Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem recently announced in a video that starting May 7, in order to travel by air or visit federal buildings in the United States, you will need a Real ID. As a response to the September 11 attacks, Congress passed the Real ID Act of 2005 and established a 2008 deadline for obtaining one. However, due to multiple states and territories refusing to comply, the deadline was delayed numerous times in the subsequent two decades.
The race to acquire a Real ID in time for the May 7 deadline is causing significant delays at Departments of Motor Vehicles nationwide, with some even opting to open separate offices with the sole purpose of processing Real IDs. The Department of Homeland Security estimates that only 61 percent of driver’s licenses will be compliant by the deadline, and while Americans can still travel domestically with a passport, only an estimated 45 percent have a valid passport. Concerns that the sudden announcement that the Real ID deadline would not be extended will cause significant delays for travelers have many questioning Homeland Security’s decision, especially with Memorial Day, the fourth busiest travel day in 2024, so soon after.
However, this crackdown on domestic travel should not come as a surprise. President Donald Trump’s entire second term has been defined by thwarting illegal immigration. The extremes his administration has gone to have crossed over into the close surveillance of people legally in the country — and this situation is no different.
One of Trump’s first actions as president was to end the CBP One program, which was launched in January 2023. The program was a mobile application that allowed asylum seekers to schedule appointments to receive asylum in the United States. Trump ended the program just hours after beginning his second term. In April, those who had already received asylum through the CBP One app were informed they had seven days to vacate the country.
This crackdown on those who entered the U.S. legally is not limited to asylum seekers. Mahmoud Khalil, a green card holder, was arrested and detained in a Louisiana ICE facility. Rumeysa Ozturk, who is on a student visa, was also detained by ICE. Both were arrested due to their support for Palestine amid the ongoing genocide. Kilmar Abrego Garcia was mistakenly deported to El Salvador, despite having protected status against deportation. The Trump administration has defied court orders to facilitate his return to the U.S. and instead has opted to attempt to claim, without evidence, that Garcia is a member of the gang MS-13.
The Trump administration has made it clear its issue is not with illegal immigrants, but with immigrants in general. Their definition of what constitutes an American citizen is what is guiding their decision-making regarding who to deport, evidenced by their attempt to end birthright citizenship. The executive order signed by President Trump asserts that any child born to undocumented parents in the United States is not a citizen of the country, despite the longstanding precedent set by the landmark case United States v. Wong Kim Ark. Predating Wong Kim Ark’s case, jus soli was common law in the United States as European settlers immigrated here in the eighteenth century and their descendants obtained citizenship by birth.
The official implementation of Real ID is simply another attempt by the Trump administration to ostracize those who are not natural-born Americans. The documents required for a Real ID are not easily accessible, especially for more vulnerable groups. Required documents vary based on state: in New Jersey, for example, you need two proofs of residential address, one proof of your full Social Security number, and six overall points of identification. Approved documents like a valid U.S. passport, birth certificate, or utility bill are difficult to come by for certain groups, like married women or low-income individuals.
The Real ID empowers D.M.V. and M.V.C. workers to make judgments about the legal status of applicants. The Trump administration is deputizing state-level workers to perform federal government functions. Undocumented immigrants can obtain Real IDs, but the process is risky and fully subject to the whims of the state employee at the D.M.V. or M.V.C. Additionally, Real ID has long been criticized for making it easier for the federal government to track Americans, as it consolidates their information into a database.
Despite Noem’s assertion that Real ID is meant to protect Americans, there is little evidence to support that claim. Rather, the overwhelming amount of evidence suggests this will serve as a deep inconvenience for American travelers and the T.S.A. for the next few months.
Conversations between President Trump and El Salvador’s president Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office, in which Trump suggested sending “homegrowns” to El Salvadoran prisons, make it clear the safety and security of Americans is not his concern. Trump’s issue is not with illegal immigration. If it was, he would have taken issue with individuals such as Elon Musk, whose brother implied he did not initially immigrate to the U.S. legally.
Rather, Trump is preoccupied with finding a scapegoat to rally Americans around him so he can amass greater control. The narrative that immigrants, not just those here illegally, are taking American jobs, murdering and raping Americans, and are ruining the fabric of American life is all a facade to consolidate power. Trump’s true desire is not to ensure the U.S. is safe for all Americans; it is to give Americans an enemy to focus on while he destroys our institutions and takes control of the nation he pretends to hold dear.
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