mr. chairman , i thank the gentleman from virginia for yielding me this time , and i rise today in very , very strong support of the identification reforms that are in this legislation . 
these reforms , in my opinion , are extremely necessary to help us better protect our identity documents and to secure our borders . 
this legislation will help america to better protect our nation from those who wish to do us harm . 
no longer will we allow terrorists free access to state-issued identity documents as a way to use the tools of our freedom against us . 
no longer will we stand idly by and watch terrorists harm our homeland . 
state-issued driver 's licenses and state identification cards are the most widely used form of identification in the nation . 
it is the backbone , quite frankly , of our identity . 
it provides legitimacy to any person who holds this form of identification . 
driver 's licenses are used in everyday instances , such as boarding an airplane or enrolling in a flight school . 
does that sound familiar ? 
well , it should . 
because according to the 9/11 commission report , all but one of the 9/11 hijackers acquired some form of u.s. identification documents , some by fraud . 
all but one of the hijackers used a state-issued driver 's license on that horrific day . 
even more frightening is the fact that a regular driver 's license is your passport to obtain a commercial driver 's license , from which then , of course , you can then try to obtain a hazardous materials license , an endorsement on your commercial driver 's license . 
it is bad enough to think about giving terrorists access to our roadways and our aircraft , but it is unthinkable to give them access to 40 , 000 gallons of liquid propane , as an example . 
this legislation also closes a loophole which has allowed illegal aliens to get access to our driver 's licenses . 
our message on this issue is clear : if you are not in this country legally , then you will not be given legal sanctions on our roads . 
if you are in america on a visa , you will be issued a driver 's license ; but it will expire on the same day as your visa . 
muhammed atta , as has been said , came to america on a 6-month visa , but he was issued a 6-year florida driver 's license . 
i struggled with this issue , as the chairman had said . 
in my former role as the secretary of state in michigan , where i served as the chief motor vehicle administrator , i was forced to issue drivers ' licenses to illegal aliens . 
unfortunately , michigan is one of the states that continues this practice . 
it has become a state of choice for illegals to obtain a license . 
we must stop this practice . 
i urge my colleagues to support the bill . 
