The Trump administration has, for the first time ever, built a searchable national citizenship data system.
The tool, which is being rolled out in phases, is designed to be used by state and local election officials to give them an easier way to ensure only citizens are voting. But it was developed rapidly without a public process, and some of those officials are already worrying about what else it could be used for.
NPR is the first news organization to report the details of the new system.
For decades, voting officials have noted that there was no national citizenship list to compare their state lists to, so to verify citizenship for their voters, they either needed to ask people to provide a birth certificate or a passport — something that could disenfranchise millions — or use a complex patchwork of disparate data sources.
Person from outside the US here. Please explain me why this is a problem?
In the EU only citizens can vote in national elections, for local elections non-citizens can vote only if they are residents.
I think in most cases where this administration seems to have a good idea it’s important to remember that it’s likely designed to keep them in power.
A national database that the trump admin controls will 100% be exploited for their own gain, just like every other aspect of government is being exploited for their gain now.
You mean, weaponized.
But if/when the Democrats win it will be under their “control”.
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You already can’t vote if you’re not a citizen. There are voter rolls and you get checked off when you go vote.
This almost certainly will be used to deport people without going through due process.
What happens if someone is illegitimately removed from this database? How can you show whether it was a glitch, or deliberate? How do you know if the information they have about you is even right, or get it changed if you need to? Where’s the accountability?
See the UK Post Office accounting scandal, in which a persistent computer error went unfixed for decades and caused hundreds of post office employees to be fired and dragged through courts for corruption that never happened. A good chunk of them committed suicide. The government and the software company both knew about the bug causing the issue, too, but prosecutions continued. “If the computer says it, it must be right”, sort of danger.
The database is the least important part of the system: the organizational structure, rules, and procedures are way more important, because they actively help or harm people.
The database is the backbone of them being able to hurt or harm so I’d say it’s pretty important. Here’s the other problem though. The federal government under Trump is having a really difficult time protecting the personal identifiable information of the citizens. Not only have they allowed private companies to access that data (palantir etc), but they are also having a lot of difficulties with cyber attacks. Part of the reason those cyber attacks haven’t been as effective as they could be is because the data isn’t localized in one place. Now that’s exactly what they’re trying to do with this.
That’s a really weird way of looking at it. Without the database, there’s no central ledger to consult as to whether or not you’re legally a person. Like @atrielienz@lemmy.world said:
Without that starting point, “the organizational structure, rules, and procedures” that rely on the data from the database are impotent.
That’s how I roll.
We’re already seeing them do that without a database. 🤷♂️
Other countries are able to maintain internal databases without using them to screw over their own citizens (except when they do). The problem isn’t the database.
That the someone cannot vote. But you can design system resilient to this.
Paper trail.
You check it. I mean, when I ask for a document I expect to receive it. And I check if it is correct, after all human error can happen anyway.
Every document from the state (any level) I have has a signature that indicate who is ultimately accountable for it.
Database logs and procedural logs is how you know.
If you move state etc you would update your details with the government, just like you already should be doing.
“illegitimately” is the key word there. I’m not interested in what you think happens if everything is working as intended, or your poor reading comprehension. F-, rewrite your answer and address the question or you’ll fail the class and be held back a grade.
Oh the irony. Database and procedural logs are automatic and extensive, that’s why I mentioned them. No amount of “illegitimate” actions would sidestep them. Go back to school.
Logs, eh? You know those are just text files, right? And how do you plan to get access to them to prove any kind of mistake or malfeasance, exactly?
Well no, they’re not just text files lol.
You’re basically saying that everyone that can have anything to do with the database and systems around it are corrupt and working together. That’s a ridiculous conspiracy theory.
No, just the person in charge has to order it. People do what their bosses tell them. Rules and procedures don’t matter if the people in charge ignore them. And again, you’re not getting access to any of the data we’re talking about in the first place, because the government would have to grant that access, and you’re not a person as far as they’re concerned in this scenario. What organisations have you worked for that would just give out information to a person they can’t verify the identity of?
No, it’s happening now in the US. You seem woefully under-informed to be trying to comment on current affairs. Maybe stick to your own country until you’re up to speed.
Same fucking way americans correct issues with SSA, DHS, and the IRS: paperwork. Come the fuck on with this slippery slope bullshit. Ever had a job? The I-9 employment authorization paperwork… just shut up
Yes I think you missed the point.
If you are purged you can’t vote. That becomes a problem on election day.
You might get a feel-good provisional ballot but no real way to track that it got counted.
This is what happened last year, except by a bunch of randos claiming that so-and-so wasn’t a legal voter, with no proof or recourse.
So now they can just check against RNC registered voters and “disable” 10% of people who aren’t registered RNC and no way to prove or possibly even know until after the election passes.
No thanks.
Not to mention they could run this against the voter rolls, so you show as eligible if you check your registration status, but have your ballot tossed (or get turned around at the polling place) because you’re not on this other database.
It’s fascinating to see this find new pastures in the new world. As a proud Russian citizen.
Some day you’ll remember with nostalgie those years of the ruling party actually caring to win elections.
Jokes aside, it’s easier to cheat now because it’s easier to do everything, and that’s because of the Internet and modern computing systems.
You can’t unmince minced meat back.
But you can apply the same change in a different direction and see that today direct non-anonymous democracy is actually plausible, if it’s instituted, for big countries. 100 years ago it simply wasn’t possible. Now it is.
Or that today Soviet system (as in Soviet democracy and not totalitarian state capitalism) is actually possible to build. When they were trying, they couldn’t, they didn’t possess the means.
And that both these things are actually what these people have done to us, but inverted. Our “direct vote” is the data they collect about us to classify and predict us for control. Our “Soviets” are that classification, and our “central planning” is those predictions and control.
They’ve done all this, just directed for their own interest. So maybe one can do the opposite.
Slippery slope? It’s literally been done. Voter roles purged too close to an election to be able to vote. The complaint here is that this database makes it too easy to do what they’ve already done a bunch of times.
You can be snarky, or you can be ignorant. It’s a bad look to be both.
Looking for ways the system can be abused and addressing those loopholes is basic risk assessment, so
I strongly suggest taking a heaping helping of your own advice, mate.
Because they want to use the data for more nefarious purposes to displace non-white American voters.
The US is generally the same where some local elections allow non-citizen residents to vote for local issues.
The issue with this is was not created publicly. We don’t know what kind of data is being uses to determine someone’s status. If someone is private enough to not have any data collected by its source, then they could be denied voting rights despite being legally able to vote.
It also could end up bring used as the sole source for verifying someone’s status, despite having documents to prove otherwise.
I would imagine it’s based on social security numbers.
So it’s credit score based?
It’s not a problem. It’s fair to assume anything the Trump administration does is nefarious.
Every region in the world has its way of doing things. When new layers of control are added, it makes some people nervous.
When the new controls are perhaps mismanaged and corrupt, promising to do more than advertised, it makes some people angry. Especially during an increase of lawlessness and corruption of the central government. Especially when it uses the same messaging which has already harmed many
The ONLY People who Are WORRIED about This are STUPID LIBRULS trying to ILLEGALLY Vote! Everyone else is TOTALLY Fine with this because there’s NO WAY a Database like This can be Misused by a Government Deporting LEGAL CITIZENS and trying to Make GAY AND TRANS PEOPLE ILLEGAL!
With everything he does the issue is the implementation. Deport criminal aliens? I’m all for it, but most of the deportees have no criminal record or they accuse them of crimes as if it’s the same thing as a conviction.
Part of Trump’s grand plan is to make federal elections span only a single day. So maybe you check your status the day before and everything is fine, but the day of voting a glitch in the system says it can’t verify your citizenship. That’s it! No votes for you this year!
Don’t see the problem. For years in Italy elections were a one day only events (normally a Sunday) and everything worked fine.
There are solutions since the system need to be resilient, note that the glitch could be even not “wanted” so while you can think that $HATED_CANDIDATE want to keep his opponents away from the voting, in the same way $HATED_CANDIDATE want to make sure that his supporters can vote.
Illegal immigration is a crime.
Actually it’s a civil offense akin to a parking ticket which is separate from criminal charges.
It’s a crime.
“Improper entry” through illegally crossing a border is a crime, but the majority of undocumented immigrants in the US don’t enter that way. “Unlawful presence” after a visa expires or is denied receives civil penalties rather than criminal, meaning they can’t lead to imprisonment but only fines or a court action like deportation.
Doubt, especially given what we saw from 2021-early 2025.
You’re free to go look at the statistics easily found, I’m not gonna do your homework for you. Were you at the border?
The crime of wanting a better life and pulling your bootstrap that is.
Do it legally.
Is selling meth “wanting a better life and pulling your bootstrap”?
If they are selling method then simple police work is needed to catch them. No need for ICE. Be intellectually honest, you know selling meth isn’t really happening.
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Technically, yes, because it leaves a lot of money. Funny way of saying you have never worked a slave-wage job in your life. But immigrants aren’t selling meth, though, because that would be a FEDERAL crime and not a CIVIL OFFENSE. Curious comparison to reach for immediately.
You said that commuting a crime of wanting a better life is ok, so I asked if wanting a better life by selling meth is ok……and you said yes….so yeah, your opinion isn’t really necessary after that.
Parking illegally is a crime, bub.
Not surprised a MAGAt can’t weigh not only the severity of the crime, but the motivations, its consequences, its long history, and overall social impact, and still decide they would rather lick boots instead. Good luck picking all that fruit in Texas and constructing those homes after a hurricane in Florida, though, champ. Send pics of your proud & hard work.
Also outside the US, and the “problem” is that people - pretty much exclusively democrat voters - want illegal immigrants to be able to vote, or at least don’t want their illegal votes to not be counted, because they overwhelmingly vote Democrat since the Democrats are the ones importing them and giving them freebies.
And I’m here to believe that my MAGA Latino relatives living in the US are the exception to the rule? 😂 What about my extended family? And their friends and families? And theirs in turn?
What the Democrats want is to run local elections for local issues, and have the people affected vote because it affects them directly. Or what, did you get confused as usual and are talking about the general elections?
So you’re admitting the democrats want illegals to vote in elections?
Democrats? 😂 Buddy, this is a bipartisan event. If the city counsel decides what to do with the initiatives, why are you blaming the Dems? That the democrats are fine with that speaks to compassion for small issues that betters lives.
I hope you realize this doesn’t mean electing officials.
You literally said “what democrats want” in your last paragraph of your last post you turnip.
Yeah, what lower case democrats (and by extension capital D Democrats allegedly) want and believe in as a core tenet is for the public to vote on small scale measures that affect them directly. Shocker, I know. But tell me, did you think they meant elections instead of these issues? Because you’re glossing over the scale of these initiatives quite conveniently.
Also, should my country stop taking young people’s votes? Imagine children voting to give an opinion for the local council to hear! I may just clutch my pearls thinking they’re electing officials.
You need to look up the definition of the word “election” mate.
Of all the things you could’ve said, that’s what you chose to comment on? Don’t start looking silly now and start arguing semantics. You came at this strong. What happened? Losing confidence all of a sudden when called out?
Anyway, I’d love that for you!
I don’t know if you know, but generally speaking, an election is a vote held to choose who holds political power. And less commonly, it’s used in the general sense to make a generic choice. I chose one definition over the other deliberately to make a distinction about the purpose of votes on a referendum or ballot initiative that are less commonly said to have been “elected”. But you know, I won’t get mad if you “elect” cake for breakfast over scrambled eggs. You do you, boo.
Your post is blatant disinformation. Undocumented immigrants overwhelmingly vote not at all. Voting illegally in the US is difficult, and often prosecuted.
I live in the US. Most of the people I know are Democrat-aligned. None of them want undocumented immigrants to vote. None of them import undocumented immigrants.
Doubt.