President George W. Bush
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President,

We, the undersigned, urge you to reject recognition by Federal agencies of foreign-issued consular identification cards, including the matricula consular. Such cards do not satisfy the minimum standards of verifiability by U.S. intelligence and law enforcement authorities necessary to qualify as secure identification. Thus, acceptance of the cards by Federal agencies would create a national security risk. Furthermore, since foreign consulates operating in the United States issue consular cards to their nationals without regard for the individuals' legal presence in the country, insofar as illegal aliens use consular cards to access public and private services in the United States, recognition of the cards by Federal institutions for the provision of services undermines Federal immigration law by permitting illegal aliens to access services for which they may not be eligible.

We also respectfully request that you urge the Treasury Department to delay implementation of the proposed regulations, mandated by the USA PATRIOT Act, regarding the documents non-citizens may use to open bank accounts. A recent Roper Poll determined that 75 percent of Americans oppose allowing illegal aliens to open bank accounts in the United States; yet that is exactly what the proposed Treasury Department regulations sanction [31 CFR Part 103], since they permit aliens to use non-verifiable consular ID cards to open accounts. The Treasury Department's new regulations are an abuse of the public trust, since they ignore the will of the American people, they facilitate the ease with which foreign criminals and terrorists can conduct financial transactions in the United States, and they undermine U.S. immigration law.

We find it remarkable that under the Treasury Department's new regulations, U.S. banks are now free to accept Mexico's matricula consular card-a card so unreliable banks in Mexico won't even accept it-from illegal aliens in order to open bank accounts in the United States. Moreover, it makes no sense that while one Federal agency (DHS) is charged with deporting illegal aliens, another agency (Treasury) is allowing them to open bank accounts.

In the interest of responsible policy-making, national security, and the public good, we strongly urge you to reject acceptance at the Federal level of all foreign consular identification cards.

Sincerely,

Paul M. Weyrich, Chairman and CEO
Free Congress Foundation

James R. Edwards, Co-Chairman
Citizens for Conservative Government

Brian Darling, Co-Chairman
Citizens for Conservative Government

Lori L. Waters, Executive Director
Eagle Forum

James Boulet, Jr, Executive Director
English First

Craig Nelsen, Executive Director
Friends of Immigration Law Enforcement

cc:

Tom Ridge, Secretary of Homeland Security
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Washington, D.C. 20528

John Snow, Secretary of the Treasury
1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20220

John Ashcroft, Attorney General of the United States
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20530-0001