Mission creep...

[alexpgp]

Something called the "Travel Promotion Act" was passed by Congress, the Senate voting 79-19 in favor of the bill.

The legislation directs the Department of Homeland Security to collect $10 from foreign citizens who visit the United States under the visa waiver program, which lets people from three dozen or so countries come to the US without having to get a visa first, provided they register online with the DHS before showing up here.

Do you see the "mission creep" here?

The "Department of Homeland Security" is supposed to be protecting the country against terrorism threats. Now, that "mission" has been expanded to the collection of money to, of all things, promote travel to the United States.

The monies collected certainly represent a tidy windfall for the travel industry, but I can't help but wonder: Has the threat of terrorism against the United States so abated that the DHS can now be blithely "repurposed" for what amounts to corporate welfare?

I wouldn't be surprised to see two effects from this corporate-welfarist idiocy: (1) reduced travel to the United States, as folks seesawing between vacationing in the US and any other country not intent on collecting a sawbuck per head just to get in choose to go somewhere else, and (2) increased hassle and expense for US travelers to other countries, as those countries impose tit-for-tat fees and/or other requirements, like having to get a visa (always a fun activity).

With antics like this, you'd almost think Congress wants to prolong the recession!

Cheers...

Comments

[tamaraland.livejournal.com]

We had a bunch of non-practicing Americans around the dinner table last night and were thinking that Homeland Security antics played no small part in Chicago losing the Olympic bid. Under current visa regulations, the number of athletes who would have to jump through hoops to get visas, even under a special circumstance streamlined process, would be huge, expensive and difficult to imagine being well executed.

I do worry about there being fees and visa requirements imposed on US travellers in revenge, as that tends to happen. I remember even in the 80s we had to have visas to go to France.