High Value Data Elements

When I heard the Department of Homeland Security plans to start requiring an incredible list of information from anyone who wants to visit the U.S., whether they're from one of the many countries traditionally allied with the U.S. or not, I couldn't believe it. But then I thought... how else can the Trump regime destroy and embarrass this country? Of course they're serious.

They've filed notice of their intent here. 

Here is one description of what they call "high value data elements":

NEW: Five years of social media history is only a fraction of what the US Government will shortly demand of overseas visitors. The full requirements will end tourism in the United States. Below is the full, mind-blowing list. THEY. WANT. YOUR. DNA.

[In addition to 5 years of social media], the demands also include:
- All your biometrics: face, fingerprint, DNA, and iris
- All your phone numbers from the last 5 years
- All your email addresses from the last 10 years
- IP addresses & metadata from your submitted photos
- Names of your family members (parents, spouse, siblings, children)
- All your family members' phone numbers from the last 5 years
- Your family members' dates of birth
- Your family members' places of birth
- Your family members' residencies
- All business phone numbers from the last 5 years
- All business email addresses from the last 10 years.

NOTE: these are just the requirement from non-VISA countries. The demands from everywhere else will be likely even worse. Tourism is (was!) worth $2.3 TRILLION to the US economy.
News Eye

I went to Russia once and the visa process was onerous but I wasn't required to hand over five years of social media history.
Tom Tomorrow

The decline of democracy in the US means you can’t visit the US if you commented on the decline of democracy in the US. 



You will have to pay $250 for the honor of also turning over all of your personal information. At least once you get past the border, you can enjoy America's amazing national parks - for an extra $100 per person for foreign visitors in addition to the entry fee. So if you are a family of four, its a grand for visas, and another $400 for every national park. I was in Europe a while back and people were talking a lot about digital identity rights, but to come to the US, you have to hand over your personal information to the US government, which will then be handed over to a 22 year old DOGEr whose dream gig is Palantir.
Don Moynihan

Dictator shit right here. Not a single person allowed into the country without swearing fealty to the local warlord.
Sam Bergman @violanorth.bsky.social 

As the instructions say,

Written comments and/or suggestions regarding the item(s) contained in this notice must include the OMB Control Number 1651-0111 in the subject line and the agency name. Please submit written comments and/or suggestions in English. Please use the following method to submit comments: Email. Submit comments to: CBP_PRA@cbp.dhs.gov

From the way the document is formatted, it's not totally clear which "agency" they're referring to — CBP? DHS? I guess CBP is an agency while DHS is a department, so it's probably CBP. Opaqueness is the brand, after all. Not that they'll care what our comments say, anyway. They provide a phone number that one could call to ask which agency to refer to, I suppose: 877-227-5511.

The comments appear to be going to the Chief of the Economic Impact Analysis Branch... so talking about the obvious economic impact of this outrageousness may be worth doing. Since we all know they don't care about civil liberties or that our country is perceived as a repressive police state. 

Oh, and get this!

Written comments and suggestions from the public and affected agencies should address one or more of the following four points: 
(1) whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; 
(2) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; 
(3) suggestions to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and 
(4) suggestions to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.

Wow, wow, wow. Is the proposed collection necessary? Is it a burden?

The requested changes "were submitted to and approved by OMB [that's Russell Vought, remember] through an emergency clearance, with the justification of an unanticipated event and reasons to believe following the normal PRA process would result in public harm." 

Probably the same kind of emergency Kristi Noem used to award the $200 million no-bid contract to her insider friend to make horsey ads.

Yes, I bet it as an emergency based on unanticipated events that would result in public harm. That makes perfect sense. Sure, Russ.