founder of the Drum Major Institute, said the group sees the issue as critical to ensuring King's work to remove barriers to voting.
[...] The idea has invited controversy in the past, in particular over privacy concerns. In 2013, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) introduced a measure, the Protect Our Privacy Act, attached to a Senate immigration bill. The Paul amendment sought to prevent the creation of a national ID card, citing worries that it would make it easier for the government to track people. Wachtel sought to ease concerns about such an ID, saying it would not be mandatory and would only be an option for those who sought it.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 22 2019, @12:42AM
Only requires a birth certificate for your initial id or license (id can gotten at 15 or 16 regardless of driver's permit status, although almost nobody does), and a thumbprint (pre-9/11 fraud prevention, also required at banks for more than a 100 or 1000 dollar deposit now.) Even my last passport 10 years ago only required a birth certificate plus state id photocopy for certification. Maybe this has changed in the years since, but if it has it is not because the need for more security has increased. As an alternative, go read Nevada's state id requirements. They have the same requirements as a federal employee or commercial transport worker id, which is full handprints and a bunch of background checking.