By REAL ID, Real Control: How Trump Is Handing MAGA to the WEF on a Silver Platter
by Matt Agorist | The Free Thought Project
This May, the long-delayed enforcement of the Real ID Act finally kicks in. Originally passed in 2005 under the guise of post-9/11 security, Real ID standardizes driver’s licenses nationwide and ties them into a federal identification system. What started as a measure to “secure the skies” has now become a cornerstone in what many privacy advocates fear is a looming surveillance state.
Real ID isn’t needed and won’t stop terrorists from hijacking planes.
Most of the 9/11 hijackers held Saudi, UAE, Egyptian, or Lebanese passports.
Real ID is a national standard and database of IDs that is primarily a tool for control of Americans.
Trump shouldn’t enforce it.
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) April 12, 2025
According to the Department of Homeland Security, after May 7, 2025, Americans without a Real ID will be barred from entering federal facilities and boarding commercial flights. It’s being sold as a benign upgrade to our ID system—but the implications run far deeper.
The recent passage of the SAVE Act has only intensified these concerns. Marketed as a voter integrity measure, it mandates documentary proof of citizenship—such as a passport, birth certificate, or Real ID—to register to vote. While supporters call it common sense, critics argue it sets a dangerous precedent. A centralized system used to verify voting eligibility today could easily expand into other facets of life tomorrow.
Opposition isn’t just coming from civil liberties groups like the ACLU. It’s coming from liberty-minded conservatives like Rep. Thomas Massie, who called Real ID “real stupid” and warned that “It does nothing to stop terrorism, but creates a national database which can be used to track law-abiding citizens.” He’s not wrong.
