U.S Puts New Passport Requirements On Hold

Rules Suspended in Response to Surge of Passport Applications

(AP)  The House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly Friday to delay for 17 months new rules requiring passports for U.S. land and sea travelers entering the United States from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda.

The State Department has been flooded with passport applications since new rules requiring passports for air travelers went into effect in January. The resulting backlog has caused delays of up to three months for passports and ruined or delayed the travel plans of thousands of Americans.

In response, the government last week already temporarily waived a passport requirement for air travel, provided people can demonstrate they have applied for a passport.

But the Homeland Security Department is still pressing ahead to require passports of everyone driving across the border into Canada or Mexico beginning in January 2008; a rule that some experts believe will lead to a fourfold increase in demand for new passports.

The 379-45 House vote Friday matches a provision included in the Senate's version of a homeland security spending measure, approved by the Appropriations Committee Thursday.

"Nobody can say with the straight face that the federal government is ready for this," said Steve LaTourette, a Republican "My amendment simply asks the DHS to slow down and get it right this time."

The passport application surge is the result of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative that since January has required U.S. citizens to use passports when entering the United States from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean by air. It is part of a broader package of immigration rules enacted after the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

Lawmakers have been besieged with pleas of help from infuriated constituents who cannot get their passports even though they applied for them up to four months ago.

Last year, Congress gave the Homeland security and State departments additional time to get ready for the new passport rules, but they opted not to take advantage of the leniency. Now, increasingly frustrated lawmakers want to mandate the 17-month delay.

"The Administration is walking blithely toward a cliff with this program, and they're threatening to take millions of Americans with them," said Sen. Pat Leahy, a Democrat. "Their competence in being able to get this right was already in question, and when they keep insisting they'll be ready in six months, so is their judgment."

[forthepeopl1]

THIS IS AMERICA'S ACCOUNTABILITY OVERSITE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


nJULY 21 2007 IS WHEN AMERICANS WILL BE FREE AGAIN

EVERYONE THAT WANTS TO HELP WITH THIS SHOULD BE TALKING TO ALL MEDIA OUTLETS AND TELLING THEM THAT AMERICANS ARE READY TO TAKE WASHINGTON ON AND ITS NOT A FEW AMERICANS ITMILLIONS OF AMERICANS THAT WILL TAKE BACK THERE COUNTRY..

I AM WILLING TO GIVE MY BLOOD FOR ALL AMERICANS TO GET OUR COUNTRY BACK TO WHAT OUR FORFATHERS WANTED.

AM A VET AND AM READY TO TAKE CHARGE OF THIS AMERICAN BOYCOT/COOP IF WE THE PEOPLE DONT DO THIS NOW WE WILL BE GIVENING UP ON OUR CONSTITUTION AND WHAT ALL OUR VET HAVE DIED FOR..

DAVID A BELANGER,VET US ARMY,[e-mail]

ok so wants to join in on this great american REVOLUTION


they cant kill millions of americans at once so if we charge them all at once we will win and take them out and hang them all..

just like in the old days of the west...hang them from the trees in front of the whitehouse and see how many start telling the truth about what they have done to all us americans..


its time to take all this *** and take our government back now..

they are the ones that started this and we will finnish it now..we the people will take our country back and everyone in washington can sit there and thinks we the people are ok with what they are doing..go ahead and let them think that we are comming to take them out

[randalds]

Of course there should be a delay. 17 months is good, but 17 years would be better! One of the few things that "works" in Mexico is the tourism industry and requiring a passport for Americans to come back across the border, instead of the already required drivers license can't help but damage it.