Remember when Republicans swore up and down they’d never allow a government-backed digital ID system? The same technology that lets bureaucrats and Big Tech track your purchases, movements, and even your “social trust score”? Well, buckle up—because they just did it anyway.
While President Trump’s administration has largely stayed quiet on the issue, Republican lawmakers in Congress have quietly joined the digital ID bandwagon. Sen. Mike Lee and Rep. John James are now pushing the App Store Accountability Act, a bill marketed as “protecting children online.” But buried deep in the fine print is language that would force Americans to submit digital identity verification—government IDs, facial scans, or biometrics—to an “approved provider” before they can access certain apps or websites.
That’s not protecting kids. That’s building the foundation for a federal surveillance grid.
Even worse, it comes as federal agencies—still following Joe Biden’s executive order—are rolling out “privacy-preserving digital IDs” nationwide. The Social Security Administration, TSA, and even state DMVs are piloting mobile driver’s licenses that link to federal systems. The government calls it “convenience.” What it really means is traceability—a digital paper trail of where you go, what you buy, and who you are.
And now the very party that promised to stop this is helping it along. Republicans like Lee and James have proven they’re either asleep at the wheel or in on the plan. Whether it’s called “age verification,” “identity modernization,” or “digital convenience,” it all leads to the same place: a society where your every move is logged, scanned, and stored.
Digital IDs aren’t about safety—they’re about control. The GOP was supposed to be the last line of defense against this technocratic nightmare. Instead, they just opened the gate.
It’s time voters remind these so-called conservatives who they work for—and that no amount of Silicon Valley money can buy back our privacy once it’s gone.
? Watch the video to see how close we are to losing every shred of digital freedom under the coming national digital ID system.