Implemented carefully and properly, a national ID card could solve many problems. For example, some states require showing a valid ID before voting (and all should). A national ID with biometric verification would make it more difficult to get away with voter fraud or voting in multiple states. It could also be used when applying for credit, making identity theft harder to get away with. Identity theft costs us all many billion dollars a year.

I have a passport, a driver’s license, a pilot’s license, a Social Security card, and a credit card. I’m already in multiple databases. One part of the legislation for establishing the card could be mandatory termination and criminal prosecution of any government offical who abuses the system – similar to but more rigorous than the existing laws against IRS employees who misuse tax records.

There is one thing that has potential for abuse but is almost certain to happen – a national database for medical records. Newt and Hillary are among those pushing for such a database to speed medical care. Paper records are obsolete and many health care providers are going to electronic records. A centralized system would speed care, especially when someone is traveling. However, it also opens up very personal information to the possibility of abuse.