Has Bush Been Reading the Canadian Press?

Echoing Canadian complaints, the President yesterday expressed reservations about new U.S. requirements for entering the country. "When I first read that in the newspaper about the need to have passports, particularly the day crossings that take place, about a million for instance in the state of Texas, I said, 'What's going on here?'" Recognizing the dynamics of the problem, he pointed out, "If people have to have a passport, it's going to disrupt the honest flow of traffic."

This is mostly being reported as his calling for a review of the new policies, but I'm not sure it's all that. Once he's fully briefed, I have full confidence the President will be on board. The Globe and Mail is correct to point out that Bush isn't questioning the policies themselves so much as the details. As I wrote last week, biometrics are a distinct possibility for shortcutting the process, and the President brought that up again yesterday, suggesting finger imaging as a substitute. Bush wants the same kind of rigorous identification processes to cross the border that State and Homeland Security are calling for, he just wants to sidestep the cumbersome and time-consuming practice of pulling out and examining an actual passport. His comments have done little to change the issue.