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Bill to empower Marco Rubio to revoke passports draws public backlash (MSNBC)

House Republicans eyeing legislation that would give the Trump administration, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in particular, broad powers to revoke American citizens’ passports are having second thoughts in the face of public backlash.
(...)
After facing outrage from activist groups and civil liberties experts, a spokesperson for the House Foreign Affairs Committee told various outlets, including The Intercept, on Monday that Mast had introduced an amendment to strike that provision from the bill. But it still needs approval when the committee meets Wednesday for markup, meaning there’s still a chance these expanded powers could make their way into the final bill.

Full article

-- Mike Beebe

Posted by
3013 posts

If I said what I wanted to say, I’ll probably be banned from the website

Posted by
5340 posts

I'm not sure if it's a good or bad thing that your neighbours up north have a front row seat to watch this sitcom. Pass the popcorn please...

Posted by
7709 posts

If you have actually...

"...knowingly aided, assisted, abetted, or otherwise provided material support to an organization the Secretary has designated as a foreign terrorist organization pursuant to section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1189)...

...then you have much larger problems than losing your passport.

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/119/hr5300/text

I doubt the US Secretary of State has the inclination or time - or the authority, under this clause - to bother RS forum members who are not sending checks to terrorists. (If you are sending checks to terrorists, stop payment now.)

Our passports are far more likely to be revoked for not sending checks to the IRS... I'm sure that should have at least a few of us shivering. But this media fearmongering should not.

Posted by
678 posts

What if the secretary of state nor anyone in this administration is not the right person or people to give this power? What if they designate groups that have heretofore not be considered terrorists groups and starts designated groups like oh say LGBT groups, BLM, the Sierra club, Democratic Party as terrorists? Or "the left"?

The guy who was running DOGE, Musk, just said the other day "The left is the party of murder". Anyone on the left is a terrorist? Hence., no passport for you? Anyone who is trans? Are they are terrorist?

Cavalierly saying no one should worry about this seems to misread the moment in history we are in.

Rick Steves is an advocate for travel. For travel is a way to see different perspectives, to learn, to enrich ourselves, to share, to understand. Reducing travel by taking away passports seems at odds with Rick Steves's core philosophy.

Seems to me that keeping one's mouth shut about the potential loss of freedoms is not how to react.

Happy travels.
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Posted by
252 posts

Do you think the revocation of passports is meant to keep certain people in - or - certain people out? Is the revocation of a passport a synonym for revocation of citizenship?

Posted by
9543 posts

What if I get mine revoked because I haven't lived there for over 3 decades? Good possibility. My right to vote by mail is sure on the line.

Posted by
7709 posts

David, it's my sincerest belief that if the "what ifs" you bring up happen, passports and foreign travel will not be mentioned. Millions of new "offenders" will instead be concerned about trials, massive fines and 20 year prison sentences. Not their plans for Paris. Their ensuing inability to "see different perspectives" will be irrelevant. You seem to be pursuing some topic other than travel.

Posted by
678 posts

Russ, I appreciate different perspectives. I am concerned as a traveller that we are contemplating giving additional powers to deny travel. That is a big deal to me. You seem to think it is not. We disagree.

I hope you are right and there is nothing to worry about.

Happy travels.

Posted by
1124 posts

Hey folks, every now and then politics and travel intersect heavily. I'm allowing the thread as the information is clearly important to the subject of travel - especially given other high-profile politically motivated issues at the border in recent months - even if at this point it affects significantly less than 1% of travelers and the grand majority of you should feel confident in your travel plans.

Be sure to inform your representatives what you think about this proposal, and the importance of travel in the land of the free.

Also, because this information is heavily political, I'm locking the thread.