National ID passed fraudulently
Sunday, May 29th, 2005The RealID Act passed unanimously, not because it was a good idea (horrible idea, actually, and several Senators voiced their concerns, but it wasn’t allowed any debate), but because it rode on a bill titled “Emergency Appropriations for the War on Terror and Tsunami Relief” (HR1268). Any opposition to something like that would mean no re-election, no matter what was attached to it. This is a Very Bad Idea. People from both parties (and any other party, and independents) recognize this fact and agree.
The solution to shit like this is so unbelievably obvious that I have become paranoid about secret societies threatening officials if they were to rid the system of such a flaw. The solution is thus: Only make laws on one matter at a time–absolutely NO amendments or additions of any kind are to be attached to a bill. If this happened, HR1268 wouldn’t have passed, even if there were any attached language, because the title itself points to two completely different things: defense and foreign aid. Granted they’re both about receiving funds (”emergency funds” no less, meaning “don’t even think about this bill, much less debate–just pass it or we’ll all die!”). However, money is not an end, it’s a means, so any bill about money can only be about money going to one specific thing, and nothing else. Thus, “Emergency Appropriations for the War on Terror and Tsunami Relief” would have been split up to be “Emergency Appropriations for the War on Terror” and “Emergency Appropriations for Tsunami Relief,” with no other language in it–it would simply state how much would be appropriated and where that money would come from. That’s it.
Requiring bills to be so incredibly simple and minimalistic would make it difficult to sneak in self-serving legislation. That, and they need to be written in plain English. Not political bullshit.
