Ron Paul Liberty Report - Weekly Update - E-Verify Threatens Us All
Aired: 2018-02-12
Duration: 04:47


=== Mistaken Identifications Costly? (02:47) ===

[00:00:12]  Hello everybody, thank you for tuning in to the weekly report.
[00:00:16]  In addition to funding for a border wall and other border security measures, immigration hardliners are sure to push to include mandatory e-Verify in any immigration legislation considered by Congress.
[00:00:31]  e-Verify is a voluntary program where businesses check job applicants' social security numbers and other information, potentially including biometric identifiers like fingerprints, against information stored in a federal database to determine if the job applicants are legally in the United States.
[00:00:54]  Imagine how much time would be diverted from saving consumers and growing the economy if every U.S. business had to comply with e-Verify.
[00:01:05]  Also, collecting the relevant information and operating the mandatory e-Verify system will prove costly to taxpayers.
[00:01:15]  Millions of Americans could be denied jobs because E-Verify mistakenly identifies them as illegal immigrants.
[00:01:24]  These Americans would be forced to go through a costly and time-consuming process to force the government to correct its mistake.
[00:01:34]  It is doubtful employers could afford to keep jobs open while potential hires went through this process.
[00:01:43]  A federal database with social security numbers and other identifying information is an identify thief's dream.
[00:01:52]  Given the federal government's poor track record for protecting personal information, is there any doubt mandatory e-Verify would put millions of Americans at risk for identity theft?
[00:02:06]  Some supporters of E-Verify deny the program poses any threat to civil liberties, as it will only be used to verify citizenship or legal residency.
[00:02:18]  They even claim a system forcing individuals to have their identity certified by the government is not a national ID system.
[00:02:27]  These individuals are ignoring the history of government programs sold as only affecting a particular group or being used for a limited purpose being expanded beyond initial targets.
[00:02:41]  For example, Americans were promised that only the wealthiest Americans would ever pay income taxes.
[00:02:48]  And some of the Patriot Act's worst provisions that we were told would only be used against terrorists are routinely used to investigate drug crimes.

=== Government Overreach Risks (01:47) ===

[00:03:00]  E-Verify almost certainly will be used for purposes unrelated to immigration.
[00:03:08]  One potential use of e-Verify is to limit the job prospects of anyone whose lifestyle displeases the government.
[00:03:16]  This could include those who are accused of failing to pay their fair share in taxes, those who homeschool or do not vaccinate their children, or those who own firearms.
[00:03:30]  Unscrupulous government officials could use E-Verify against those who practice anti-war, anti-tax, anti-surveillance, and anti-Federal Reserve activism.
[00:03:43]  Those who consider this unlikely should remember the long history of the IRS targeting the political enemies of those in power and the use of anti-terrorism laws to harass anti-war activists.
[00:03:58]  They should also consider the current moves to outlaw certain types of politically incorrect speech, such as disputing the alleged consensus regarding climate change.
[00:04:11]  Claiming that mandatory E-Verify is necessary to stop illegal immigration does not make it constitutional.
[00:04:19]  Furthermore, having to ask the federal government for permission before obtaining a job is a characteristic of an authoritarian government, not a free one.
[00:04:31]  History shows that mandatory E-Verify use will expand beyond immigration enforcement and could be used as a tool of political repression.
[00:04:42]  All those who value liberties should oppose mandatory E-Verify.