National ID, anyone? Smacks of the Internal Passport...see, Nazi Germany, Soviet Russia, Communist China and North Korea

The only thing this makes me think of is some monocled Nazi, or some ushanka adorned KGB agent saying, "Papers, please."

The Real ID Act.

From a 2/14/05 Cnet News article: In a vote that largely divided along party lines, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a Republican-backed measure that would compel states to design their driver's licenses by 2008 to comply with federal antiterrorist standards. Federal employees would reject licenses or identity cards that don't comply, which could curb Americans' access to everything from airplanes to national parks and some courthouses.

The congressional maneuvering takes place as governments are growing more interested in implanting technology in ID cards to make them smarter and more secure. The U.S. State Department soon will begin issuing passports with radio frequency identification, or RFID, chips embedded in them, and Virginia may become the first state to glue RFID tags into all its driver's licenses.